Tag: revocation

Suspension, Revocation, Bar, Habitual Offender, Habitual Violator: What’s the difference?

In Iowa, a person can have their driver’s license taken from them in a number of ways.  For example, a person can be suspended for non-payment of fines, revoked for an operating while intoxicated test refusal or result over the legal limit of drugs and/or alcohol, or barred for other serious violations. It’s important to note that being suspended, revoked, or barred all carry special meanings under Iowa law. A suspension means that you have lost your permission from the Iowa Department of Transportation to drive for a certain period of time.  Typically, you are looking at a suspension for […]

Read More

Breath Test Suppressed After Deputy Misadvises CDL Holder

GRL Law received a ruling today that suppressed the results of a breath test taken by a CDL holder. We discovered the officer made a mistake during the implied consent advisory.  He advised the driver that a test failure results in a one-year disqualification, but a refusal results in a lifetime ban on his commercial driving privileges.  That’s not the law, of course, but the mistaken advisory provides a pretty compelling reason to consent, doesn’t it? The district court thought the same.  The driver’s consent was not the product of a reasoned and informed decision. That means the driver’s CDL […]

Read More

DOT Rescinds Revocation for Out-of-State Conviction

The criminal defense attorneys at GRL Law save yet another Iowa driver from a revocation for an out-of-state conviction. The State of Minnesota has a “zero tolerance” DUI law when it comes to underage drivers.  Essentially, any proof of alcohol consumption while driving is evidence enough.  A breath alcohol reading just above zero?  Yes, that would do it. The Iowa DOT received a report of this Minnesota DUI conviction and took steps to impose a revocation on our client’s record. One problem. Iowa doesn’t have a substantially equivalent “zero tolerance” law so a conviction alone didn’t trigger a mandatory revocation. […]

Read More

GRL Wins DOT and Saves CDL

Iowa provides a limited statutory right to speak with a family member or attorney before submitting to breath testing.  Most of the time, the driver must first trigger the right by asking for a phone call. In this case, our client told the officer he had an out-of-state CDL.  He asked whether implied consent would affect his commercial driver’s license.  When the officer said that he couldn’t answer that question, our client replied that he would wait for the lawyer to arrive. The officer immediately requested a breath specimen.  Our client refused. GRL Law recently appealed the one year revocation […]

Read More

Don’t Let Those Traffic Tickets Pile Up: How the DOT Can Pull Your Driver’s License for Multiple Moving Violations

Imagine this scenario: you get a traffic ticket for a failure to correctly use a traffic signal.  You might have failed to signal within the required distance, you might not have.  You could dispute the ticket, but you decide that it’s not worth it to take the time off from work, go to trial, and fight the ticket.  So, you decide to just send the payment in to the clerk of court.  A week or so later, you get a letter in the mail from the Iowa Department of Transportation saying that the DOT is going to take your driver’s […]

Read More

Client’s Driver’s License Saved After Successful Re-Opening of Closed Case

Franklin County, Iowa- A GRL Client was pulled over for going 106 in a 70 mile per hour zone.  She had a Minnesota driver’s license and paid the ticket without realizing that it would cause an automatic license revocation of her privileges in both Iowa and Minnesota.  Grant Gangestad was successful in getting the matter re-opened, amended to a different charge, and saving the client’s license.  No revocation or SR-22 insurance requirement was imposed.

Read More