DUI Blog

Getting a driving under the influence (DUI) charge is unfortunately a common occurrence, just as alcohol or drug related driving deaths are quite common. It can be difficult to cope with the damages that come from getting a DUI. Some believe they can get out of it easily … others may feel they will ever be free of it … still more make mistakes when it comes to representation. This blog guide points out many myths that are clearly wrong. Let’s see if you believe any of them.

1-You Can Drink and Drive (Sometimes)
Some think it’s okay to drink some and drive, or to use some drugs, or to drive under age while drinking any amount. Accordingly, DUI arrests occur. Why? Some take alcohol better than others, and it’s nearly impossible to know if you are over the legal limit. If you use even some drugs, it can influence your ability to drive, and if they are illegal drugs, that’s breaking the law already. And remember: if you are under age, all states punish you for having any alcohol in your system, charging you for as little as a .01 level of alcohol.

Since you can never be sure what will happen on the breathalyzer, not to mention what will happen to your driving ability (leading to an accident), you should never drink or use drugs before driving. If you are at a party, at a bar, at your home, you should either get a sober driver, call a cab, or stay.

2-Drugs Don’t Matter
Even legal drugs can greatly influence your ability to drive. If you are taking a prescription drug, and it effects your driving ability, you should avoid driving at all costs. You should be warned beforehand by your doctor, or look up the side effects. If you are under the influence, you can be charged. And if you take an illegal drug, it won’t show up on your breathalyzer which tests for alcohol, but it can be found with a blood test. If you have drugs on you as well, you’re going to be charged.

3-You Have to Take Sobriety Tests
All states require you by law to take a breathalyzer test, and if you don’t, your license will immediately be suspended. However, state laws differ on further tests – sometimes you can refuse to take other sobriety tests such as walking in a straight line, counting backwards, or standing on one leg. In many cases, there are no laws on the books saying you must take these actions.

4-You Will Always be Found Guilty
You may think it’s over once the breathalyzer reads above .08% or the drugs are found on your person or in your system. Actually, if the test is very close to the limit, not being too high, you can argue it was wrong. You have many potential DUI defenses, even if you fail tests. The officer may have broken your rights, failed to properly use the breathalyzer, or made other mistakes. At the least, you can get a plea bargain for lesser charges.

5-Any Lawyer is Good
You have three options: represent yourself, have court appointed lawyer, or hire a lawyer. These are not  equal options. You need to hire a professional, local DUI lawyer who knows state laws, who has the time to handle your case, and who can handle the court process. If you represent yourself, you simply won’t know what to do unless you’re a DUI lawyer. If you ask for a court appointed lawyer, they have no real interest in your case, no time to truly help, and may make mistakes.

Defending DUI charges can be effective in cases where the officer acted incorrectly, if you were not driving, and especially if the validity of the DUI tests (such as the breathalyzer) can be questioned. The problem is that many believe once they are charged, they are going to be found guilty in a court of law. You have a right to defend yourself in a court of law, with the help of an attorney, as said in the Miranda warning given to you upon arrest.

Why Defense?
Why not just take the charges and be done? Well, it can be easy to say you are guilty, that you deserve punishment. However, you still have rights, and you still have a chance in defense. At the least, the prosecution can offer you a plea bargain. You just don’t know what will happen until you DUI lawyer prepares a defense.

The Officer Arrest
You can challenge your arrest. Say you are an African American woman, you’re pulled over for no clear reason, given a breathalyzer, and arrested. You may have been profiled; it does not always happen that way, but it can. If an officer pulls you over for no clear reason, even if you are not a minority, and you are arrested, you can challenge the arrest. The strategy here would be to say the officer should have never pulled over and arrested you in the first place, throwing out any evidence after. This does happen.

Another point to consider is your Miranda warning, where you’re supposed to be told of your rights to an attorney and beyond. If this is not given, it is a breach of your rights and can be made into an effective defense, even if you were over the limit.

By law, an officer has to be able to prove why he pulled you over, that he or she followed protocol in investigating you, and upon arrest you were told of your rights. If not, you can fight this in a court of law.

The Test Validity
The breathalyzer is not a perfect device, just like no officer is perfect. Actually, the breathalyzer can  be used incorrectly by the officer who pulled you over. They have to  be capable of using it. The most damning test is the blood test, the most accurate. But if you are very close to the legal limit, this can put a question on the prosecution’s case.

