Thinking about sobriety court for an OWI? Admission is the court’s decision, and the agreement matters as much as the program
I am Mitchell Bisson, a Grand Rapids OWI lawyer. I have litigated for over 15 years. This page explains how Michigan sobriety courts work for people charged with OWI: who can be admitted, what you agree to, how driving is handled while you are in the program, and what finishing the program does and does not change. I do not promise outcomes.
The short answer. For an OWI, sobriety court is a supervised track that starts with a guilty plea and ends with a conviction, not a dismissal. The court must be certified by the State Court Administrative Office, MCL 600.1084(3), and each court decides for itself whom to admit, MCL 600.1064(1). The admission, plea, fee and supervision rules I cite below, MCL 600.1064 to 600.1074, are written for drug treatment courts, and MCL 600.1084 refers back to that chapter only for certification, so I ask how the court you are in applies them. The track built around a restricted license and an ignition interlock is limited to people with two or more convictions under section 625(1) or (3) of the Vehicle Code, or one such conviction after qualifying priors from another state, a local ordinance or federal law. MCL 600.1084(4); MCL 257.304(1). Nothing here predicts how a case will end.
Sobriety court changes how an OWI case is supervised, and in some cases how it is sentenced, but it comes with a guilty plea, regular testing and court oversight. Whether to apply is a legal decision and a personal one, and I go through both sides with you before you decide.
Sobriety court at a glance
| Question | What the statute says | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Who is the license track for? | Two or more convictions for violating section 625(1) or (3), or one such conviction preceded by qualifying priors from another state, a local ordinance or federal law | MCL 600.1084(4); MCL 257.304(1) |
| When can the restricted license start? | After the license has been suspended or revoked for 45 days, and only once the specialty court judge certifies that you are admitted and that an interlock is on each vehicle you own or operate | MCL 257.304(2); MCL 600.1084(6) |
| What if the court is not certified? | It may not charge the program fee, discharge and dismiss a case, receive state program funding, or certify a person to the Secretary of State for a restricted license | MCL 600.1062(5) |
| Where do a court’s rules come from? | A memorandum of understanding with each participating prosecutor, a defense bar representative and community treatment providers, describing each party’s role | MCL 600.1062(1) |
| What does the court review before admission? | Criminal history, any earlier drug treatment court participation, risk of danger or harm, a clinical assessment of alcohol or drug use, and special needs that could affect treatment | MCL 600.1064(3) |
| Can the court check on me during the program? | Yes. It may ask the state police for law enforcement information network records to see whether you are complying with court orders | MCL 600.1070(5) |
| Why is an OWI not dismissed on completion? | Discharge and dismissal is unavailable to a person who has pled guilty to a traffic offense, and an OWI is a traffic offense | MCL 600.1076(4)(d); MCL 600.1060(f) |
| What happens to the vehicle? | The vehicle of a participant in good standing, or one who completes the program, is exempt from immobilization and forfeiture under sections 625n and 904d | MCL 257.304(11) |
Getting in: screening, findings and the agreement
Admission starts with a screening that reaches further than a drug or alcohol test. The review covers your criminal history, including whether you have been in a drug treatment court before and how that went, and the court may ask you for a statement on that point. It adds an assessment of the risk of danger or harm, a clinical assessment of alcohol or drug use as far as practicable, and a look at any special needs that could affect your ability to get treatment and follow court orders. MCL 600.1064(3)(a)-(d). The court may also ask the state police for records from the law enforcement information network. MCL 600.1064(5).
Each court’s rules come from its memorandum of understanding. A court whose program includes people who may qualify for discharge and dismissal, a delayed sentence or a sentencing guidelines deviation may not start the program without one, signed with each participating prosecutor, a defense bar representative and community treatment providers, and it must describe each party’s role. It may also bring in law enforcement, probation and other agencies. MCL 600.1062(1). Because no statewide application form exists, I ask the court and the prosecutor how referrals work in the county where you are charged, and I get the participation agreement in writing before any plea.
Two protections matter before you commit. If you pled guilty and waived the preliminary examination as part of your application and the court does not admit you, you may withdraw the plea and you are entitled to a preliminary examination. MCL 600.1068(5). And if the program you want is in another county, the drug treatment court statute makes a transfer valid only when the defendant, the defense lawyer, the transferring judge and prosecutor, and the receiving judge and a prosecutor of its funding unit all agree. MCL 600.1062(4). That rule is written for drug treatment courts, and MCL 600.1084 does not repeat it for DWI/sobriety courts, so ask whether the court you want follows it. Victims and members of the community may also send the court written statements about whether you should be admitted. MCL 600.1068(4).
