Driving While License Invalid (DWLI) is a misdemeanor offense found under §521.457 of the Texas Transportation Code. It’s important to note that DWLI is a distinct and different criminal charge than simply driving with no license in the first place, or failing to provide your license upon request when pulled over.
For the DWLI statute to potentially apply, the accused citizen must be driving when their license is cancelled, suspended, revoked, expired, or prohibited by law or court order.
DWLI can be a Class “C” misdemeanor punishable by up to a $500 fine, a Class “B” misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine not to exceed $2,000, and in rare cases, a Class “A” misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $4,000.
The DWLI statute is quite often misinterpreted and misunderstood by the government, police, and prosecutors. This can lead to situations where a citizen is overcharged or erroneously charged with this offense.
-If a citizen’s license is currently suspended, cancelled, revoked, or denied when the police catch them behind the wheel, this is at least a Class “C” DWLI.
-The offense only becomes a Class “B” misdemeanor punishable by jail time when the citizen’s license is suspended, cancelled, revoked, or denied and any of the following factors apply:
1: The citizen’s license has been suspended in the past for a DWI-related offense. Note that this portion of the law does not include ALR suspensions. Note that prior criminal convictions for DWI or no insurance do not create or enhance a current DWLI offense – there is a difference in this context between a prior DWI conviction and a prior DWI license suspension.
2: If the citizen has ever been convicted in the past of DWLI.
3: If the citizen is caught operating their vehicle without valid liability insurance.
-The offense jumps to a Class “A” misdemeanor If the citizen’s license is currently suspended, cancelled, revoked, or denied, and the citizen is operating the vehicle without valid liability insurance, and the citizen caused or was at fault in a crash that resulted in death or serious bodily injury to another.
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