Denton DWI Lawyer
Science-driven defense for every Denton County DWI and drunk driving charge, from an under-21 DUI to felony DWI. Denton prosecutes DWI with a dedicated unit. We defend it with forensic scientists.
- Two ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientists
- Former Dallas County Prosecutor
- Author, The Texas DWI Manual
- 500+ Cases Tried to Verdict
Intake answers 24/7 · Case review at no cost · You have 15 days from the notice of suspension to request your ALR hearing
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Recent Denton County DWI Results
Every case gets forensic-level attention. These are recent outcomes for people facing DWI charges in Denton County.
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DWI, BAC 0.15+ (Class A)
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Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is fact-specific. Client names and identifying details have been omitted for privacy.
Facing a DWI in Denton County?
Deandra Grant Law defends people charged with DWI in Denton, Lewisville, Flower Mound, and across Denton County. Our Denton office sits directly across McKinney Street from the Denton County Courts Building, so the building where your case will be heard is one we are in constantly. Call (940) 600-5536 any hour. Denton is also a college county. UNT and TWU put tens of thousands of students under 21 on the road, and Texas enforces a zero-tolerance rule for drivers under 21, where any detectable alcohol can support a charge. An underage DWI or a DUI by a minor in Denton is a different case from a standard first offense, and it needs a lawyer who treats it that way.
The Denton County Criminal District Attorney runs a dedicated DWI Unit, which means these cases are handled by prosecutors who do nothing else. That raises the bar, and it is the bar we are built to meet. This firm has tried more than 500 cases to verdict, and when the State’s case rests on a breath or blood result, we request the underlying data and challenge the analysis rather than taking the reported result at face value.
Getting started costs nothing. Call or schedule online to talk through what happened and understand your options. The sooner we start, the more we can protect, and in Texas you have just 15 days from the notice of suspension to request the hearing that keeps your license.
Your license is on a 15-day clock
It starts when you receive the notice of suspension, not automatically at arrest. Denton sends blood out to a state DPS lab and the wait is often long, so in a blood case that notice may arrive by mail weeks later. The deadline may still be ahead of you. Request the hearing either way.
Is it DWI, DUI, or drunk driving in Texas?
In Texas, DWI and DUI are two different charges. DWI, driving while intoxicated under Penal Code 49.04, is the adult charge, and it is the word on the ticket, the docket, and the DPS suspension notice. DUI, driving under the influence by a minor under Alcoholic Beverage Code 106.041, is the charge for drivers under 21 with any detectable alcohol, and it carries lighter penalties. Drunk driving is simply the everyday phrase for a DWI arrest. If you are 21 or older and were arrested in Denton County for what you would call a DUI or drunk driving, your case is a DWI, and everything on this page applies to you. If you or your child is under 21, the charge may be DUI, and we defend those cases too.
Drunk Driving Arrests in Denton County: What Happens Next
Most Denton County drunk driving arrests start with a traffic stop by Denton police, a DPS trooper on I-35E or US-380, the sheriff's office, or a suburban department like Lewisville or Flower Mound, then field sobriety tests on the roadside. If you refuse a breath test, officers can seek a blood warrant, and on Denton County's no-refusal weekends a judge signs one the same night. The blood goes out to a state DPS lab. You are booked at the Denton County Jail and released on bond. In a breath case you are handed a notice of suspension that day, and in a blood case it can come by mail weeks later; either way, that notice starts the 15-day clock on your license. The case is filed as DWI under Penal Code 49.04 and prosecuted by the Criminal District Attorney's DWI Unit, and for most people it is a first offense, a Class B misdemeanor heard in a County Criminal Court across the street from our office. What we do first: request the ALR hearing, preserve the dash and body camera video before it is overwritten, and request the lab's records behind the number. Intake answers 24/7, and if we can take your case, the consultation is free.
