Arizona DUI penalties by offense tier

Which tier your case falls into matters far more than anything about how the stop went. It turns on prior convictions, on how far back Arizona counts them, and on whether anyone was hurt.

Last reviewed September 15, 2026

Tier	Class	Jail	Fine	Interlock	Lookback
DUI (base offense) A.R.S. § 28-1381	Class 1 misdemeanor	At least 1 day	From $250	Required
DUI, second within 84 months A.R.S. § 28-1381(K)	Class 1 misdemeanor	At least 30 days	From $500	Required, 12 months	7 years
Extreme DUI, BAC 0.15-0.19 A.R.S. § 28-1382(A)(1)	Class 1 misdemeanor	At least 1 day	From $250	Required, 12 months
Extreme DUI, BAC 0.20 or more A.R.S. § 28-1382(A)(2)	Class 1 misdemeanor	At least 45 days	From $500	Required, 12 months
Extreme DUI, second within 84 months A.R.S. § 28-1382(E)	Class 1 misdemeanor	At least 120 days	From $500	Required, 12 months	7 years

Jail and fine figures are the range the statute allows, not what a first appearance usually produces. Fines exclude court costs, assessments, interlock lease costs and reinstatement fees.

Each tier in detail

DUI (base offense)

A.R.S. § 28-1381

Class: Class 1 misdemeanor
Jail: At least 1 day
Fine: From $250

UNVERIFIED 2026-09-14. Verified against A.R.S. text retrieved 2026-09-02. 2026 Ariz. Sess. Laws ch. 99 (HB2573) took effect 2026-09-12 and amended this section, so the text this row was read from is superseded. Re-read the current section and re-verify before this row is published again. Figures below are from the pre-amendment text.

Statutory minimum is 10 consecutive days in jail, not eligible for probation unless the full sentence is served (subsection I(1)). Subsection J allows the judge to suspend all but ONE day if the person completes a court-ordered alcohol/drug screening, education or treatment program. Fine minimum $250 PLUS two mandatory $500 assessments (prison construction fund and public safety equipment fund) -- record the $250 as the base fine and the $1,000 in assessments separately in the rendered content, do not silently fold them into one figure. Interlock is mandatory on conviction if the violation involved liquor (subsection I(6)). Five distinct means of violation exist under subsection A: impaired to the slightest degree, BAC 0.08+, any drug/metabolite present (subject to a valid-prescription defense under subsection D), CDL at 0.04+, and rideshare/for-hire driving at 0.04+.

Verified 2026-09-03 against A.R.S. § 28-1381 directly and ADOT public guidance. Statutory threshold is 0.08 or more, no upper ceiling in this section itself; "0.08 to under 0.15" is public-facing shorthand, not the statutory text.

DUI, second within 84 months

A.R.S. § 28-1381(K)

Class: Class 1 misdemeanor
Jail: At least 30 days
Fine: From $500
Lookback: 7 years

84-MONTH LOOKBACK (7 years), not 5. Minimum 90 days in jail, 30 of which must be served consecutively (subsection K(1)); suspendable to 30 days served if the person equips an interlock for 12 months per subsection L. Fine minimum $500 plus $2,500 in mandatory assessments. One-year driving-privilege revocation, interlock required on reinstatement (subsection K(4)). "Second within 84 months" counts a prior conviction under this section OR § 28-1382 OR § 28-1383 OR an equivalent out-of-state conviction -- the count is cross-statute, not limited to repeat base-DUI convictions.

Extreme DUI, BAC 0.15-0.19

A.R.S. § 28-1382(A)(1)

Class: Class 1 misdemeanor
Jail: At least 1 day
Fine: From $250

Statutory minimum 30 consecutive days in jail; suspendable to 9 days served if the person equips an interlock for 12 months (subsection I). Fine minimum $250 plus $1,250 in mandatory assessments. This is a SEPARATE STATUTE from base DUI, not an enhancement of it -- do not describe it as a "tier" of § 28-1381 in rendered copy.

Extreme DUI, BAC 0.20 or more

A.R.S. § 28-1382(A)(2)

Class: Class 1 misdemeanor
Jail: At least 45 days
Fine: From $500

Statutory minimum 45 consecutive days in jail (15 more than the 0.15-0.19 bracket); suspendable to 14 days served if the person equips an interlock for 12 months (subsection I). Fine minimum $500 plus $1,250 in mandatory assessments. The jump from 0.19 to 0.20 is a hard bracket line, not a gradient -- crossing it by 0.01 adds 15 mandatory jail days. This is a strong, underexplained content point.

Extreme DUI, second within 84 months

A.R.S. § 28-1382(E)

Class: Class 1 misdemeanor
Jail: At least 120 days
Fine: From $500
Lookback: 7 years

84-month lookback. Minimum 120 days in jail (60 consecutive) for the 0.15-0.19 bracket; minimum 180 days (90 consecutive) for the 0.20+ bracket --

Where this leaves you

A tier is not a sentence. Which one applies, and what actually happens inside its range, is what a defense lawyer argues about.

DUI lawyers in Arizona

Penalty tiers at a glance