A DUI arrest is serious. It is not your identity, and it is not the end of your future. Louisiana gives you 30 days from the date of arrest to request the hearing that can protect your license.
A real person answers. No judgment, no pressure.
“He is not the type of lawyer that tells you what you want to hear to take your money. He tells and explains to you what you need to hear.”
Google review · verified August 13, 2026See the date your OMV hearing request is due.
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General information under La. R.S. 32:667, not legal advice about your case. Some situations allow up to 90 days. A lawyer can confirm the exact deadline that applies to you.
You probably haven't slept. You don't have to figure out the whole case today. One call gets you a clear picture of the license deadline, your court track, and what to do next.
Call (337) 426-9348If your spouse, child, or family member was arrested, you can make this call for them. We'll tell you what happens next, what the deadlines are, and how to help without panic.
Call for a loved oneWhat happens next
No judgment. You tell us what happened in your own words.
Arrest date, parish, whether your license was taken, whether you took or refused the test.
The license track, the court track, and an honest picture of your options. Free consultation for new criminal charges.
One call gets you the deadline, the court track, and an honest read on your options. Free consultation for new criminal charges.
A real person answers. No judgment, no pressure.
In order
Most people are not researching law the morning after an arrest. Here is the short version of what needs to happen, in the order it needs to happen.
What we handle
A first charge is a misdemeanor, and it is still worth taking seriously. What happens now affects what a second one would look like.
Refusing a breath, blood or urine test carries its own license consequences, separate from the criminal charge, on the same 30-day clock.
If you drive for a living or hold a professional license, the job consequences can outweigh the fine. Say so on the first call.
A third offense becomes a felony in Louisiana. Prior convictions inside the statutory window change everything.
5.0 ★ · 49 Google reviews
“He is not the type of lawyer that tells you what you want to hear to take your money. He tells and explains to you what you need to hear.”
Google review“They handled my case professionally but still treated me like a real person, not just another case number.”
Google review“He stepped in to salvage a case that my previous lawyer had completely neglected.”
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Rating and review count verified August 13, 2026.
Your lawyer
Chad Ikerd has practiced in Acadiana for fifteen years, nine of them full time in the 15th Judicial District public defender's office, where he served as First Assistant Chief Defender. Those are the same courts that handle Lafayette, Acadia, and Vermilion parish cases. He has handled more than 1,250 criminal cases, and he argued and won at the Louisiana Supreme Court, where the court agreed the State's evidence was not enough to prove intoxication.
He is a member of the National College for DUI Defense. And he will tell you the truth about your case, even when it's not what you want to hear.
National College for DUI Defense membership is a professional membership, not a board certification or a specialist designation. Past results depend on the facts of each case and do not predict the outcome of any other matter.
People ask us this in the first minute of the call, sometimes before they say their own name. A DUI arrest is serious, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. But one night is not a verdict on who you are.
What we will not do is scare you into hiring us, promise you a dismissal, or talk down to you. We will tell you what the record actually shows, and what your realistic options look like. Then you decide.
Prefer to type?
Plainly explained
In Louisiana the charge is operating while intoxicated. People use DUI and DWI for the same thing. It applies to alcohol, drugs, or a combination, and it does not require an accident.
For drivers 21 and over, a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher is treated as proof of intoxication under the statute. For drivers under 21, the threshold is 0.02%. Commercial drivers are held to a lower limit still.
By driving in Louisiana you have already consented to chemical testing of breath, blood, or urine when lawfully requested. A refusal carries its own license consequences, separate from the criminal charge, and it starts the same 30-day OMV clock.
A conviction can affect insurance rates, employment, and professional licensing, and Louisiana requires an ignition interlock device in some situations. These consequences often matter more day to day than the fine itself.
General information about Louisiana law, not legal advice about your case. Laws change; confirm current law with a lawyer.
Exposure
Penalties vary with BAC and prior offenses. Louisiana treats repeat offenses more harshly, and a third offense becomes a felony. That is why a first charge is worth taking seriously.
Fine of $300 to $1,000 and 10 days to 6 months in jail. Jail time may be substituted with probation or community service, particularly where the BAC is below 0.15%.
Fine of $750 to $1,000 and 30 days to 6 months in jail, with a mandatory minimum of 48 hours. Community service or court-ordered programs may substitute; penalties are stricter above a 0.15% BAC.
Fine of $2,000 and 1 to 5 years imprisonment, with a non-suspendable minimum of one year. Sobriety court or home incarceration may be available in some cases.
Fine of $5,000 and 10 to 30 years imprisonment, with at least two years mandatory. Certain programs may offer alternatives to incarceration.
Penalties depend on the facts of your case. The point of calling early is to know which of these actually applies to you.
Acadiana
For a lot of people here, the fine is not the frightening part. The paycheck is.
A DWI or a test refusal can carry commercial-license consequences that are separate from, and often harsher than, the ones that apply to a regular driver's license — in some cases even when you were driving your personal vehicle. There may also be employer notification obligations. If you drive for a living, say so in the first minute of the call; it changes the plan.
Many Louisiana licensing boards require you to report an arrest or conviction, and each board sets its own rules and timelines. A first DWI alone does not usually mean losing a license, but a board can impose conditions. The right move is a disclosure plan built with your defense, not after it.
Lafayette Parish publishes arrest and booking information, and third-party sites republish it. We will not promise you privacy we cannot deliver. What we can do is explain accurately what is public, what is not, and which record-relief options may exist later.
General information only. Specific reporting duties depend on your licence, your board and your facts.
That depends on facts a web page cannot see — your BAC, your priors, whether you refused the test. One call sorts it out.
Straight answers
Often yes. A breath result is evidence, not an automatic conviction. How the stop was made, how the device was maintained and calibrated, and how the test was administered can all matter. Whether any of it applies depends on the facts of your case.
If your license was taken you were likely given a temporary receipt. The arrest date starts a 30-day clock to request an administrative hearing with the Office of Motor Vehicles. That is a separate track from your criminal court case, and both matter.
Arrest and booking information is public in Lafayette Parish and gets republished. We will tell you honestly what is visible and what your options are, rather than promise you privacy nobody can guarantee.
Talk to a lawyer first. Pleading quickly can feel like relief, but it is difficult to undo, and it can affect your license, your insurance and your job for years.
Public defenders are real lawyers, and Chad ran a public defender office for years. Whether you qualify depends on your income. Ask us and we will tell you straight, including if we think that is your better option.
No. Missing the administrative deadline affects the license track, but your criminal case is still ahead of you and there may still be options worth pursuing.
The consultation for a new criminal charge is free. Ask directly about the fee, whether it is flat, whether it covers the OMV hearing as well as the criminal case, and what is not included. You will get a direct answer.
Those are three different things. Pretrial diversion is run by the district attorney's office and can avoid a conviction, but the arrest record remains. Article 894 follows a plea and may lead to dismissal later. Expungement is a separate court process you have to file for. A dismissal does not clear your record by itself.
Louisiana law calls it operating while intoxicated, or OWI. People say DUI and DWI for the same thing. The name does not change the charge.
Where we work
The office is in downtown Lafayette at 600 Jefferson Street. We handle OWI cases in Lafayette City Court and in the district courts of the surrounding parishes.
Not sure which parish your case is in? The ticket or bond paperwork will say. Bring it to the first call.
Start today
The deadline clock is already running. Whether it's for you or someone you love, start today.
Calls and texts answered Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Central. Leave a message after hours and we return it the next morning.
