DUI for Drivers Under 21 in Texas
Texas has zero tolerance for drivers under 21. Any detectable amount of alcohol supports a DUI charge under the Alcoholic Beverage Code — a Class C misdemeanor carrying fines, community service and license suspension. If the driver was actually intoxicated, they can be charged with the same DWI an adult would face.
The punishment is not the problem. A nineteen-year-old will finish the community service in a month and forget about it. The record will still be there when they apply for nursing school, a commercial license, a security clearance or an apartment at twenty-eight. That is what you are actually deciding about today.
Why a Class C is worth fighting
Because Class C does not mean small. It means a public record attached to a young person's name for the rest of their life unless something is done about it now. First offenses for minors are also where the widest range of options exists — deferred dispositions, alcohol awareness programs, and outcomes that can later support expunction. Those options narrow quickly once a plea is entered, and a great many families enter one at the first setting because it seemed easier than making a phone call.
What to do before your child says anything else
They have almost certainly already given a statement. Everyone does. What matters now is that they stop discussing it — with police, with friends, in group chats and on social media, all of which are discoverable. Call us before the first court setting, and let us look at how the stop actually happened.