DUI Causing Great Bodily Injury in Oklahoma: Law, Penalties, & Defenses

Charged with DUI causing great bodily injury after an Oklahoma crash?

A serious-injury DUI investigation can produce medical records, crash evidence, chemical-test evidence, video, and witness statements before the defense has had an opportunity to independently examine what happened.

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Quick links

• What is DUI causing great bodily injury?
• Key elements the State must prove
• Penalties
• Collateral consequences
• How prosecutors prove DUI causing great bodily injury
• Practical guide if you’re charged with this crime
• What happens next
• How this charge compares to related Oklahoma driving crimes
• Key terms
• FAQs
• Important cases
• This crime in the news

What is DUI causing great bodily injury?

This page reflects Oklahoma law effective November 1, 2026 and applies to conduct alleged on or after that date. Law may be different for conduct alleged to have occurred before then.

Oklahoma’s underlying DUI law in 47 O.S. § 11-902 provides several ways the State can allege a DUI violation. They include a blood or breath alcohol concentration of .08 or more at the time of a test, being under the influence of alcohol, certain controlled-substance test results, being under the influence of another intoxicating substance that may make a person incapable of safely driving, or being under the combined influence of alcohol and another intoxicating substance that may have that effect.

DUI causing great bodily injury adds two critical requirements to the underlying DUI theory: an accident caused by the accused driver and great bodily injury to another person. That causation-and-injury requirement separates this crime from a DUI case that doesn’t involve a qualifying injury. For a broader discussion of DUI allegations, see our Oklahoma DUI guide. It is part of our broader drunk-driving defense resources.

Depending on what allegedly happened at the scene, prosecutors may also file counts such as reckless driving or leaving the scene of an accident involving nonfatal injury under 47 O.S. § 10-102. Whether another offense can properly accompany this charge depends on the conduct and evidence supporting each count.

An Oklahoma DUI causing great bodily injury defense attorney should examine the DUI allegation, accident causation, and medical-injury issue separately rather than treating the crash as automatic proof of every element.

Key elements the State must prove

For DUI causing great bodily injury, the elements reflected in jury instruction 6-22 require the prosecution to establish the following:

• Causing an accident.
• The accident resulted in great bodily injury to another person.
• The defendant was driving a motor vehicle.
• The driving occurred in a location covered by Oklahoma’s DUI law.
• The defendant satisfied the DUI theory alleged by the prosecution.

The accident alone doesn’t establish the offense. Evidence about which driver caused the collision, whether another event contributed to it, and whether the alleged injury legally qualifies can determine whether the State can prove the complete charge.

The published instruction also contains an optional chemical-test timing element derived from older statutory wording for the .08 alcohol-concentration theory. The current statute states the alcohol concentration requirement in terms of the concentration at the time of a test. That difference makes the offense date, the prosecution’s particular DUI theory, and the governing statutory language important when analyzing chemical-test evidence.

Penalties

DUI causing great bodily injury is a Class B1 felony under 21 O.S. § 20F. The substantive punishment appears in 47 O.S. § 11-904(B).

• Prison
  • 4–20 years
• Fine
  • Up to $5,000

The felony classification is only part of the punishment analysis. A person’s criminal history can materially change the available sentence.

Prior-felony sentence enhancement

Oklahoma’s habitual-offender provisions in 21 O.S. § 51.1 can increase imprisonment when qualifying prior felony convictions apply. The statute contains restrictions and qualification rules, so a prior conviction should not be assumed to enhance the new case without reviewing the record.

• One qualifying prior felony
  • Prison: 8 years–life
• Two qualifying prior felonies
  • Prison: 12 years–life

Our Oklahoma sentence-enhancement guide explains why the date, type, and relationship among prior convictions can matter. An enhanced sentencing allegation can create a dramatically different penalty from the unenhanced offense.

Collateral consequences

A DUI causing great bodily injury felony conviction can affect much more than the sentence announced in court. These consequences should be evaluated alongside the direct criminal punishments.