Plea Bargains
Speaking of the prosecution, it’s important to remember you may be found guilty. Unfortunately, you may be over the limit for alcohol, used prescription drugs which effected your ability to drive, used illegal drugs, or were a minor in possession. However, this case is not over. Quite often the prosecution will offer a plea bargain. In order to lessen charges, you need a professional DUI lawyer.

Getting Help From a Lawyer
You have the option of defending yourself, having a court appointed lawyer, or hiring a professional lawyer. You need to hire your own DUI lawyer 99% of the time. A lawyer should be fair on prices, experienced in court with DUI cases, and be able to spend enough time helping your case.

What is an expungement? It’s a process for cleaning up your legal record. If you have a DUI on your record, there are ways to remove it. However, legally it’s not always possible. And the DUI will still be on your record, but only accessible to the government and law enforcement.

How the Court Process Starts
Court processes vary from state to state. In most cases, you’ll be filling out a petition and submitting paperwork to a criminal court. A judge will review this and decide your case. Sometimes you have to pay fees.

It can be much more complicated than that, and getting the help of a lawyer is recommended. If you make mistakes in the petition or other paperwork, the judge may decide against you. On the other hand, it may not be possible in the first place. There is often a hearing, where you can make a case with the help of your DUI lawyer.

Are you eligible?
Again, state laws differ in certain criminal law cases, and that includes driving under the influence charges. What the judge usually factors in this case is how much time has passed since the conviction, if any further crimes have been committed, how bad the charges were (if you received a felony charges in your DUI), and more. If the judge feels any of these are still questionable, he or she will likely deny your expungement.

Is it erased?
It will technically not be erased. What happens is your record is “sealed,” but even sealed government records can be accessible. Your DUI charges will still be accessible for police officers and other law enforcement; it will show up if you’re pulled over for speeding, for example.

How do you get help?
This is a big step in clearing your criminal record. If you can remove a DUI, it can really give you a second chance. Yes, it is difficult, but more than worth trying. This makes your overall record look better. If you are interested in removing a DUI from your criminal record, you need an experienced lawyer. You want a local lawyer who knows the state laws, who can handle the complexity of the case, and has the experience in handling expungements before.

As stated in the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution, you have a right to counsel in all criminal prosecution. For those charged with a DUI, these words bear even more weight.

You definitely need a good defense, even if you are guilty of the charges to some degree, and in order to get a strong defense you need an experienced DUI lawyer. This is not an option, really, because unless you’re a DUI lawyer yourself, you need to hire one.

You have three options: represent yourself, have a court appointed lawyer take your case, or hire a lawyer. The DUI Blog has pointed out previously how these options are far from equal; you need to hire a lawyer 99% of the time rather than representing yourself or having a court appointed lawyer.

Why? You will not know where to begin when it comes to defense, and your appointed lawyer won’t have the time or desire to truly help you.

This is not to say all DUI lawyers are good counsel. But it’s your right to hire one capable of winning your case (even if winning means lessening charges).

How does a lawyer help?
In any DUI case, your lawyer will have a big role. This is not going to court to file bankruptcy; this is a misdemeanor if not a felony offense. Even misdemeanor charges can lead to jail time, and always lead to license suspensions, fines, probation, and other penalties. Felony charges, on the other hand, are even more serious: you could spend months or more in prison, face even higher fines, and lose your license for years. A lawyer helps first by arguing your case so these penalties can be lowered. It’s your right to hire one, and it’s your lawyer’s ability which can quite often decide how your case goes.

A lawyer can advise you on your rights, make sure your constitutional rights have not been violated, strike a plea bargain with the prosecution to lessen charges, and in the court room bring witnesses and other evidence before judge or jury.

What if you take the court appointed lawyer or hire the wrong one?
Criminal defense is a science. Again, hiring a lawyer is your best option. If you fail in this regard, and the lawyer fails to truly win the case in the best manner, even if he or she makes mistakes the conviction will almost always stand. You can’t just say you hired the wrong lawyer and start over. Unless clear incompetence is shown, the case will stand.

How do you hire a lawyer for DUI defense?
If you are fluent online, most reputable lawyers have web sites listing their experience and offering free consultations. You can also look in the phone book. Referrals can sometimes help, but be cautious as no two cases are alike. The best way to do this is not make it a race to get the first one; take your time hiring a lawyer for your defense, consulting with as many as you can in the time table you have. And never hire a lawyer days or weeks before trial; they need time to look over your case.