What the program asks of you
What the program asks of you is spelled out in your agreement. The court may defer further proceedings or go straight to sentencing and place you on probation or other supervision on the terms the agreement sets. MCL 600.1070(1)(c). Monitoring is close and frequent: interaction among the court, treatment providers, probation and the participant, periodic and random testing for alcohol or drugs, periodic assessments, immediate rewards and sanctions that can include confinement, and treatment services. MCL 600.1072(1). The statutory description of a drug treatment court also calls for a nonadversarial approach by prosecution and defense and ongoing close judicial interaction with each participant. MCL 600.1060(c)(ii), MCL 600.1060(c)(vii). To stay in and finish, you must pay the fines, costs, program fee, restitution and victim assessments and follow every court order. MCL 600.1074(1).
No statute fixes the number of weekly appearances or tests. That comes from the agreement and the court’s own program, which is why I read both before you sign.
Costs deserve their own look. The court must require you to pay, or contribute substantially toward, the cost of treatment and program services, including urinalysis and similar testing and any counseling, but it may waive all or part of the fines, the fee or the treatment costs if paying would be a substantial hardship or would interfere with treatment. MCL 600.1074(3). The program fee must be reasonably related to what the program costs the court to run, as set out in the memorandum of understanding. MCL 600.1070(4). If money is tight, raise it with the court early.
Driving while you are in the program
The license track is narrower than many people expect. It is open to a person whose license was suspended, restricted or revoked based on two or more convictions for violating section 625(1) or (3), or one such conviction preceded by qualifying priors from another state, a local ordinance or federal law, and the program statute uses the same test for placement. MCL 257.304(1); MCL 600.1084(4). The Secretary of State may not issue the restricted license until the license has been suspended or revoked for 45 days and the specialty court judge certifies that you are admitted and that an interlock approved under sections 625k and 625l is installed on each vehicle you own or operate. MCL 257.304(2); MCL 600.1084(6). Other license problems can still block it unless they fall within the exceptions the statute lists. MCL 257.304(3).
A restricted license lets you drive only the vehicle with the interlock, take a driving skills test required by the Secretary of State, and travel to and from listed places: work if it does not require a commercial license, home, court-ordered treatment and support meetings, court hearings and probation appointments, community service, school, regular medical care, court-ordered testing and the interlock provider. A judge may also allow the custodian of a minor child to drive to day care or school activities. You carry proof of your destination and hours and show it on an officer’s request. MCL 257.304(4), MCL 257.304(5).
Violations cost the license. The judge must tell the Secretary of State at once if the court removes you from the program, learns that you drove without an interlock or tampered with, circumvented or removed one without approval, or you are charged with a new section 625 violation, and receipt of that notice results in summary revocation or suspension of the restricted license. MCL 600.1084(7), MCL 600.1084(8). After the program ends, an arrest for a section 625 violation, driving without an interlock, removing one without authorization, or unpaid court-ordered fines and costs from driving can also end the restricted license. MCL 257.304(10)(b), (d).
What finishing the program does and does not change
Finishing the program is recorded, not erased. The court must find on the record, or place a written statement in the file, whether you completed the program or were terminated and why. MCL 600.1076(1). Three provisions close off dismissal for an OWI. The dismissal route is open only to a person who is not charged with and has not pled guilty to a traffic offense, and a Vehicle Code violation involving operation of a vehicle is a traffic offense. MCL 600.1076(4)(d); MCL 600.1060(f). A court also may not admit or keep a person under an agreement that would allow a traffic offense to be dismissed on completion. MCL 600.1068(3). The people who can be dismissed meet other conditions as well: first-time participation, successful completion, no required correctional sentence and no more than one earlier youthful trainee assignment or similar dismissal. MCL 600.1076(4). For an OWI, success means the court enters the adjudication of guilt if it has not already, sentences you if it has not already, and reports the conviction and sentence to the state police marked as successful participation. MCL 600.1076(7).
What completion can still change is the sentence and the license. For a repeat OWI, a mandatory jail term under MCL 257.625(9)(b) or (c) may not be suspended unless the defendant agrees to a specialty court program and completes it. MCL 257.625(9)(d). On the license, an unrestricted license cannot be ordered until the latest of four events: the court tells the Secretary of State you completed the program, the minimum license sanction that would otherwise apply has run, you show at least 1 year of driving with an interlock, and you meet the Secretary of State’s requirements. MCL 257.304(6). Alcohol use during the restricted period, shown by breath, blood, urine or transdermal testing, bars an unrestricted license for at least 1 year unless a second test within 5 minutes showed no alcohol, and so does drug use other than as lawfully prescribed. MCL 257.304(7). Completion and a certificate from the specialty court judge count as positive evidence of abstinence during the program, but that rule does not apply to the one year bar. MCL 257.304(8).
