TLDR: Michigan's high BAC law, usually called Super Drunk, applies to a first-offense OWI where the bodily alcohol content is 0.17 or higher. It is still a misdemeanor under MCL 257.625, but the penalties are heavier than a standard first offense: up to 180 days in jail instead of 93, a fine of $200 to $700, up to 360 hours of community service, a mandatory alcohol treatment program, and a one-year license sanction that starts with 45 days of no driving at all, followed by 320 days of restricted driving on an ignition interlock. The number on the breath or blood test is the whole case. If it can be reduced below 0.17, or the test result can be kept out, the charge drops back to a standard OWI or impaired driving and the hard suspension and interlock year go away.
Michigan has two first-offense drunk driving charges, and the difference between them is a number. At 0.08 you are charged with operating while intoxicated. At 0.17 or higher, you are charged under a separate subsection with roughly double the jail exposure, a year of license consequences, and an interlock device on your dashboard. Police and prosecutors call it high BAC. Everyone else calls it Super Drunk.
The charge reads like a standard OWI on the ticket. The consequences do not. Here is what changes at 0.17, and why the number itself is where most of these cases are won or lost.
What the Super Drunk Law Is
The high BAC offense lives in MCL 257.625(1)(c). It covers operating a vehicle with a bodily alcohol content of 0.17 grams or more per 100 milliliters of blood, 210 liters of breath, or 67 milliliters of urine. The statute took effect in 2010, when the legislature decided that a driver at more than twice the legal limit should face more than a driver at 0.09.
Three things to know about how it is charged:
- It applies to a first offense. A second OWI within seven years is already charged under the repeat-offender provisions, which are harsher than Super Drunk, so the high BAC enhancement only matters for someone with no prior drunk driving conviction in that window.
- It is a misdemeanor. The classification does not change. What changes is the ceiling on jail time and the license sanction.
- It is a separate charge the prosecutor has to prove. The 0.17 number is an element of the offense, which means the test result has to be admissible and reliable for the enhanced penalties to apply.
Super Drunk vs. a Standard First OWI
The two charges look alike until sentencing. Then they split.
| Consequence | Standard OWI (0.08 to 0.16) | High BAC / Super Drunk (0.17+) |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum jail | 93 days | 180 days |
| Fine | $100 to $500 | $200 to $700 |
| Community service | Up to 360 hours | Up to 360 hours |
| License | 30 days suspended, then 150 days restricted | 45 days hard suspension, then 320 days restricted |
| Ignition interlock | Not required | Required for the full 320-day restricted period |
| Alcohol treatment | At the court’s discretion | Mandatory program, up to one year |
| Driver license points | 6 | 6 |
The jail numbers draw attention, but for most first offenders the license line is the one that changes daily life. A 45-day hard suspension means no driving to work, no driving to the pharmacy, no exceptions. The restricted license that follows allows driving only in a vehicle with the interlock installed, which means every car you use, including a work vehicle, has to be fitted or you cannot drive it.
How the Ignition Interlock Works
A breath alcohol ignition interlock device wires into the vehicle’s ignition. You blow into it to start the car, and it asks for rolling retests while you drive. It logs every sample, every missed retest, and every attempt to tamper with it, and the Secretary of State reviews those logs.
The practical points people are surprised by:
- You pay for installation and the monthly lease and calibration visits. The court does not cover it.
- Mouth alcohol from mouthwash or certain foods can register as a fail. Three failed starts or a failed rolling retest can add time to your restriction.
- Someone else blowing into the device for you is a separate crime for both of you.
- The restricted license only covers driving a vehicle with the device. Driving anything else during the restricted period is driving while license suspended, a new misdemeanor.
Where the Number Gets Challenged
A Super Drunk case is a numbers case. If the result is 0.17 and holds up, the enhanced penalties follow. If it can be pushed below 0.17, or the result can be excluded, the case becomes a standard OWI or impaired driving and the hard suspension, interlock, and 180-day exposure disappear. The places that get examined:
- The breath test machine. Michigan uses the DataMaster DMT. The device has to be calibrated and inspected on schedule, the officer has to be certified, and the test has to follow the administrative rules, including a 15-minute observation period before the sample and two breath samples that agree within a set tolerance. Gaps in any of that are grounds to challenge the result.
- Timing. The statute cares about your BAC while operating the vehicle. A test taken an hour or more after the stop may reflect alcohol still being absorbed, which can mean a higher number at the station than on the road. Whether this matters depends on when you last drank and when you were tested.
- Blood draws. If blood was taken, the question is who drew it, how it was stored, and whether the lab’s chain of custody is intact.
