Police officers make mistakes. Moreover, the hyper-technical laws surrounding the regulation of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) are rife with ambiguities, and these laws are anything but straightforward. Consequently, unless you are an attorney who specializes in defending those accused of DUI, you are probably not qualified to judge whether you have one or more defenses to the charges.
You owe it to yourself to become educated about what to expect and, just as importantly, what to do about it. Much depends on whether or not you are actually convicted of drunk driving, rather than simply arrested. If you do get convicted of DUI, you could face additional jail time, a hefty fine, a lengthy DUI education course and up to five years of probation; you would also have to contend with the associated license action and insurance premium hikes. A typical DUI arrest results in two legal proceedings: The criminal case as well as the case against your privilege to drive in the state of California. There are many defenses to both of these legal proceedings, and surprisingly few of those address the basic question of “how drunk were you?”. Also, as noted in my Exciting Options/DUI Alternatives in Ventura County page, we finally have the possibility of getting DUI cases reduced to a Wet Reckless (with significantly reduced penalties), and for those of you who have served in the Military, we can move your case to Veterans Court to pursue Diversion for you (no criminal conviction, no jail time to serve, or fines or fees to pay, and probation of generally one year (to 2 years) as opposed to 3 years to 5 years).
Many Traffic Stops Are Illegal
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution was intended by our Founding Fathers, and those who enacted the Bill of Rights, to prevent the United States of America from becoming a police state. Many people think that police states are something that happen only in the movies, futuristic novels, or in other countries. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Almost any society can become a police state overnight and, arguably, the United States already has. Nevertheless, here in the USA, there are still mechanisms available to anyone accused of crime to ensure that their fundamental rights to privacy, against warrantless search and seizure, to counsel, and against self-incrimination are protected. However, it is not enough in most cases to simply claim that your rights have been violated or denied; vindicating these rights requires a skillful attorney and the right facts. If a traffic stop was not based upon a warrant or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, the entire case must be thrown out. To find out whether your case involved an illegal traffic stop, you should speak with an attorney who specializes in DUI defense right away.
