A DWI arrest anywhere in New York City starts the same way and ends up in one of five courthouses. Jonathan Kaye is a New York City drunk driving lawyer and former Assistant District Attorney who has defended drivers in all five boroughs and on Long Island for over 30 years. He answers his own phone, he handles every case personally, and a misdemeanor DWI is a flat $1,500 legal fee in every borough.
This page covers what is the same everywhere in the city and what changes from borough to borough. For the details of your court, go straight to your borough's page below.
Your borough, your court
Your case is heard where you were arrested, not where you live. Misdemeanor DWI cases start in the borough's criminal court. Felony cases, such as a DWI with a prior conviction, a child in the car, or a crash with serious injury, move to the borough's supreme court.
| Where you were arrested | Misdemeanor DWI | Felony DWI |
|---|---|---|
| Queens | Queens Criminal Court, 125-01 Queens Blvd, Kew Gardens | Queens Supreme Court, same building |
| Brooklyn | Kings County Criminal Court, 120 Schermerhorn St | Kings County Supreme Court, 320 Jay St |
| Bronx | Bronx Criminal Court, 215 E 161st St | Bronx Hall of Justice, 265 E 161st St |
| Manhattan | New York County Criminal Court, 100 Centre St | New York County Supreme Court, same building |
| Staten Island | Richmond County Criminal Court, 26 Central Ave, St. George | Richmond County Supreme Court, same building |
| Nassau County | First District Court, 99 Main St, Hempstead | Nassau County Court, Mineola |
| Suffolk County | First District Court, 400 Carleton Ave, Central Islip | Suffolk County Court |
NYC DWI arrests by the numbers
The NYPD made 3,005 DWI arrests in 2025, up 16% from 2,601 the year before and up 31% from 2,299 in 2020. The city is still well below its peak: arrests topped 8,000 a year in several years before 2015 and reached 8,429 in 2014. The 2025 total is about 64% lower.
NYPD DWI arrests in New York City, 2006 to 2025
Arrests the NYPD classified as intoxicated or impaired driving, by year.
View the numbers
| Year | DWI arrests |
|---|---|
| 2006 | 7,290 |
| 2007 | 8,362 |
| 2008 | 8,287 |
| 2009 | 8,094 |
| 2010 | 7,562 |
| 2011 | 6,763 |
| 2012 | 7,107 |
| 2013 | 8,401 |
| 2014 | 8,429 |
| 2015 | 6,417 |
| 2016 | 6,430 |
| 2017 | 6,069 |
| 2018 | 5,474 |
| 2019 | 4,653 |
| 2020 | 2,299 |
| 2021 | 2,334 |
| 2022 | 2,432 |
| 2023 | 2,588 |
| 2024 | 2,601 |
| 2025 | 3,005 |
Source: NYC Open Data, NYPD Arrests Data (Historic), offense category "Intoxicated & Impaired Driving."
The five boroughs are not the same. Queens has the most DWI arrests, Staten Island has the most per resident, and Manhattan is the only borough with fewer arrests than in 2020:
| Borough | Arrests, 2025 | Per 100,000 | Since 2020 | Worst crash hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queens | 990 | 41 | +32% | midnight |
| Brooklyn | 918 | 34 | +52% | midnight |
| Bronx | 558 | 38 | +48% | midnight |
| Manhattan | 294 | 17 | −13% | midnight |
| Staten Island | 245 | 49 | +7% | 9 p.m. |
NYPD arrest data and police crash reports from NYC Open Data. Rates use 2020 Census population. The worst crash hour is the hour with the most alcohol-involved crashes, 2021 to September 2026.
What happens after a DWI arrest anywhere in NYC
The borough changes the courthouse, not the process. Every NYC DWI case moves through the same steps, and a New York City DWI lawyer has work to do at each one:
- The stop and the roadside testsPolice need a lawful reason to stop the car. Field sobriety tests and a portable breath test at the scene come next, and both can be challenged. See how field sobriety tests are challenged.
- The breath testUsually at an NYPD testing location in the borough, often on video. Refusing leads to a separate DMV hearing. See refusal and the DMV hearing.