• Driving privileges. The criminal prosecution and administrative driving consequences can involve different procedures and deadlines. See our Oklahoma DUI driver’s-license consequences guide.
• Electronic-monitoring eligibility. The law effective November 1, 2026 makes a person convicted of the serious-injury DUI offense ineligible for the Department of Corrections Electronic Monitoring Program under 57 O.S. § 510.9.
• Employment and professional licensing. A felony conviction and serious driving offense can create employment, credentialing, insurance, or occupational consequences depending on the person’s field.
• Restitution and financial consequences. A serious-injury crash can generate substantial medical and other losses, and criminal restitution may become a separate sentencing issue.
• Long-term criminal record effects. A felony record can affect later background checks and can have consequences if the person is accused of another crime.

How prosecutors prove DUI causing great bodily injury

The State typically builds a DUI causing great bodily injury case from several evidence streams rather than one piece of proof. Each stream can create separate factual, scientific, or admissibility issues.

• Crash evidence: photographs, scene measurements, vehicle damage, event-data information, diagrams, and reconstruction opinions can be used to argue who caused the collision.
• Medical evidence: records, imaging, surgery information, physician testimony, and the course of treatment can be used to establish the nature and seriousness of the injury.
• Witness and video evidence: passengers, motorists, businesses, body cameras, dash cameras, and surveillance systems can supply evidence about the driving and the crash.
• Field sobriety evidence: officers may rely on observations and standardized field sobriety testing to support an impairment allegation.
• Chemical testing: breath or blood evidence may be offered to establish an alcohol or drug-related DUI theory.

The prosecution’s evidence can sound technical without being immune from challenge. An ARIDE-informed review can also matter when the State’s theory involves drugs, combined substances, or roadside impairment observations.

Practical guide if you’re charged with DUI causing great bodily injury

What we look for first in a DUI causing great bodily injury case

• Which DUI theory the State actually alleges and what admissible evidence supports that theory.
• Whether the crash evidence establishes that the accused driver caused the accident.
• Whether the medical evidence satisfies the current legal definition of great bodily injury.
• Whether law enforcement obtained blood, breath, statements, or other evidence lawfully.
• Whether video, witnesses, vehicle data, or independent experts contradict the prosecution’s reconstruction of events.

Defenses

• No accident causation: The accused didn’t cause the accident that resulted in the other person’s alleged great bodily injury.
• No great bodily injury: The alleged injury doesn’t satisfy Oklahoma’s legal definition of great bodily injury.
• No qualifying DUI violation: The evidence doesn’t establish the alcohol-, drug-, or combined-influence DUI theory charged by the State.
• No injury causation: The alleged great bodily injury resulted from something other than the accident.
• Key evidence should be suppressed: Evidence obtained through an unlawful stop, detention, search, seizure, blood draw, or interrogation is subject to suppression when the governing constitutional requirements are violated.

How we fight these charges

• Reconstruct the collision independently instead of assuming the police report resolves causation.
• Compare the medical records with the statutory injury categories the State must prove.
• Audit the collection, handling, analysis, and interpretation of blood or breath evidence.
• Preserve and compare body-camera, dash-camera, surveillance, vehicle, and witness evidence before useful evidence disappears.
• Use targeted motions when constitutional, evidentiary, scientific, or instructional issues can limit what the State may present.

How The Urbanic Law Firm can help

• Identify the exact DUI and injury theories being alleged before building the defense around assumptions.
• Organize crash, medical, testing, and video evidence into separate proof questions for systematic review.
• Explain important court events and decisions so the client knows what each stage means for the case.
• Coordinate appropriate expert review when crash reconstruction, toxicology, medical causation, or another technical subject warrants it.
• Develop a defense plan that addresses both the criminal accusation and practical consequences created by a serious-injury DUI case.

Questions to ask you attorney

• Which specific DUI theory is the State alleging against me?
• What evidence does the State have that I caused the accident?
• Why does the prosecution claim the injury qualifies as great bodily injury?
• Are there grounds to suppress or limit any chemical-test, statement, or search evidence?
• Does my prior record create a sentence-enhancement issue?