When participation ends early
Termination works like a sentencing hearing. If you are terminated or fail to complete the program, the court enters the adjudication of guilt if it was deferred and then sentences you on the original charges to which you pled guilty. MCL 600.1076(8). A new accusation must be reported to the court, and the judge considers whether to end your participation. A felony conviction for an offense committed after admission requires termination unless, after consulting the treatment team and with the prosecutor’s agreement, the judge keeps you in. MCL 600.1074(2). For a positive test, a missed test or a missed hearing, the statutes set no fixed penalty and leave the response to the court’s sanction schedule. MCL 600.1072(1)(d); MCL 600.1074(1)(e).
What you tell the screener is protected, with a limit. Statements from the preadmission screening, and from assessment, treatment and testing in the program, are confidential, exempt from the Freedom of Information Act and may not be used in a criminal prosecution unless they reveal criminal acts other than, or inconsistent with, personal drug use. MCL 600.1064(4); MCL 600.1072(2). Because of that exception, I go over the screening questions with you before you answer anything beyond your own use. The hearings on completion or termination themselves are open to the public. MCL 600.1076(9).
A third OWI and sobriety court
A third OWI is a felony. After two or more prior convictions, a violation of section 625(1) or (8) carries a fine of $500 to $5,000 and either 1 to 5 years with the Department of Corrections or probation with 30 days to 1 year in county jail and 60 to 180 days of community service. MCL 257.625(9)(c). Two prior convictions also satisfy the placement test for the interlock program. MCL 600.1084(4)(a). The statutory link to sobriety court is the rule that a term of imprisonment under that subdivision may not be suspended unless the defendant agrees to a specialty court program and completes it. MCL 257.625(9)(d). Admission still depends on the court, the prosecutor and the agreement.
How I handle a sobriety court question
- Read the charge and the record. I get your OWI history and the charging papers, and I check what the offense and any priors mean for eligibility.
- Find out how the local program works. I ask the court and the prosecutor about referral, screening and the participation agreement in the county where you are charged.
- Review the agreement before the plea. I go through the terms, the testing and appearance schedule, the costs, and what the agreement says happens on completion or termination.
- Explain what you give up. I explain the guilty plea and the written waivers, and what happens to the plea if you are not admitted.
- Look at the license. I work out how the restricted license and interlock rules apply to you and what the Secretary of State will require.
- Prepare you for screening. I tell you what the evaluation covers and what the confidentiality rules protect and do not protect.
- Stay with you through the program. If a problem comes up, I help you respond before the court acts.
What I need from you
Bring the charging papers, your bond conditions, your driving record and every paper from the court or the Secretary of State. List your prior OWI and drunk driving convictions, including any from another state, with dates and courts. Tell me about any treatment you have had, your work schedule and how you get to work, because the testing and appearance schedule has to fit your life. Do not discuss the case with the police and do not agree to any program terms until we have gone through them.
Where your Kent County OWI case will be heard
I represent clients charged in Grand Rapids, Kentwood, Grandville, Wyoming and across Kent County. A first-offense OWI is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 93 days, or by up to 180 days if the person has an alcohol content of 0.17 grams or more per 100 milliliters of blood, per 210 liters of breath, or per 67 milliliters of urine. MCL 257.625(9)(a)(ii); MCL 257.625(1)(c). The district court has jurisdiction over misdemeanors punishable by up to a year, so that is where it is heard. MCL 600.8311(a). Michigan law sets the Kent County district courts by municipality. The 61st District Court serves the city of Grand Rapids, the 59th serves the cities of Grandville and Walker, the 62A serves the city of Wyoming and the 62B serves the city of Kentwood. MCL 600.8128a; MCL 600.8130(1)-(3). The 63rd District Court serves the rest of Kent County, which includes the cities of Rockford, Lowell, Cedar Springs and East Grand Rapids and the surrounding townships. MCL 600.8130(4). A felony OWI begins in the same district court with an arraignment and a preliminary examination. MCL 600.8311(c), (e). If the magistrate binds the case over, the felony is arraigned in the circuit court, which for Kent County is the 17th Judicial Circuit. MCL 766.13; MCL 600.8311(f); MCL 600.518. The statute contemplates a DWI/sobriety court in either a circuit court or a district court, so I confirm which court would hear your application. MCL 600.1084(3).
