Nobody wants to get a DUI charge. But people find themselves fighting them every day. It’s an uphill fight, and the consequences are steep. They include not only criminal penalties like jail and fines, but the loss of your driving privileges. Unaware of this? Keep on reading to learn a little bit from a Seattle DUI lawyer.
DUI laws are so tough because groups like students against drunk driving have flooded the state legislatures asking for changes to the law. Because of this, if you blow .08 or higher on a breath alcohol test, your driving privileges will be suspended. That is, unless you get a good DUI attorney and fight the test in the four ways allowed.
The initial way to challenge a driver’s license suspension for DUI is that the original traffic stop was no good. For instance, if you were driving down the highway and your car crossed the fog line by 1-2 car lengths and creating no danger for anyone else, it is likely that you should not have been stopped. If the stop is bad, everything else is out.
Next, if the stop is good, you can go after the arrest for DUI itself. Before you can be arrested for DUI the officer must have probable cause that you are DUI. He can do this in many ways, but if he arrests you before that standard is met, the breath test is out, and you get to keep your driver’s license.
If an analysis of the DUI arrest doesn’t yield any good results, the third area of argument is the implied consent warnings. These warnings must be given to you so that you understand the consequences of taking the test and of refusing the test. Sometimes these are given incorrectly. When they are, it’s a great thing for you.
Fourth, you can show that the test itself was administered improperly or was malfunctioning at the time you took it and get the results thrown out. This can happen with operator error (the cop does it wrong) or the machine simply breaking while you were taking the test (this actually happens!).
In the end, the goal is to get the breath test results thrown out of consideration. No breath test, no results of .08 or over, and no driver’s license suspension. Don’t do this on your own, though. Get a DUI attorney to help.
Looking to find a good Bellevue DUI attorney? Then visit us to find the best advice on finding the right Bellevue DUI defense attorney for you.