You have three options when it comes to DUI defense: representing yourself, using a public defender, or hiring an experienced DUI attorney. Is representing yourself a good idea in some cases, such as when you can’t afford a lawyer? What can a public defender do to help your case? Your final option, hiring an experienced California DUI attorney, also has many common questions. This guide answers these questions and offers some key tips on defending a California DUI.

Representing Yourself
Unless you’re an experienced DUI lawyer, there are rare if any moments where you should represent yourself in a California DUI case. Why? You won’t know the first thing to do. You won’t understand how to present your case, how to call witnesses, what your legal options are, if you should accept plea bargains, not to mention how to construct your defense. If you are a DUI lawyer, you can effectively handle your case. If you aren’t, you need to hire a California DUI lawyer.

Public Defender
Public defenders, while a better option than representing yourself, are also secondary to hiring an experienced California DUI lawyer. This is because they simply do not have the time to handle your case effectively. It’s also because once you get one, you have no other options. You can’t just fire your public defender and get a new one.

Public defenders don’t have the time to handle your case, do not have the resources to help you win, and are not chosen by you (instead chosen at random). In some cases, you may make too much money to hire a California public defender anyways. But the final option is the best in any case.

Hiring a Professional California DUI Lawyer
While hiring your own lawyer is the best step, there may be some problems. If you hire one for a cheap fee, they could spend about as much time as your public defender. They could accept any plea bargain the prosecution offers so they can move on to their next case. Yes, this is a business, and unfortunately it’s not cheap to win. However, consider the penalties involved if you plead guilty to a California DUI or if you lose. Your license will be suspended, you will be fined, you will likely face jail time, and you’ll be  on probation. Depending on how much you want to avoid these penalties, you can likely see how paying more can lead to better results. You don’t want a cheap doctor to operate on your heart, and you should be willing to pay a lawyer to help you win.

If you want to win your case, you will have to pay for it. And winning is not necessarily “winning.” Your DUI lawyer will be trying to at the least lessen your penalties. If this is your second or third DUI, where you potentially face felony charges, this is quite important. Even for first time California DUI offenders, winning sometimes means negotiating. In some cases, you can beat the charges entirely.

The point of all this is to help you consider your options. While you may have to use a public defender, if at all possible at least query some experienced California DUI lawyers. And never represent yourself.

Getting pulled over after drinking is a scary event which occurs frequently n California.  Depending on the nature of the case, there are many common facts you need to know. This guide focuses on exactly what happens before, during, and after a California DUI arrest.

Why the Officer Pulled You Over
Typically the arrest is made after either breaking a driving law or acting erratically. If you are speeding, run a red light, or never stop at a stop sign, you can be pulled over on a basic charge. In some cases, the officer may already have suspicion you’re drinking and driving. In other cases, the officer may be suspicious after pulling over and simply observing your speech and other actions.

What Tests Are Made
You will be given an on-site breathalyzer test by the officer. If you test over the legal limit for alcohol – the same in California as all states, 0.08 or higher – you will be arrested. However, if you pass the alcohol test but are clearly under the influence of drugs or alcohol of some kind, you can still be arrested. In either case, further testing will be done, namely blood tests. Blood tests take longer, but are the best test for alcohol and/or drugs.

You Are Arrested
The officer will read you your rights and arrest you for a DUI. The officer will tell you your license will be suspended in 30 days, and take your current license away. You will be taken to jail, where you typically wait a few hours, and then be allowed to post bail.

Tests for Alcohol and Drugs
If further tests prove you were under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, the proof will be clear. Charges will almost always be made. Your arresting officer will fill out some paperwork and then the prosecution will decide whether or not to charge you.

The Charges
After reading the officer report, a California prosecuting attorney will decide whether or not to charge you. He or she can choose not to file charges, but in most cases for a positive test you will be.

Why You will Be Charged
Why did all this happen? Drinking and driving is a major problem in California and all states. Using drugs, legal ones which effect your ability to drive or legal ones, is also subject to charges. The problem is how many accidents, injuries, and deaths are related to driving under the influence. Just drinking increases your chances of being in an accident. It’s unfortunate, but those are the facts.

What You Do
It’s likely time to consider representation. Your options are to represent yourself, use a public defender, or hire a private California DUI lawyer. These are not equal options; you should almost always hire professional counsel instead of defending yourself or using a public defender. Why? A public defender has no time, and you likely lack the legal knowledge to defend yourself.

