Winning Strategies Your DUI Attorney Can Use For Your Case
Driving under the influence is a traffic violation punishable by the law. If you get arrested for DUI, your best bet is to hire a DUI lawyer to help you plead your case in court.
Luckily, most DUI lawyers know how to argue your case for a lenient sentence or get the court to dismiss it altogether.
Here are two defense arguments your DUI attorney can use to defend you in court.
Inaccurate Breath and Field Test Results
When a law enforcement officer pulls you over for drunk driving, they can ask you to do a series of tests to prove your sobriety. The officer will ask you to blow into a breathalyzer. It calculates the level of alcohol in your blood from your saliva droplets.
While a breathalyzer is a credible evidence-collection tool, it is not always accurate. The gadget depends on a single partition ratio to determine the amount of alcohol in your lungs. However, this ratio can differ among people depending on their physiology.
An experienced DUI attorney can use this argument to prove that your alcohol levels at the time of arrest don't warrant prosecution.
The law enforcement officers can also ask you to participate in a field test to prove your sobriety further. Most times, police officers will request a field test if you have slurred speech, red eyes, cannot maintain eye contact, or have alcohol on your breath. The arresting officer may ask you to:
- State the alphabet
- Stand on one foot
- Walk in a straight line
- Follow a moving object with your eyes without tilting your head
Your lawyer can use the results from the field test to dispute or at least reduce the gravity of the accusations.
The Police Pulled You Over Illegally
A police officer must have an articulate reason to stop over a motorist and ask them to take an alcohol test. The officer must believe that the motorist broke a traffic law and have sufficient evidence to back the claim. For instance, a police officer can pull you over for speeding and then ask you to blow into the breathalyzer if they suspect you of intoxicated driving.
However, the fourth amendment protects all people against unlawful searches and arrests. Therefore, the prosecutor must prove that the arresting officer did not violate the fourth amendment during the arrest.
Your lawyer can use this strategy to move the court to dismiss the case against you. They can prove that the arresting officer did not have enough reason to pull you over. The DUI case becomes irrelevant in this case because the police did not honor your constitutional rights.
For more info, contact a local DUI attorney.
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