- Arraignment, usually within about 24 hoursA judge reads the charges, decides on release, and with a test of .08 or higher, suspends your license while the case is pending. This is when to ask for a hardship hearing.
- DiscoveryUnder CPL 245 the District Attorney must turn over the police reports, breath-test and calibration records, and video. This is where a former prosecutor looks for the problems.
- ResolutionA dismissal, a reduction to DWAI (a traffic infraction, not a crime), a DWI plea, or a trial. Most first-offense cases with no crash end in one of the first three. See how a DWI gets reduced.
For the charges and penalty ranges, from DWAI to felony DWI, see misdemeanor DWI penalties, aggravated DWI, and felony DWI.
When and where NYC DWI arrests happen
Across the city, about 52% of alcohol-involved crashes happen between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m., the worst hour starts at midnight, and Saturdays and Sundays each see about 2.5 times as many as a typical weekday. Staten Island is the exception, where the worst hour starts at 9 p.m.
Alcohol-involved crashes in New York City, by hour
View the numbers
| Hour starting | Crashes |
|---|---|
| midnight | 684 |
| 1 a.m. | 515 |
| 2 a.m. | 498 |
| 3 a.m. | 499 |
| 4 a.m. | 487 |
| 5 a.m. | 341 |
| 6 a.m. | 200 |
| 7 a.m. | 137 |
| 8 a.m. | 136 |
| 9 a.m. | 106 |
| 10 a.m. | 75 |
| 11 a.m. | 80 |
| noon | 98 |
| 1 p.m. | 102 |
| 2 p.m. | 120 |
| 3 p.m. | 133 |
| 4 p.m. | 187 |
| 5 p.m. | 243 |
| 6 p.m. | 294 |
| 7 p.m. | 346 |
| 8 p.m. | 416 |
| 9 p.m. | 499 |
| 10 p.m. | 550 |
| 11 p.m. | 538 |
By day of the week
View the numbers
| Day | Crashes |
|---|---|
| Sunday | 1,727 |
| Monday | 800 |
| Tuesday | 564 |
| Wednesday | 645 |
| Thursday | 738 |
| Friday | 1,092 |
| Saturday | 1,718 |
Source: NYC Open Data, Motor Vehicle Collisions: Crashes. Police crash reports in New York City listing alcohol involvement as a contributing factor, January 2021 through September 2026 (7,284 crashes). Crash timing is shown because arrest records do not include the time of day.
Many arrests come off the city's highways and parkways: the Belt, the Long Island Expressway, the Grand Central and the Van Wyck in Queens; the BQE and the Gowanus in Brooklyn; the Major Deegan, the Cross Bronx and the Bruckner in the Bronx; the West Side Highway and the FDR in Manhattan; and the Staten Island Expressway. Each borough page covers its own roads and neighborhoods.
Arrested in NYC but live somewhere else?
Many people arrested for DWI in New York City live on Long Island, upstate, or in New Jersey or Connecticut. The case stays in the borough where it started, and the result follows you home: New York reports it to your state, which may apply its own license penalties. See DWI charges for out-of-state drivers.
What an NYC DWI lawyer costs
Many NYC drunk driving lawyers bill by the hour or require a retainer. Jonathan's fee for a misdemeanor DWI is a flat $1,500 in any of the five boroughs, arraignment to resolution, in writing before any work begins. No hourly billing, no retainer to replenish, and no hand-off to an associate. Felony cases, trials, and separate DMV refusal hearings are quoted individually. See exactly what the flat fee covers.
Plan your ride home in New York City
Nobody plans to get a DWI. Almost every DWI arrest starts with someone who felt fine to drive. New York has more ways home than anywhere in the country, but they only help if you decide before the first drink.
- The subway runs all night, and so do the Staten Island Railway and the ferry. The LIRR, Metro-North and PATH run late.
- If you drove in, leave the car. A night in a garage costs far less than a tow or a DWI.
- Remember the morning after. If you were drinking late, you may still be over the limit on the drive to work.
- Do not sleep it off behind the wheel. In New York, sitting in the driver's seat with the engine running can be enough to be charged, even when parked.