Just getting a DUI is bad enough. You went through the process, you paid the fines, your license was suspended, you had jail time, and received probation. However, studies have pointed out most drivers who lose their license, often because of a drinking and driving or other DUI related offense, continue to drive. It’s actually quite common. This does not make it safe to do so. In some cases, there may be confusion on when you can’t drive and for how long. But one question we often hear is, why? Why lose your license for a DUI, especially if you feel the DUI was wrong?

Why Your License Is Suspended
It may seem obvious, but by drinking and driving or using drugs (illegal and sometimes legal), you were endangering other drivers. Just like any mistake, it comes with consequences. It may be impossible for you not to drive. You may have no other way to get to work. You may have a medical condition. You may be nowhere near a bus station. How can you get out of this jam? You can fight the DUI in the first place. It’s possible to successfully defend a DUI. Otherwise, by driving, you face severe penalties. There is no easy solution to give.

How long can’t you drive?
Quite often in your first DUI case, the suspension is for one year. For multiple DUI violations or if you are caught driving on a suspended license, the penalty can be several years. This all depends on the nature of your case. For example, if you were involved in an accident, and hurt someone because of your driving, your suspension can be much longer. If you’ve received multiple DUI violations, you may face felony charges and therefore your license is suspended for longer periods.

What penalties do you face?
If you drive on a suspended license and are pulled over, you will be arrested and taken to jail. In most cases, you can post bail and leave. You will have another day in court and likely will face fines and extended jail time.

How do you get help?
If you lost a DUI case and kept driving on a suspended license, you still need a lawyer. Actually, there are some defenses for you to consider. You may have been unaware of how the laws worked. It may be a simple clerical error where you never received notice.

In cases where you were told of the suspended license, you likely think a lawyer is inconsequential. In any case this serious, you still need legal representation. You may face extended time in jail. On the other hand, there may be mistakes in the case; but you won’t know unless you have a lawyer to defend you.

It seemed like the end of the world when you were pulled over after having some drinks, then the handcuffs came, and you ended up in a jail cell. The arrest may have been quite different. You may have had just one drink but were under age. You may have in fact had nothing to drink, but took a legal prescription drug. There are many complexities to a DUI charge. Just because you fail a blood alcohol test (BAC) does not mean you are necessarily guilty. In fact, with some evidence, you can win in court. How? This guide shows you.

The Basics of DUI Defense
You need a lawyer no matter if you feel guilty or not. Too many simply take the charges, pleading guilty because of a few drinks. There is quite often much more to a DUI case than just having some drinks and driving. Yes, it is wrong to do so. Drinking and driving is very dangerous and that’s why those who do so are penalized. However, there is more to the laws than clear guilty and not guilty verdicts.

Proof Your Guilty
The basic test states use is the breathalyzer test. Though sometimes inaccurate, it’s the best on-site test for BAC that an officer has. It can generally prove your guilty. If you also fail a sobriety test – such as walking in a straight line or counting back numbers – it’s less damaging. If you also fail a blood test, the most accurate of all BAC tests, you are likely guilty of something, but still have a case for defense.

Prove Your Innocent
BAC tests are not always accurate; blood tests are the most accurate. Breathalyzer tests can hold in court, but officers often enough fail to use the device correctly. The breathalyzer is usually accurate, but it must be used correctly by the officer. It can be disproved in court. Now, on the other hand, you may have been drinking and driving under age. If you have any level of alcohol in your blood – even as low as .01 in some states – you can be charged. That’s a very low number to test for, and a blood test is most accurate. Your defense can be based on the fact the BAC tests were used incorrectly, that you were treated inappropriately by the officer, that the officer never told you your rights or your options when it came to sobriety tests, and many other defenses. You need a lawyer in any DUI case, no matter if you feel guilty or not.

How Effective Are BAC Tests?
BAC tests are subject to human error. A defense can sometimes prove, with an expert, that the tests were used incorrectly. Also, it’s not as easy as it sounds to use a breathalyzer. If it can be proven that the officer botched the test, using it incorrectly, you have a clear defense.

BAC tests are supposed to prove guilt. In fact, sometimes they prove innocence. If you’re unsure of a defense based on the validity of a BAC test, contact an experienced DUI lawyer.

Should you get a judge or jury to hear your defense of drinking and driving charges? Unfortunately, most states are now making it next to next to impossible to have your DUI case heard in front of a jury of your peers. Why? What if you can get a jury trial? What’s the difference? And if you can’t, how do you prove your innocence to a judge who’s seen hundreds of DUI your innocence?

