I am a lawyer in CT and practice in this area of the law.  The penalty for a 2nd DUI in most states is jail time anywhere from 2 days - 4 months.  There is alos a fine up to 4K associated with a second DUI.  If your son is not able to afford a lawyer, then he needs to apply for a public defender.  the public defendant will look into the case to determine whether there are any valid defenses to the charges and try to work out a deal with the state that includes the least amount of jail time and/or fines.  I would expect however, that your som is likely to spend some time in jail.