Mistakes To Avoid

Mistake: Not retaining an attorney to represent you.

The number of people arrested and convicted for "Driving Under the influence" increases everyday. In fact it is very likely that you already know someone who has been convicted of a DUI. It is also very likely that they may tell you that getting an attorney didn't help them because they still got convicted and therefore you shouldn't get one - the public defender can just "plead you out." This is fine if you are willing to automatically give up your license for months, spend extra time (unnecessary) going to classes; maybe spend time in jail, and finally maybe picking up trash on the side of the road. A majority of this can often times be avoided by retaining an attorney, any attorney, who can challenge the District Attorney and who can present the weaknesses in their case - most cases have problems that the District Attorney does not wan to reveal.

Mistake: Retaining the Cheapest attorney you can find.

A large number of attorneys will often send you mail that offers low rates for representing you - in fact it is not uncommon to see offers like "starting at $499.00." The problem with this kind of deal is that the price for services is not set. You can tell this because they use the word "starting." If that is the starting price then how much total will you spend - this is something they won't tell you unless you come in and meet them in their office. You would be better off to retain an attorney who is going to quote you a price that is constant and which includes specific items of work to be done - like a DMV hearing, negotiating the case with the DA, reviewing all discovery and including or excluding a jury trial. High quality, aggressive representation can be found for reasonable flat fees.

Mistake: Not taking an arrest seriously

Many people do not realize the potential for problems when they ignore an arrest and the subsequent court dates. Ignoring a case and the court will result in the court issuing a warrant for your arrest. If this happens you could be placed into jail at anytime - without warning and because you failed to appear in front of the Judge on your own he will probably not be to willing to let you out until you plead guilty - which means you would have given up any opportunity to challenge the case against you.

Mistake: Not retaining an attorney with 10 days of the date of arrest.

It is easiest to explain this by using a recent case as an example. A young gentleman was arrested for a DUI and did not retain an attorney nor did he set a DMV hearing within 10 days of the date of his arrest. As a result his license was suspended 30 days after the date of the arrest but before his first court date. This young man, after talking to several people, decided he should probably hire an attorney which he did before his court date. After his first court date he was then arrested for another DUI and driving on suspended license.

As it turns out the case against the DMV could have easily been won (his first DUI was reduced to "3 one pointers") and as a result he would not have been facing a Driving on a suspended license charge.

Challenging A DUI

There are several things that can be done to when challenging a DUI.

The first of which is to set a DMV hearing within 10 days of the date of your arrest otherwise nothing can be done to save your license.

Some cases rely on breath machine results while others rely on the results of a blood test. If you took a breath test you must realize that the "BA" reading could be inaccurate - very inaccurate. The machine is simply that, a machine. Have you ever heard the phrase "garbage in garbage out." If the operator was not properly trained or the machine was not properly maintained then you may have a basis to fight.

If you blood was drawn in medically approved manner then it should be tested by an independent laboratory to see what result that independent lab derives. Many times the independent lab results vary widely from the results gathered by the government in their effort to convict you.