Things you can do if you’re arrested for this crime

• Preserve documents, photographs, videos, messages, receipts, and other material that may help establish the timeline.
• Write down what you remember about the driving, crash, investigation, testing, and statements while the details remain fresh.
• Avoid discussing the facts of the case on social media or with people who don’t need to know them.
• Follow court, release, and driving restrictions carefully while the case is pending.
• Give your attorney complete information about medications, alcohol or substance use, medical issues, prior convictions, and potential witnesses.

What happens next

A felony DUI causing great bodily injury case generally proceeds through Oklahoma’s criminal process, but the exact path depends on the case. Early issues can include arrest, bail, evidence preservation, discovery, and any separate driver’s-license proceeding.

Because this is a felony, a preliminary hearing may become an important stage unless it is waived or the case is resolved through another procedure. Motions concerning searches, chemical testing, statements, experts, medical records, or admissibility can arise before trial.

The defense investigation shouldn’t wait for the prosecution’s case to become fully assembled. Crash-scene evidence can disappear, surveillance systems can overwrite footage, and witnesses’ memories can change with time.

An Oklahoma DUI causing great bodily injury defense lawyer can evaluate which immediate investigative or litigation steps fit the particular accident instead of treating every serious-injury DUI case the same.

How this charge compares to related Oklahoma driving crimes

The injury level, causation requirement, and underlying driving allegation can substantially change the charge and possible punishment. This table compares DUI causing great bodily injury with two closely related Oklahoma driving offenses.

Key terms

Great bodily injury

The current offense statute defines great bodily injury as an injury involving a serious compound bone fracture, protracted and obvious disfigurement, protracted loss or impairment of the function of a body part, organ, or mental faculty, or substantial risk of death. The older definition in the currently published vehicle-related jury instruction isn’t identical, so the current statutory definition controls for conduct governed by the November 1, 2026 law. (47 O.S. § 11-904(C) & jury instruction 6-35)

Driving

Driving means operating a motor vehicle while it is in motion. The DUI causing great bodily injury offense requires driving, so evidence showing only occupancy or control of a stationary vehicle presents a different factual question. (jury instruction 6-35)

Under the influence

Under the influence means alcohol, an intoxicating substance, or a combination has affected the nervous system, brain, or muscles enough to hinder, to an appreciable degree, the ability to operate a motor vehicle as an ordinarily prudent and cautious person in full possession of their faculties would drive under like conditions. (jury instruction 6-35)

Intoxicating substance

An intoxicating substance other than alcohol is a substance capable of being ingested, inhaled, injected, or absorbed into the human body and capable of adversely affecting the central nervous system, vision, hearing, or sensory or motor functions. Oklahoma’s Title 47 definition of an “other intoxicating substance” also includes controlled dangerous substances. (47 O.S. § 1-140.1 & jury instruction 6-35)

Careless or wanton manner

Careless or wanton manner means acting in disregard of an unreasonable risk of danger to another when it is known or should be known that harm is highly probable to result. That definition is relevant when a separate reckless-driving allegation accompanies a crash case. (jury instruction 6-35)

FAQs

Important cases

Luster v. State, 1987 OK CR 261, 746 P.2d 1159 The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals recognized the DUI causing great bodily injury statute as the specific enactment dealing with injury caused while driving intoxicated and noted that it eliminated an intent requirement for that offense. The court consequently held that an assault-and-battery-with-a-dangerous-weapon theory was no longer applicable to intoxicated-driving injury situations unless the required specific intent could independently be shown. The decision is useful when analyzing whether prosecutors are attempting to transform an accidental DUI crash into an intent-based assault offense without evidence of the required intent.

This crime in the news

A May 16, 2024 KSWO report illustrates the types of evidence that may appear in a DUI causing great bodily injury investigation. KSWO reported that Nancy Le Son, 19, was arrested after an early-morning vehicle-pedestrian crash in Lawton, Comanche County. The report said police alleged that she showed field-sobriety indicators and that officers found an open cannabis container while investigating a crash that caused major injuries. A news report describes allegations, not proof of guilt, but the incident shows how crash evidence, roadside observations, possible drug evidence, and injury evidence can converge in one investigation.