By Christopher Weldy, Weldy Law Firm, PLLC
You went to renew your driver’s license, or you were pulled over for a minor traffic violation, and you learned that your license has been suspended—because of a DUI conviction you never knew about. You never went to court. You never entered a plea. But according to the State of Mississippi, you were convicted, and your driving privileges were taken away without anyone telling you.
This happens more often than most people realize. When a Mississippi justice court convicts a DUI defendant “in absence”—meaning the trial went forward and a guilty verdict was entered without the defendant present—the conviction triggers an automatic license suspension through the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. The court reports the conviction to DPS, and DPS suspends the license. No one calls you. No one sends a separate letter explaining that your license is now suspended. The suspension simply goes into effect, and you continue driving without knowing you no longer have the legal right to do so.
Under Mississippi’s implied consent law, a first-offense DUI conviction results in a 120-day suspension of your Class R driver’s license. If the conviction involved a refusal to submit to chemical testing, the suspension is 90 days for the refusal alone, separate from any suspension tied to the conviction itself. A second DUI conviction within five years results in a one-year suspension.
These suspensions are administrative actions taken by the Department of Public Safety based on the court’s report of the conviction. They happen automatically. The justice court enters the conviction, transmits it to DPS, and DPS suspends the license. There is no separate hearing, no separate notice, and no opportunity to contest the suspension independent of the underlying conviction.
For someone convicted in absence, this creates a cascading problem. You did not know about the conviction, so you did not know about the suspension. You continued to drive, because as far as you knew, your license was valid. But every time you drove after the suspension took effect, you were technically committing a separate criminal offense.
Under Mississippi Code Annotated § 63-11-40, driving while your license is cancelled, suspended, or revoked due to a DUI conviction is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $200 to $500, up to six months in jail, or both, for a first offense. A second offense carries a fine of $200 to $1,000 and up to one year in jail. The vehicle you are driving may also be subject to seizure and impoundment.
This is the compounding effect that makes a guilty-in-absence conviction so damaging. The original DUI conviction—which you may have a strong legal basis to challenge—generates a license suspension you do not know about, which in turn exposes you to additional criminal liability every day you drive. One conviction you never knew about becomes a rolling series of potential charges.
If you suspect your license may have been suspended, you can check through the Mississippi DPS Driver Service Bureau. You will need your driver’s license number, full name, and date of birth. The DPS also maintains a self-service portal at ms.gov where you can check your license status and view any holds or suspensions.
You can also contact the DPS reinstatement line directly at 601-487-7028. The mailing address for written inquiries is Driver Records Division/Reinstatement, P.O. Box 1459, Canton, Mississippi 39046.
If your license is suspended, stop driving immediately. I understand the difficulty of that advice—many people depend on their vehicle for work, family obligations, and daily life—but continuing to drive on a suspended license creates additional criminal exposure that makes your legal situation worse, not better.
Some states offer a hardship or work-permit license that allows people with DUI suspensions to drive to and from work or essential appointments. Mississippi does not. There is no hardship license available for a DUI-related suspension in this state.
However, Mississippi does offer an alternative: the ignition interlock restricted license under Mississippi Code Annotated § 63-11-31. A court can order an interlock-restricted license in lieu of a full suspension, which allows you to continue driving as long as an approved ignition interlock device is installed on every vehicle you operate. The device connects to your vehicle’s ignition system and requires a breath sample below a set blood-alcohol threshold before the engine will start.
The cost of installing and maintaining the interlock device is borne by the driver, unless the court determines the driver is indigent. This is an additional expense on top of the other financial consequences of a DUI conviction, but for many people it is the difference between being able to work and not being able to work.
Even after the suspension period ends, your license does not automatically come back. To reinstate your driving privileges, you must clear all court citations and holds, pay all court fines associated with the conviction, complete the Mississippi Alcohol Safety Education Program (MASEP), which is a 12-hour course that must be completed within six months of sentencing, provide proof of insurance (SR-22) for three years, and pay any applicable DPS reinstatement fees.
Each of these requirements must be satisfied before DPS will restore your license. If the underlying conviction was entered without your knowledge, you have likely not completed any of these steps, which means your license remains suspended indefinitely until you take action.
The license suspension is a consequence of the underlying conviction. If the conviction can be challenged—through a de novo appeal to circuit court, or through other legal avenues where proper notice was not given—then the suspension tied to that conviction can potentially be resolved as well.
This is why addressing the conviction itself is so important. Paying the fine and completing the reinstatement requirements may seem like the fastest path back to driving, but it also means accepting a DUI conviction on your permanent record. If you were convicted without proper notice, you may have the right to challenge that conviction entirely and pursue a different outcome.
I work with clients across Mississippi who are dealing with license suspensions tied to DUI convictions they never knew about. The right strategy depends on the facts—when the conviction was entered, what notice was given, how long ago it happened, and what your driving record looks like now. Contact Weldy Law Firm, and I can review the records, explain your options, and help you get back on the road legally.
Weldy Law Firm, PLLC
1530 North State Street, Jackson, Mississippi 39202
Phone: 601-624-7460 | Email: Chris@WeldyLawFirm.com
