DUI Defense
Tennessee holds drivers under 21 to a stricter standard than everyone else on the road: for them, the limit is a blood alcohol concentration of .02% — a level a single drink can produce — under Tennessee’s underage driving while impaired law. For a college student at the University of Memphis, Rhodes, or CBU, or a high schooler with a bright future, how the charge is handled can shape scholarships, school discipline, and a record that follows them into their first career. Brooks Law Firm defends young drivers and works with their families throughout the process. Call (901) 324-5000.
Underage DWI vs. Adult DUI in Tennessee
Drivers aged 18 to 20 with a BAC of .02% or higher face underage driving while impaired — a Class A misdemeanor carrying a one-year loss of the license, a $250 fine, and public service work if the judge orders it. But an under-21 driver at .08% or above can be charged with the full adult DUI, with all its penalties and a conviction that cannot be expunged absent a governor’s pardon. Which charge is brought, and which it becomes, is often where the case is really decided — and it is exactly where experienced counsel matters. Drivers under 18 are handled through the juvenile system, which has its own procedures and its own opportunities to protect the record. For drivers aged 18 to 20, underage driving while impaired, not adult DUI, is eligible for judicial diversion, which can keep the record clean.
What a Young Driver’s Defense Looks Like
Every defense in an adult case applies here: the lawfulness of the stop, the field sobriety testing, and the breath or blood evidence — which matters even more at .02%, where the margin of error on a breath machine is a meaningful share of the reading itself. Beyond the courtroom, we help families think about the whole picture: the school’s conduct process, driver’s license consequences, and resolutions that give a young person a path to a clean record where the law allows one. Patrick Brooks is a member of the National College for DUI Defense and the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and treats every young client the way we would want our own family treated.
Diversion and Expungement: Where the Two Charges Split
For most families the real question is not the fine. It is whether this will follow your son or daughter, and that depends largely on which statute the case ends under.
Underage driving while impaired is T.C.A. § 55-10-415. It applies to a driver under 21 with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02% or more, and for a driver aged 18 to 20 it is a Class A misdemeanor. The statute sets a one-year loss of the license, a $250 fine, and public service work if the judge orders it. Most important for the record, it is not on the list of offenses excluded from judicial diversion or from pretrial diversion (§§ 40-35-313, 40-15-105), so a young driver who otherwise qualifies can ask for either one. The two work differently:
- Pretrial diversion is an agreement with the District Attorney that suspends the prosecution for up to two years. No guilty plea is entered. It requires no earlier diversion of either kind and no prior Class A or B misdemeanor or felony conviction, and in Shelby County the court sets the supervision fee at $10 to $35 a month (§ 40-15-105).
- Judicial diversion follows a guilty plea, but the judge holds the plea without entering a conviction. For a Class A misdemeanor the probation period is at least 11 months and 29 days, and since July 1, 2026 the supervision fee can be $10 to $60 a month (§ 40-35-313; 2026 Pub. Ch. 1025).
Either one requires a TBI certificate before it can be granted, and the TBI fee for it is $100 (§ 38-6-118(e)). Either one can be used only once in a lifetime. When it is completed, the charge is dismissed and can be expunged on petition (§ 40-32-106(d)).
Adult DUI under § 55-10-401 is different. A driver under 21 charged with adult DUI is excluded from both kinds of diversion. A first conviction carries at least 48 hours in jail (seven days at 0.15% or higher) and a fine of $350 to $1,500, and it cannot be expunged absent a governor’s pardon (§§ 55-10-402, 55-10-403; § 40-32-107(d)). A DUI charge that is dismissed, by contrast, can be expunged at no cost (§ 40-32-106).
The License, From Juvenile Court to Age 20
For a driver under 18, the case belongs to juvenile court, and the Juvenile Offender Act adds its own license consequence. For an offense involving alcohol or a controlled substance by a 13- to 17-year-old, the court must send the Department of Safety a license-denial order. The denial lasts one year or until age 17, whichever is longer, and a second order lasts two years or until age 18 (§§ 55-10-701, 55-10-702). The court can withdraw some orders early, but not one based on impaired driving.
Common questions
What if my son or daughter refused the breath or blood test?
In a DUI investigation, a refusal is decided by the judge on a separate warrant. It is not a crime, but it costs the license. For a driver with no prior conviction, a first refusal means one year. Since January 1, 2026, refusing a blood test when a misdemeanor DUI is suspected means 18 months, and from January 1, 2027 every first refusal will mean 18 months (§ 55-10-407). Refusing also does not prevent a blood test, because the officer can seek a search warrant.
Diversion can be used only once. Should we use it on this?
It can be the right choice, but it is a real decision. The TBI keeps a confidential record of every diversion, used only to check eligibility for a future one, and that record stays even after the charge is expunged (§ 38-6-118). If the proof is weak enough for a dismissal, a dismissal costs nothing to expunge and leaves diversion available later in life.
Can an underage DWI make a later DUI case worse?
Yes, for five years. If a driver with an underage DWI conviction or juvenile adjudication in the past five years later loses the license over a DUI, any restricted license must carry an ignition interlock, and if the driver also refused a test, the refusal revocation runs consecutive to the DUI revocation (§§ 55-10-407(c), 55-10-409(b)(2)(B)(iv)).
If it ends in an underage DWI conviction, can it be expunged later?
It can become eligible. Underage driving while impaired is not on the conviction-expungement exclusion list (adult DUI under § 55-10-401 is), so the conviction can be expunged five years after the sentence is completed if the rest of the record fits the limits of § 40-32-107.
If your son or daughter has been charged with underage DUI or DWI in Memphis, Shelby County, or a surrounding county, call Brooks Law Firm at (901) 324-5000 before anyone talks to the school or the court. See also: Memphis DUI defense, first DUI in Memphis, and alcohol offenses involving minors.