Why no jury?
DUI cases are now becoming less “a jury of your peers” and more a judge who hears DUI defenses all the time. This is because of a change in state laws and interpretations of federal law (not to mention the Constitution). Most DUI cases are now in front of a judge. According to federal law, you have a right to make your case in front of a jury. According to many state laws, DUI (or DWI and OWI) are considered less important than other criminal law cases. While it may seem odd that months in jail, several years probation, thousands in court fines, and more penalties are minor, but that’s the case.

Can you get a jury trial?
Some states will consider a jury trial, but most won’t. For example, New Jersey and Arizona have recently denied jury trials for DUI cases. If you can get one, it can quite often be beneficial to your case.

What’s the difference?
Judges are not necessarily given to preformed opinions on cases, but when it comes to certain laws, many are much stricter than juries. However, the laws can be far more complicated in front of a jury, even if you have some advantages. You have to make a jury request, deposit jury fees with the court, and in most cases select a jury. This can all be time consuming. Many believe the human factor differentiates a judge trial from a  jury trial. You may get more consideration from people who don’t see DUI cases all the time.

Is a judge better?
In DUI cases, having a judge is not necessarily a bad move. It saves you time, and with a DUI lawyer, it can save you money in work hours.  A judge trial can be less serious, more informal, and generally shorter than a jury trial.

How do you prove innocence?
Proving you were not drinking and driving does not always mean you prove not drinking at all. Judges have to consider the validity of the tests and the actions of the officer who pulled you over. If the BAC (blood alcohol content) level was very close to the limit, it can create some doubt in the judge. In jury cases, it can do the same. You can also question why the officer pulled you over, how the breathalyzer was given, if you were told of your rights, and more.

Defending a DUI in front a jury can be beneficial to your case. If a jury trial is an option, it should be a decision for you and a DUI lawyer.

Quite often, a DUI case comes down to how an officer acts and how you refute his or her testimony. The officer could have, or say they did, pulled you over for running a red light or driving incorrectly. You are then given a breathalyzer. In this instance, you may think the game is over. However, you have rights and you will have your day in court. The example given will be the focus of this blog guide on using officer statements, actions, and testimony to defend a DUI.

Why They Pulled You Over
In the example given, you may have run a red light; in this instance, there is a clear reason to pull you over if in fact this is true. If you were driving incorrectly, that’s a different interpretation. You may have been driving fine, and in fact there was no reason to pull you over. The officer can pull you over for a variety of other reasons, but they legally have to relate to your driving. If you were driving correctly, and the officer pulled you over because you were a minority, were a young driver, were a woman, even if you were a white male and the officer took a chance, these are illegal. The problem is this can be very difficult to prove in court. It’s not always ethnic background or sex, but it’s been reported, unfortunately, that sometimes officers pull you over simply based on how you look.

How Did You Act?
If you acted in a way that seemed odd, the officer can use this as evidence of giving you a breathalyzer. In our example, you may have been legally pulled over for running a red light; the officer then briefly questioned you and thought you acted odd. In this case, your defense can be based on what you believe happened. Maybe you were just nervous or mad about being pulled over. Perhaps you have a medical condition. There are many explanations for acting oddly beyond drinking and driving. Your defense can refute why the officer pulled you over, why they tested you for alcohol, and why they arrested you.

The Sobriety Test
Technically, sobriety tests beyond a breathalyzer or blood test can be wrong. Breathalyzer tests can also be used incorrectly. And you do you not to take certain sobriety tests, such as walking in a straight line, as no states have laws on the books saying you have to. You are required to take the breathalyzer, but even if you do and fail, it does not mean defense is impossible. The best proof of a DUI is the blood test, where human error is negligible.

What Can You Do?
If you feel you were pulled over for no legal reason, if the officer acted in error, if the sobriety test was wrong, if the breathalyzer was incorrect, and if you believe your innocence you need an experienced DUI lawyer. This is too complex of a case to handle alone.

The important thing is you can win. While most DUI cases where both officer testimony, the breathalyzer, and the blood test show clear intoxication do end up in a guilty verdict, there is a lot of room for error. You can refute the testimony of the officer with witnesses. You can prove you were not drinking at all. You can report how you acted oddly in the sobriety test because of a physical impairment. There are more defenses than you might think. If you’re innocent and you know it, you have a right to hire a lawyer. On the other hand, if you’re guilty and you know it, it’s too difficult to win if the proof is irrefutable, but you still should hire a lawyer in order to lessen charges.