Win Your DUI Case With Efficient DUI Lawyer
When Do You Need a Lawyer for a DUI/DWI Charge?
Driving under the influence is considered a crime in every state. So, DUI charges are handled in criminal court. You have a right to represent yourself in criminal court. But most defendants either hire a private lawyer or are represented by a public defender appointed by the court.
Getting a Lawyer’s Opinion About Your Case
It’s difficult for someone with no legal experience or training to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a DUI case. DUI law is complicated and constantly changing, and the facts of every case are unique. So, getting the opinion of an experienced DUI lawyer can be valuable.
Most DUI lawyers give prospective clients a free consultation. But even if you have to pay a small fee, it’s likely money well spent. Bring your police report and any other case documents you have to the consultation to make the best use of your time. It might also help to bring a list of questions you want to get answered.
You don’t have to hire an attorney you consult with. But meeting face-to-face is a good way to gauge whether things could work out with an attorney you’re thinking of hiring.
Tips For Hiring The Best DUI Lawyer In 2020
In the year 2012 alone, over a million drivers got arrested for driving under the influence of either narcotics or alcohol, a rate of 1 arrest for every 165 licensed drivers across the country. A DUI arrest is quite a stressful experience. However, it’s crucial to keep your composure enough to deal with the circumstances as best you can. One effective way of making the best of the situation is by hiring the right DUI lawyer.
- Be Honest With Yourself About Your Circumstances
- Do Not Try To Represent Yourself
- Think Twice About Public Defenders
- Start Forming Your List Of Potential Candidates
- Take Advantage Of Free Consultations
- Always Tell The Truth
- Be Prepared To Ask Your Own Questions And Write Down Answers
- Consider The Firm Size
- Narrow Down Your List Based On Comfort And Confidence
- Make Your Decision When You Have Time To Think About It
Ways to Defend Yourself Against DUI Costs
Ketosis from Atkins-style diets or diabetes
Conditions such as diabetes, hypoglycemia or low carbohydrate diets (i.e. Paleo or Atkins-style diets) can trigger Ketosis.
Ketosis is a normal metabolic process triggered in your body when it doesn’t have enough carbohydrates from food for your cells to burn for energy.
Without sufficient carbohydrates, your body will burn fat cells instead and produce ketones. For people with diabetes, ketosis is typically a sign of not using enough insulin.
You may be wondering:
“What do ketones have to do with DUI?”
When ketones are eliminated from our bodies through breath and urine, they convert into alcohol. This mouth alcohol can cause breath testing instruments to read inaccurately high BAC levels.
DUI with no proof of driving
One of the key elements needed to prove you were driving under the influence is that prosecutors must prove you were driving the vehicle.
Proving DUI with no proof of driving can be a challenge for prosecutors:
- If Police found you in a parked car
- If your car was in an accident, but no one saw you actually driving the vehicle DWI
No probable cause for the DUI stop
Police DUI stops must be supported by reasonable suspicion or probable cause. Traffic stops are temporary detention by Police and considered a “seizure” under the 4th Amendment.
For DWI stops, the most common reasons Police provide are drivers exhibiting NHTSA driving impairment patterns, speeding or running stop lights.
Faulty and Unreliable Breath Tests
The DUI breath tests used in San Diego have many flaws. These tests are subject to some of the following problems:
- Improper use by the police
B. Physiological Conditions (gastroesophageal reflux disease aka GERD)
C. Instrument Malfunction
D. Failure to observe the defendant prior to the test.
DUI breath testing is the most common way to measure a defendant’s BAC but it is not always an accurate because of the fact that a DUI breath test doesn’t directly measure the amount of alcohol in your blood. It measures the amount of alcohol present in your breath and converts that amount to determine the amount of alcohol in your blood. As a result, DUI breath testing is susceptible to a variety of outside influences that can generate an erroneously high BAC reading.
Charged Based on Field Sobriety Tests
Field sobriety tests, such as walking in a straight line, are notoriously unreliable. Many factors can lead to inaccurate results. For instance, if you’re on a slope that could cause some people to appear off-balance when they’re not. Noise from cars going by can make officers think a person either isn’t cooperating or is too incoherent to follow their directions when really the person just didn’t hear them. There are so many things that make field sobriety tests unreliable that being charged just on the basis or mostly on the basis of your field sobriety test results is usually easily defendable in court.
Radio Frequency Interference (RFI)
This is a defense you might never have heard of before. Did you know that all electronic devices, or nearly all, are susceptible to radio frequency interference? AM and FM radios, police radar units, dispatch stations, and other equipment that police officers use all throw off interference that could disrupt the results of the breathalyzer test, since most breathalyzers are also electronic devices. RFI interference, then, might also be a defense your attorney uses to help defend you in court.
There are other reasons you might be able to defend yourself against a drunk driving or DUI charge, as well, including police misconduct. However, it’s important to know that a DUI charge is never a trivial matter and always requires the expertise of a DUI attorney in your area. Make sure to seek out a qualified and experienced DUI lawyer who can help defend you against, and possibly overturn, your DUI charge. Your future depends on it.