By Samuel Edmunds, Criminal Defense Attorney, Sieben Edmunds Miller PLLC
A DWI charge is serious enough on its own. But when someone else is injured in a crash, the case becomes significantly more complicated. In addition to DWI allegations, prosecutors may pursue felony charges that carry substantial prison time, long-term license consequences, and ripple effects that can follow you for decades.
Here is what Minnesota law says about these cases and what your options look like if you are charged.
When a DWI Becomes Criminal Vehicular Operation
A first-time DWI in Minnesota is typically a misdemeanor. The moment an injury enters the picture, that changes. Under Minn. Stat. § 609.2113, if you cause injury to another person while driving negligently under the influence of alcohol or drugs, the charge escalates to Criminal Vehicular Operation (CVO).
How serious the charge is depends on the severity of the injury. Minnesota law recognizes three levels:
- Bodily Harm: Physical pain, illness, or any impairment of physical condition. Charged as a gross misdemeanor, with a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $3,000 fine.
- Substantial Bodily Harm: A temporary but significant loss of function of a body part or organ, or a bone fracture. This is a felony carrying up to three years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
- Great Bodily Harm: Injuries that create a high probability of death, cause serious permanent disfigurement, or result in permanent or long-term loss of function of a body part or organ. This is the most serious classification, carrying up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The injury classification is not always as clear-cut as it appears on paper. Prosecutors sometimes charge at the highest defensible level based on early medical reports that later tell a different story. That initial charging decision matters, and it is one reason to have an attorney involved before formal charges are even filed.
Your Driver’s License: The Administrative Track Runs Simultaneously
Criminal charges are not the only thing moving against you after a CVO arrest. Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety can initiate an administrative license revocation, a civil action entirely separate from your criminal case, almost immediately after an arrest and regardless of whether you are ultimately convicted.
For CVO cases, administrative consequences are severe:
- For charges involving Bodily Harm or Substantial Bodily Harm with no prior offenses, the baseline revocation is two years. One prior offense pushes that to four years.
- For cases involving Great Bodily Harm, the administrative revocation ranges from six to eight years depending on your record.
- Reinstatement is not automatic. It requires completing a licensed substance use disorder treatment program and participating in the Ignition Interlock Program.
Prior history matters significantly more than it used to. Minnesota now enforces a 20-year look-back period for administrative license penalties and ignition interlock requirements, extended from the previous 10-year window in August 2025. The state can reach back two full decades on your driving record to lengthen your revocation, mandate interlock tracking, or trigger vehicle forfeiture. For severe or repeat cases, the state uses a lifetime look-back to determine total license cancellation. A driving incident from many years ago can directly affect whether your driving privileges are canceled entirely as inimical to public safety.
Because the administrative and criminal tracks move simultaneously, protecting your driving privileges requires immediate action. Administrative deadlines are strict, and missing them can cost you options that would otherwise be available.
Where a CVO Defense Can Be Built
An injury does not make a CVO case indefensible. The state still carries the full burden of proof, and there are several areas where that proof can be challenged:
Causation: The prosecution must prove that your impairment actually caused the injury, not the other driver’s actions, road conditions, a mechanical issue, or other contributing factors. Establishing causation is a higher bar than many people realize, and it is often the most productive area of a CVO defense.
Testing accuracy: Breath, blood, and urine tests are only as reliable as the procedures used to administer them and the equipment used to process them. We scrutinize chain of custody documentation, laboratory procedures, and device maintenance and calibration records. Ongoing litigation in Minnesota, including the pending case of Knapp v. Commissioner, continues to raise questions about the reliability of breath test evidence that may be relevant to your case.
Constitutional violations: If the initial stop lacked legal justification, or if your rights were violated during questioning or arrest, evidence gathered as a result may be suppressible. A successful suppression motion can fundamentally change the trajectory of a CVO case.
Charge level accuracy: The injury classifications under § 609.2113 carry meaningfully different penalties. When the difference between substantial and great bodily harm is genuinely disputed based on medical evidence, contesting the charge level can be as important as contesting the underlying facts.
How Sieben Edmunds Miller Approaches CVO Cases
At Sieben Edmunds Miller, we know that an accident, even a serious one, does not have to define who you are. Our job is to make sure the full picture reaches the court, not just the version the prosecution wants to tell.
We practice in Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and surrounding Minnesota counties, and we handle CVO cases at every stage, from the initial administrative license challenge through trial if necessary. We review police reports and body camera footage, retain experts when testing or causation issues warrant it, and build a strategy tailored to the specific facts of your situation. Whether the goal is reducing the charge, avoiding prison time, protecting a professional license, or preserving driving privileges, we work to find the best available path forward.
If you are under investigation or have already been charged, do not wait. Reach out today for a confidential consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Criminal Vehicular Operation in Minnesota?
CVO is the charge that applies when someone causes injury to another person while driving negligently under the influence of alcohol or drugs, under Minn. Stat. § 609.2113. It replaces the standard DWI charge when bodily harm is involved and carries significantly more serious penalties, ranging from a gross misdemeanor for minor injuries up to a felony with five years in prison for the most serious harm. A CVO charge also triggers a separate administrative license revocation process that runs independently of the criminal case.
What is the difference between bodily harm, substantial bodily harm, and great bodily harm?
These are the three injury classifications Minnesota uses in CVO cases. Bodily harm covers physical pain or any impairment of physical condition. Substantial bodily harm involves a significant but temporary loss of function or a bone fracture. Great bodily harm involves injuries that could cause death, permanent disfigurement, or long-term loss of function, and it carries the steepest penalties. The distinction matters not just for sentencing but for how aggressively the prosecution will pursue the case and what leverage exists in negotiations.
How does Minnesota’s 20-year look-back period affect a CVO charge?
Effective August 2025, Minnesota extended the look-back period for administrative license penalties and ignition interlock requirements from 10 years to 20 years. This means a prior DWI or license offense from up to two decades ago can be used to increase your revocation period or trigger additional requirements. For the most severe cases, the state uses a lifetime look-back to determine whether driving privileges should be canceled entirely. If you have any prior history, understanding exactly how it affects your current case requires a careful review of your full driving record.
Will I lose my license if charged with CVO?
Almost certainly, at least temporarily. The Department of Public Safety can revoke your license administratively, separate from any criminal penalties, almost immediately after arrest. For CVO cases, the minimum revocation period is typically two years, and reinstatement generally requires completing a substance use disorder treatment program and participating in the Ignition Interlock Program. Because administrative deadlines are strict and short, contacting an attorney promptly after an arrest gives you the best chance of preserving any available challenge to the revocation.
Can a CVO charge be beaten even if someone was injured?
Yes. An injury does not guarantee a conviction. The state must still prove that your impairment caused the injury, that testing was conducted properly, and that your arrest was lawful. Each of those elements can be challenged. An experienced attorney will examine whether causation is genuinely attributable to your conduct, whether the chemical testing evidence holds up to scrutiny, and whether any constitutional violations occurred during the stop or arrest that would support suppression.
What should I do immediately after being charged with CVO?
Contact an attorney before making any statements to law enforcement or insurance representatives. The administrative license revocation process has strict deadlines, often as short as 60 days from the date of arrest, and missing them eliminates options that would otherwise be available. Early involvement by an attorney also allows for the preservation of evidence, including surveillance footage, third-party witness accounts, and vehicle data, that may not be recoverable later.