Why people hire me for a Michigan sobriety court matter
You work directly with me, the lawyer handling your case. I tell you what the program would require, what the agreement says, what a guilty plea means for you and what happens if the program does not work out. I do not promise outcomes. I prepare each case as if it will be tried, because that preparation is what gives you real choices.
My fee depends on the charge, how complicated the case is and how far it is likely to go. We talk about the fee at the consultation, before you decide whether to hire me.
Questions I hear from people considering sobriety court in Michigan
Can I get a first-offense OWI dismissed by completing a sobriety or treatment court program in Michigan?
Generally no. Admission is discretionary, and nobody has a right to it (MCL 600.1064(1)). An adult must plead guilty on the record first (MCL 600.1068(1)(b)). Discharge and dismissal is barred for a traffic offense, which includes a Vehicle Code misdemeanor like OWI (MCL 600.1060(f), 600.1068(3), 600.1076(4)(d)). On successful completion the court enters the conviction, if not already entered, and sentences under the agreement (MCL 600.1076(7)).
If I enter sobriety court on a second OWI in Michigan, what can end my restricted license without a new conviction?
Several events can. Under MCL 600.1084(7) the specialty court judge must immediately inform the Secretary of State if the court removes you from the program, learns you drove a vehicle without an interlock or tampered with, circumvented, or removed it without approval, or you are charged with a new section 625 violation. Notice results in summary revocation or suspension of the restricted license (MCL 600.1084(8)). A charge is enough; a conviction is not required.
Can I challenge a prior OWI conviction because I did not have a lawyer when I pleaded in Michigan?
Only in a narrow way. Under MCR 6.610(G)(3), a prior conviction cannot enhance a later charge or sentence if you were entitled to an appointed lawyer and had neither a lawyer nor a waiver. People v Reichenbach held that a prior with no actual imprisonment could still enhance, and People v Ingram bars a late attack on a counseled plea for plea-taking defects. The authorities listed here include no published Michigan decision reconciling Reichenbach with the current rule text.
When does Michigan require an ignition interlock device after an OWI?
Michigan requires an interlock for a restricted license after a high-BAC (0.17 or more) conviction under MCL 257.319(8)(h), for the specialty court program under MCL 257.304, and for a hearing officer restricted license under MCL 257.322(6). A court may also order one as a condition of probation under MCL 257.625(24). The device prompts retests while the vehicle is in use, and a reading of 0.025 or more or a missed retest triggers a warning and keeps the vehicle from restarting.
What happens if I tamper with my ignition interlock or have someone else blow into it?
Under MCL 257.625l, tampering with or circumventing the device, asking another person to blow into it so you can drive, or blowing into someone else’s device are misdemeanors punishable by up to 6 months in jail or a $5,000 fine. Driving a vehicle without a required device is also covered, and an officer must impound that vehicle.
Will my car be immobilized after an OWI conviction in Michigan?
It depends on the offense. For a first-offense OWI the court may order immobilization of up to 180 days. For a second OWI within 7 years the court must order 90 to 180 days, and after two or more priors 1 to 3 years. It is also required for OWI causing death or serious impairment. The mandatory orders apply unless the vehicle is forfeited, and specialty court interlock participants in good standing can be exempt.
What counts as a prior conviction for a second or third OWI in Michigan?
Prior convictions include OWI, OWVI, commercial-vehicle alcohol, certain manslaughter and negligent homicide convictions from driving, and equivalent convictions under local ordinances, federal law, or other states. A conviction reduced to OWVI still counts. Convictions from the same transaction count once, and only one underage zero-tolerance conviction counts in most situations.
Will I have to do alcohol screening or treatment after a first OWI conviction in Michigan?
You will be screened. Before sentencing for OWI, the court shall order screening and assessment to decide whether you are likely to benefit from alcohol education or treatment (MCL 257.625b(5)). For a first offense below 0.17 the court may order programs as part of the sentence. At 0.17 or more, or with any prior conviction, it shall order programs for at least one year.
Related Michigan pages
- Grand Rapids OWI lawyer
- Second offense OWI
- Third offense felony OWI
- Ignition interlock and restricted licenses
- Pleas and plea deals
I represent people charged with OWI who are weighing sobriety court in Kent County and West Michigan. Contact me 24/7 by phone or email. Your Rights, My Fight! Call for a free initial consultation.
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Law Offices of Mitchell S. Bisson, 2828 Kraft Ave SE, Suite 295, Grand Rapids, MI 49512, serving Kent County and West Michigan.
This page provides general information about Michigan law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change and every case turns on its own facts. Consult a licensed attorney about your specific situation.