Under Hawaii DUI or Operating a Vehicle Under the Influence of an Intoxicant (OVUII) law, a court case is triggered where punishment is levied against the convicted person. Also a Department of Motor Vehicles hearing is scheduled where the defendant's license maybe suspended for a period of time.

In the state of Hawaii, even if you do not live in the state and get busted for a DUI offense, it will be reported to your own state, meaning that you will not be able to avoid prosecution.

DUI offenses can be brought against somebody if they appear to be driving while under the influence of alcohol, (driving patterns, field sobriety test results, chemical test results and the driver's physical appearance) or under the state's "per se" law where the driver's blood alcohol level BAC is at or above .08.

Punishments for DUI in the state of Hawaii depend on the amount of prior convictions.

First offense results in; 90 day revocation of license, either 72 hours of comunity service, 48 hours to 5 days in jail or fine between $150 and $1000, and a minimum 14 hours substance abuse program.

For second and subsequent DUI convictions, the punishments are a lot steeper, with increased jail time, fines and license revocation periods.

Hawaii has a 5 year "look back" period which means that if your DUI conviction falls within 5 years of a previous DUI conviction the punishment is very severe. If though, your DUI conviction falls more than 5 years since your previous, it is treated as a first time offense.

Furthermore, if you are caught with a BAC over .2, or are impaired with minors in your vehicle, the punishment is steep.