Wichita County ALR Hearing Guide
How to request your Administrative License Revocation (ALR) Hearing and protect your driving privileges after a DWI arrest.
Last verified: September 12, 2026
15-Day Deadline
You have exactly 15 days from your arrest to request a hearing. Miss this deadline and your license is automatically suspended. No exceptions.
Enter your arrest date to see your deadline:
If You Request in Time
- • Temporary permit until hearing
- • Chance to keep your license
- • Gather evidence for defense
If You Miss the Deadline
- • Automatic 90-180 day suspension
- • No hearing, no appeal
- • Starts after waiting period
How to Request Your Hearing
Online Request
Fee: Typically $50-$125
Available: 24/7
Instant confirmation
Phone Request
Fee: Same as online
Hours: Business hours only
Expect hold times
Information You'll Need
From Your Notice:
- • Driver License Number
- • Date of Arrest
- • Arresting Agency
- • Arresting Officer Name
Personal Information:
- • Full Legal Name
- • Current Address
- • Date of Birth
- • Phone Number & Email
After You Request
Temporary Permit
ImmediateDrive legally until your hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 daysDate, time, and format mailed to you
Prepare Defense
Before hearingGather evidence, hire attorney
Attend Hearing
Scheduled dateUsually phone or video
Decision
Same dayWin: keep license. Lose: suspension starts
Temporary Permit
Immediate
Drive until hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 days
Date mailed to you
Prepare
Before hearing
Gather evidence
Attend Hearing
Scheduled
Phone or video
Decision
Same day
Win or suspension
What to Expect at the Hearing
Most hearings are by phone or video
You usually don't need to travel. When you receive your hearing notice, it will specify whether it's phone, video, or in-person.
Duration
30-60 minutes typically
Who's There
You, your attorney (optional), state attorney, hearing officer
What They Review
Probable cause for stop, proper arrest procedure, test validity
Evidence That Can Help
- Dashcam or bodycam footage 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 subpoena arresting officer
- Knows how to challenge evidence
- Uses hearing to strengthen criminal defense
- Higher success rate at hearings
Without an Attorney
- State has experienced attorney present
- May not know proper objections
- Can't effectively cross-examine officers
- Lower win rate statistically
If You Lose Your Hearing
Losing the hearing isn't the end. You still have options to maintain limited driving privileges:
Ignition Interlock
Drive with device installed
Occupational License
Limited driving for work/essentials
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Guides
The length of the license suspension in Wichita County depends entirely on which choice was made at the roadside, and the two paths land in very different places. Refuse the breath or blood test and the suspension runs 180 days for a first refusal. Provide a specimen that comes back at 0.08 or higher and it's 90 days instead. Either way, the officer confiscates the physical license on the spot and hands over a DIC-25 notice that works as a temporary permit for 40 days.
The 15-day window
Contesting the suspension means requesting a hearing within 15 days of the arrest, filed online through the DPS portal or by mail to the Enforcement and Compliance Service in Austin. These hearings, once held in local Justice of the Peace courts, have largely moved to remote telephonic or video sessions run by the State Office of Administrative Hearings. The hearing itself turns on a narrow question: whether the officer had reasonable suspicion for the stop and probable cause for the arrest. For the defense, it's also the earliest chance to put that officer under oath before the criminal case ever gets to trial.
If the suspension holds
A defendant who loses the hearing, or who never requests one, has to petition the County Court at Law, before Judge Butler or Judge King, for an Occupational Driver License to keep driving for work, school, or essential household needs. That petition requires proof of SR-22 insurance and a filing fee of roughly $300. Once the suspension period runs its course, reinstating the license costs a separate $125 fee paid directly to DPS.
Last updated: September 12, 2026
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