Under-21 DUI in Denton County
With UNT and TWU in the city of Denton, the county sees more under-21 cases than most. A driver under 21 with any detectable alcohol can be charged with DUI, driving under the influence by a minor, under Alcoholic Beverage Code 106.041. A first DUI is a Class C misdemeanor: a fine, an alcohol awareness class, community service, and a license suspension, usually handled in a municipal or justice court rather than at the Denton County Courts Building. The catch is that a driver under 21 who tests at 0.08 or higher, or who has lost the normal use of their faculties, is charged with the adult DWI instead, with jail exposure and the same 15-day ALR clock. A stop by UNT or TWU police can also put the arrest in front of the school. Parents usually make the first call. We defend both the DUI and the DWI version, and the first thing we check is which one the ticket actually says.
How a DWI Case Moves Through Denton County
Denton runs its DWI docket differently from Dallas, Tarrant, or Collin. Here is the path from the arrest to the end of the case. Find where you are on it.
Arrest
Denton County DWI arrests come from Denton Police, DPS troopers on I-35E and US-380, the Denton County Sheriff's Office, UNT and TWU police near the campuses, and the suburban departments in Lewisville, Flower Mound, The Colony, and Corinth.
Booking
After the arrest you are booked at the Denton County Jail. Lewisville, Flower Mound, and other city arrests may hold you locally first.
Bond and release
A magistrate sets your bond and any release conditions, usually within 48 hours and before your first court date. Time already spent in the county jail counts against any sentence later.
Blood analysis
Denton County sends DWI blood out to a state DPS lab for analysis. Turnaround is often slow, and that delay is part of the case: it stretches the license timeline and it gives the defense time to work. The lab's methods, calibration records, and quality control data are discoverable, and we request them in every blood case.
ALR hearing
Your license case runs separately from the criminal case. Request the hearing within 15 days of the notice of suspension, and the hearing becomes the first chance to question the officer under oath.
The 15-day ruleFirst setting
Your case is set at the Denton County Courts Building, 1450 E. McKinney Street, a few blocks east of the downtown square. A first or second DWI is a misdemeanor and goes to a County Criminal Court. A felony DWI, intoxication assault, or intoxication manslaughter goes to a District Court.
Who prosecutes
The Denton County Criminal District Attorney's Office runs a dedicated DWI Unit staffed by prosecutors who handle nothing else. The State's side of your case is run by specialists, which makes generic defense work easy for them to beat.
Resolution
Denton County runs an active DWI Court, a probation-based treatment program for repeat DWI offenders that has operated since 2007, alongside a Veterans Treatment Court. Neither is a diversion for a first offense, so for most cases the defense itself is the path to a dismissal, a reduction, deferred adjudication where you qualify, or a verdict at trial.
Denton DWI Charges We Handle
Every Denton County DWI charge, from a first offense to intoxication manslaughter, including underage DWI and DUI by a minor.
First-Offense DWI
Driving while intoxicated with no prior convictions, a Class B misdemeanor.
First DWI penaltiesSecond DWI
A DWI with one prior conviction, a Class A misdemeanor with mandatory jail time.
Second DWI penaltiesThird DWI
A DWI with two prior convictions, a third-degree felony carrying two to ten years.
Third DWI penaltiesDWI with Child Passenger
A passenger under fifteen turns a misdemeanor DWI into a felony.
Why this is a felonyIntoxication Assault
Causing serious bodily injury to another while intoxicated, a third-degree felony.
Assault penaltiesIntoxication Manslaughter
Causing a death while intoxicated, a second-degree felony carrying prison time.
Manslaughter penaltiesUnderage DWI
Drivers under twenty-one face DUI charges for any detectable amount of alcohol.
DWI vs. DUIDrug DWI
A DWI where the intoxicant is a drug, prescribed or illegal, with no breath number involved.
How they prove itMarijuana DWI
Marijuana and edibles can support a DWI without any measurable level.
The marijuana rulesPrescription Drug DWI
A valid prescription is no defense if the medication impaired your driving.
