Clayton County DDS ALS Hearing Guide
How to appeal your Administrative License Suspension (ALS) and protect your driving privileges after a DUI arrest.
Last verified: September 5, 2026
10-Day Deadline
You have exactly 10 business days from your arrest to appeal your Administrative License Suspension (ALS). Miss this deadline and your license is automatically suspended. No exceptions.
Enter your arrest date to see your deadline:
If You Appeal in Time
- * Hearing scheduled with OSAH
- * Chance to keep your license
- * May avoid suspension entirely
If You Miss the Deadline
- * Automatic 1-year suspension
- * No hearing, no appeal
- * Starts on 46th day after arrest
How to Appeal Your ALS
In Georgia, you appeal your Administrative License Suspension through the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS). You must request an ALS hearing within 10 business days of your arrest by submitting an appeal form and fee per O.C.G.A. 40-5-67.1.
File Through Attorney
Why: Must be filed properly with DDS
Deadline: Within 10 business days of arrest
Handles both ALS appeal and criminal case
File Pro Se (Self)
Where: Georgia DDS online or by mail
What to File: Form DS-1205 (Appeal Request)
Cost: $150 filing fee
Not recommended - legal complexity
What the Hearing Officer Will Consider
Grounds for Appeal:
- * Officer lacked reasonable suspicion for stop
- * Improper administration of chemical test
- * Officer failed to read implied consent notice
- * Testing equipment not properly calibrated
Documents to Gather:
- * DDS Form 1205 (DS-1205)
- * Temporary driving permit
- * Any police reports available
- * Witness information
Georgia ALS Suspension Periods
Failed Chemical Test (0.08+ BAC)
- 1st:1-year suspension (limited permit after 30 days with IID)
- 2nd:3-year suspension (limited permit after 120 days)
- 3rd+:5-year hard suspension (no permit for 2 years)
Refused Chemical Test
- 1st:1-year hard suspension (no permit for 12 months)
- 2nd:3-year hard suspension (no permit)
- 3rd+:5-year hard suspension (no permit)
Important: 10-Year Lookback
Georgia looks back 10 years for prior DUI offenses. A second offense within 10 years carries significantly harsher penalties under O.C.G.A. 40-6-391.
What to Expect at the Hearing
ALS appeals are heard by OSAH
The Office of State Administrative Hearings (OSAH) conducts ALS hearings in Georgia. These are administrative hearings separate from your criminal court case.
Duration
30-60 minutes typically
Who's There
You, your attorney, administrative law judge
What They Review
Probable cause for stop, proper test procedures, implied consent warning
Evidence That Can Help
- Dashcam or bodycam showing procedural errors
- Breathalyzer calibration records (if not current)
- Witness statements about your sobriety
- Medical conditions affecting field sobriety tests
Should You Hire an Attorney?
With an Attorney
- Can challenge stop legality
- Knows how to challenge test procedures
- Can negotiate limited driving permit faster
- Handles both ALS appeal and criminal case
Without an Attorney
- State has experience against you
- May not know proper legal arguments
- Harder to get limited permit
- Lower success rate statistically
If You Lose Your Appeal
Losing the ALS appeal isn't the end. You still have options to maintain limited driving privileges:
Ignition Interlock
Drive with device installed
Limited Permit
Work, school, medical, treatment
Georgia DDS Forest Park Office
For license reinstatement after suspension ends, or questions about your driving record:
FAQ
Related Guides
The most common way to lose a license in a Clayton County DUI case has nothing to do with the criminal charge. It's missing the 30-day administrative deadline. The officer seizes the physical license at arrest and hands over a DDS Form 1205, which works as a permit for 45 days. But within 30 calendar days of the arrest, the driver has to act, or the license suspends for a full year on day 46 regardless of what happens in court.
There are two ways to act. Request a hearing, which means a $150 fee and a written request mailed to the Department of Driver Services in Conyers. Not to the Banke Justice Center. Sending it to the local court is a fatal mistake, because the clerk can't accept it and the time lost redirecting it runs out the 30-day clock. Filing the request pauses the suspension until a hearing is held, and defense attorneys often use that hearing to question the arresting officer under oath before the criminal trial. The other option is to waive the hearing, install an ignition interlock right away, and get proof of installation to DDS within the same 30 days. That keeps a first offender driving throughout the case and takes the risk of a lost hearing off the table.
Three companies install interlocks along the Tara Boulevard corridor through Jonesboro, Morrow, and Forest Park: Smart Start, Intoxalock, and LifeSafer. Installation runs $70 to $150, then $70 to $100 a month plus a mandatory calibration visit every 30 days.
The device causes a specific, expensive headache for people who drive infrequently, which describes a lot of DUI defendants. The interlock draws power even when the car is off, and after about two or three days parked, it can drain the battery. When the car is jumped, the device often logs the power loss as a tampering attempt and goes into lockout mode. Fixing that means towing the car to a service center and paying a lockout fee of $50 to $75, on top of a new battery. The way out is to drive the car regularly enough to keep the battery charged.
Sources
Last updated: September 5, 2026
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