If alcohol is part of the story
A DWI arrest does not mean someone has a drinking problem. But if you or someone close to you has been worried about drinking, the NYS HOPEline is free, confidential and open 24/7 at 1-877-846-7369, and New York State's treatment finder lists licensed programs in every borough. Each borough page lists local meetings and the Impaired Driver Program providers the DMV lists for that county.
DWI cases in the news, borough by borough
One real, public case from each borough, written up in full with the charges and what they mean under New York law. They show how a DWI escalates when a crash causes injury or death, not what will happen in any other case.
Fatal three-car LIE crash ends in a 7 to 21 year sentence
Prosecutors say a driver hit about 89 mph with a .12 BAC before a crash near the Greenpoint Avenue exit that killed a 23-year-old passenger. He pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide and was sentenced in July 2025.
Read the full case →Midwood man indicted after an 88 mph DWI crash injures two NYPD officers
Prosecutors say a 2024 Suburban hit a patrol car on Coney Island Avenue near Avenue U at about 2:30 a.m., seriously injuring two officers and ejecting the driver's passenger. The indictment includes aggravated vehicular assault, a class B felony. The case is pending.
Read the full case →Driver indicted after a 100 mph crash kills two moped riders
Prosecutors say a Mercedes hit two moped riders near East 223rd Street at about 1 a.m. while traveling 100 mph in a 50 zone. The driver's BAC was .08, right at the legal limit, yet the top charge is aggravated vehicular homicide. The case is pending.
Read the full case →Driver convicted of murder for the July 4 crash that killed four
A driver with a .17 BAC drove a pickup into a July 4 gathering near the East River, killing four people and injuring seven. A jury convicted him of second-degree murder and aggravated vehicular homicide. He was sentenced to 24 years to life.
Read the full case →Ex-officer with a .24 BAC convicted of aggravated vehicular homicide after a wrong-way crash
Driving the wrong way at 4:30 a.m., he hit a tractor-trailer head-on, killing two men and seriously injuring a third. A Staten Island jury convicted him on all counts, and he received the maximum, 8 1/3 to 25 years.
Read the full case →From public court filings, District Attorney and State Police releases, and news reports. A charge is an accusation, not proof of guilt. Every person is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
More cases on our DWI cases in the news page.
New York City DWI questions, answered
Which court will my NYC DWI case be in?
The case is heard in the borough where you were arrested, not the one where you live. A Queens resident arrested on the FDR Drive goes to court at 100 Centre Street in Manhattan. The table on this page lists the criminal court for each borough and for Nassau and Suffolk.
Is a DWI a crime in New York City?
A first DWI is a misdemeanor, which is a crime. DWAI, driving while ability impaired by alcohol, is a traffic infraction, not a crime, which is why reducing a DWI to DWAI is a common goal. A second DWI within ten years, or a DWI with a child 15 or younger in the car, is a felony.
Is DUI different from DWI in New York?
New York does not use the term DUI in its statutes. The charges are DWI (driving while intoxicated), DWAI (driving while ability impaired, by alcohol or by drugs), and aggravated DWI for a BAC of .18 or higher. People search for a DUI lawyer in NYC, but the charge on the paperwork will say DWI or DWAI.
How long will I be held after a DWI arrest in NYC?
Most people are arraigned within about 24 hours of the arrest, after testing and booking. Most first-offense DWI defendants are released at arraignment. The wait is one reason to have a lawyer ready before the arraignment, where the license suspension is also decided.
Will I lose my license after a DWI arrest in NYC?
With a test of .08 or higher, the judge will generally suspend your license at arraignment while the case is pending. You can ask for a hardship hearing for a limited license. A refusal to take the test leads to a separate DMV hearing and, if upheld, a one-year revocation and a $500 civil penalty.
How much does an NYC DWI lawyer cost?
Jonathan Kaye charges a flat $1,500 legal fee for a misdemeanor DWI in any of the five boroughs, arraignment to resolution, agreed in writing up front. Court fines, surcharges, DMV fees and program costs are set by the State and are separate.