Prescription rulesBoating DWI (BWI)
Operating a boat while intoxicated, prosecuted much like a driving DWI.
The BWI rulesWhy Denton Clients Choose This Firm
What decides a DWI case is how well your lawyer understands the evidence.
What We Do on Every Case
From the first call, in order:
- Request your ALR hearing before the 15-day deadline and use it to question the officer under oath.
- Demand the dash and body camera video before it is destroyed.
- Pull the full discovery file: offense report, calibration and maintenance logs, lab records, certifications.
- Read the underlying chemistry ourselves: the chromatograms and the QC data, not the summary report.
- Re-score the field sobriety tests against NHTSA protocol, on video.
- File the motions the evidence supports, because suppression is how DWI cases end.
- Build your mitigation file, with clinical assessments, at no cost to you.
- Try the case if the offer is not right. Prosecutors know which firms try cases.
Intake answers 24/7, and if we can take your case, the consultation with an attorney is free. We quote a flat fee there, so the investment is known before you commit.
What Denton Clients Say
613 reviews across our six offices in North and Central Texas. These came through the Denton office.
Lifesavers! Deandra Grant Law Helped Me Navigate My DWI Charge I can't recommend Deandra Grant Law enough! From the very beginning, they were incredibly supportive and understanding throughout my DWI case. Their expertise in the legal system was reassuring, and their communication was fantastic. They kept me informed every step of the way and truly fought for the best possible outcome in my case. Thanks to my attorney, Kevin , I was able to get the charges reduced, and avoid jail time. If you're facing a DWI charge, don't hesitate to contact them. They're the best!
I chose Deandra Grant to represent me because they are not only one of the best law firms in DFW for DWI but they could offer a team of people to help me with special skills in different areas of my case. Doug was able to explain the whole process and give me very accurate advice during our very first conversation and if he was not available, Madison could jump in seamlessly and take care of anything I needed. It was empowering to have support like that in a time that was unfamiliar and scary. They provided me with a ton of information on DWI law and processes that would affect me and most importantly, held up on all of the promises and estimations made about how my case would likely turn out. The biggest of which being able to get my charge dropped to a misdemeanor class B. There were a lot of lessons learned from the whole ordeal but one was definitely not to cheap out on defense.
Amazing! Kevin really cared.. my son was not just another money sign. He put his whole heart into getting my son a “Not Guilty” verdict. Denton tried to destroy my son’s career as a police officer and Kevin saw the injustice and was not going to let that happen. He lead a vigorous defense with an amazing team! My son is back doing what he loves! Thank you Kevin and your awesome team!
Denton DWI Attorneys in the Denton County Courts
Forensic-science training, three decades of Texas defense, and the courtroom record to back it up.
As Seen In
Serving All of Denton County
We defend DWI cases from every corner of Denton County: Denton itself, from the Square and the UNT and TWU campuses outward, plus Lewisville, Flower Mound, Highland Village, Corinth, Lake Dallas, The Colony, Little Elm, Aubrey, Sanger, Krum, Pilot Point, Argyle, Roanoke, and Trophy Club. If the arrest happened in Denton County, the case lands at the Denton County Courts Building, and those are courtrooms we work every week. Some cities cross a county line: the Denton County side of Frisco and Carrollton is heard here, while stops on the other side belong to Collin or Dallas County. The far north edge of Fort Worth also reaches into Denton County. We check the county first, because it decides everything that follows.
Lewisville, The Colony, and Corinth
The I-35E corridor south of Denton produces a steady share of the county arrests, from Lewisville PD, The Colony PD, Corinth PD, and DPS, and Lake Lewisville adds boating-while-intoxicated cases every summer. All of it is heard in Denton. Our Lewisville DWI attorney page covers that stretch in detail.