- The stop. If the officer did not have a lawful reason to stop the car, the test result that followed can be suppressed. This is the same analysis as any OWI and is reviewed first.
A reduction to standard OWI keeps a conviction on your record but drops the license sanction to 30 days plus 150 restricted with no interlock. A reduction to operating while visibly impaired drops it further: up to 93 days in jail, 4 points, and a 90-day restricted license with no hard suspension at all.
The First 72 Hours Checklist
What you do in the first few days shapes what is possible later. Clients who come in with this file in hand give their attorney more to work with.
- The paperwork from the arrest. The citation, the breath test ticket showing both samples and the time, and the paper temporary driving permit the officer handed you when your plastic license was taken.
- A written timeline. When and where you were drinking, what you drank, when you stopped, when you were pulled over, when you were tested. Write it the day you get home, while it is fresh.
- The implied consent form, if you refused a test. A refusal triggers a separate one-year suspension from the Secretary of State, and the window to request a hearing on it is 14 days from the refusal. That deadline runs whether or not you have an attorney.
- Your arraignment date. It is on the citation. Missing it creates a bench warrant and a second problem on top of the first.
- Nothing posted online about the night, and no conversations with the officer or the prosecutor’s office without counsel.
Where Dearborn Cases Are Heard
A Super Drunk charge from an arrest in Dearborn, including stops along Michigan Avenue and Ford Road, is heard in the 19th District Court. Detroit arrests go to the 36th District Court. Because the charge is a misdemeanor, the entire case from arraignment to sentencing stays in district court.
The first hearing is the arraignment, where bond and conditions get set. For OWI charges the conditions typically include no alcohol and some form of testing while the case is open, which starts immediately. Several Wayne County district courts also run sobriety court programs that can change how the license sanction plays out for people who qualify, which is a conversation worth having early rather than at sentencing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Super Drunk law in Michigan?
It is the common name for Michigan’s high BAC offense, operating with a bodily alcohol content of 0.17 or higher, found in MCL 257.625(1)(c). It applies to a first offense and carries up to 180 days in jail, a $200 to $700 fine, up to 360 hours of community service, mandatory alcohol treatment, and a one-year license sanction that begins with 45 days of no driving followed by 320 days restricted to a vehicle with an ignition interlock.
Is Super Drunk a felony in Michigan?
No. A first-offense high BAC charge is a misdemeanor. It becomes a felony only the way any OWI does: a third offense within a lifetime, or an OWI causing serious injury or death. What makes Super Drunk different from a standard first offense is the length of the possible jail term and the license consequences, not the classification.
How long do you lose your license for Super Drunk in Michigan?
One year total. The first 45 days are a hard suspension with no driving of any kind. The remaining 320 days are a restricted license that only allows driving a vehicle fitted with a breath alcohol ignition interlock device. A standard first-offense OWI, by comparison, is a 30-day suspension followed by 150 days restricted, with no interlock requirement.
Can a Super Drunk charge be reduced?
Often, and that is usually the goal. Because the charge turns on the 0.17 number, challenges to the breath or blood test, the timing of the test relative to driving, or the stop itself can push a case to a plea on standard OWI or impaired driving. Either of those removes the 45-day hard suspension, the interlock year, and the 180-day jail exposure. Whether that is available depends on the facts of the test, which is why the paperwork from the arrest matters.
Do I have to install an ignition interlock for a first Super Drunk offense?
Yes, if convicted of the high BAC offense. The restricted license that follows the 45-day hard suspension only permits driving a vehicle with a breath alcohol ignition interlock installed, and the Secretary of State requires it on every vehicle you drive during the restricted period. You pay for the installation and monthly monitoring, and violations recorded by the device can extend the restriction.
Where is a Dearborn Super Drunk case heard?
In the 19th District Court on Michigan Avenue, like every misdemeanor charge arising in Dearborn. Arrests on the Southfield Freeway or in Detroit go to the 36th District Court. The case stays in district court from arraignment through sentencing because it is a misdemeanor.
Conclusion
A 0.17 result turns a first OWI into a different case. The jail ceiling doubles, the license consequences stretch to a year, and an interlock goes on every car you drive. All of it rests on one number, and that number is produced by a machine, an officer, and a procedure that each have to be done correctly.
LegalSolv is a law firm in Dearborn, Michigan. Our OWI defense attorneys handle high BAC and standard OWI charges in the 19th District Court and every district court in Wayne County, in English and Arabic. If you were charged with Super Drunk, the time to have the test reviewed is before the arraignment, not after.
Ready to put this into practice? LegalSolv, PLLC was built for exactly this.