Flower Mound and Highland Village
FM 2499, FM 407, and the roads around Grapevine Lake are Flower Mound and Highland Village police territory, and every arrest there is a Denton County case. See our Flower Mound DWI lawyer page.
UNT, TWU, and Fry Street
Denton is a college town, and a stop near campus by UNT police, TWU police, or Denton PD is prosecuted by the same Denton County DWI Unit. A driver under 21 faces the Texas zero-tolerance rule, where any detectable alcohol supports a charge, and a DWI can carry school conduct consequences on top of the criminal case.
Our Denton Office
Directly across the street from the Denton County Courts Building.

Denton, TX 76209 (940) 600-5536
Free and confidential if we can take your case, in person, by phone, or by video.
On-site parking at no cost in the lot in front of the building, plus street parking along E. McKinney Street.
Directions to the Denton Office
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From Denton County Courts Building
From 1450 E. McKinney, cross E. McKinney Street to 1317 and look for Suite 101A.
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From I-35E
Exit US-380 / E. University Drive and head east, then turn south on Bell Avenue and east on E. McKinney Street.
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From Downtown Denton / Courthouse-on-the-Square
From the square, take E. Hickory Street east to Bell Avenue, turn right, then left onto E. McKinney Street. The office is a few blocks east.
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From Lewisville / Flower Mound
Take I-35E North to the US-380 exit, head east, then south on Bell Avenue to E. McKinney Street.
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From DFW International Airport
Take SH-121 North to I-35E North, exit US-380 / E. University Drive, then east to Bell Avenue and E. McKinney Street.
Also From This Office
- Denton Criminal Defense Lawyer Misdemeanors and felonies at the courts building across the street from our door.
Court guides for the counties this office covers: Denton County, Cooke County, Flower Mound.
Wherever You Are in Your Case, Start Here
A DWI case has many moving parts. Find the question you are asking right now.
“I’m out of jail. Now what?”
What happens next, from booking through your first court date, and the deadline that comes first.
Booking to court date“Will I still be able to drive?”
A DWI arrest starts a second, separate case against your license, and it runs on a 15-day clock.
Save your license“What even counts as a DWI?”
What Texas actually has to prove, and the three elements every case rests on.
The three elements“What exactly am I charged with?”
Texas charges DWI at six levels, and four facts can turn a misdemeanor into a felony.
See the charge levels“How bad can the sentence get?”
What a first, second, or felony DWI carries in jail time, fines, and suspension.
Jail, fines, suspension“Is their evidence any good?”
Breath, blood, and roadside tests: what each measures and where each one goes wrong.
Where the tests fail“Was the stop even legal?”
What police need before the lights come on, what the roadside can and cannot require of you, and how to tell afterwards.
The 24 driving cues“What can be done about it?”
Every Texas DWI defense by category, from the stop through the elements the State still has to prove.
Every defense, by type“What happens next, and when?”
Every stage of a Texas DWI case, from filing through disposition, and what happens at each.
Walk through a case“How does my case end?”
Dismissal, acquittal, reduction, deferred, probation, or jail, and which endings let you clear your record.
See how cases end“What does this do to my life?”
What a DWI touches beyond the courtroom: your job, insurance, immigration status, and license.
What a conviction costs“Who should I hire, and what will it cost?”
What to ask, which credentials matter in a DWI case, what fees should cover, and the red flags.
Credentials and feesNot sure what a term means? Check the glossary.
The Rest of What We Defend
DWI is the majority of our work, not all of it. The same attorneys handle these charges in the same courthouses.
Criminal Defense
Assault, drugs, theft, weapons, and every other Texas charge, defended by the same trial team.
Criminal Defense in Denton CountyFederal Crimes
Federal court runs on different rules and different sentencing math. Federal cases from Denton County are filed in the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division.
Texas Federal CrimesDenton DWI Questions, Answered
Charged with DWI in Denton?
Confidential case review at no cost. Intake answers 24/7, and if we can take your case, the consultation with an attorney is free.
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