Facing A DUI Charge? These Defense Strategies May Help
DUI charges can be rather complex, and each charge has its own set of unique circumstances that surround it. When charged, you are probably going to be stressed and unnerved. After all, your reputation is at risk, as well as your job status, your criminal record, and your future. The good news is that the DUI charge is not set in stone. It is possible to avoid the charge and its associated penalties with the right defense. Keep reading to learn some potential defense strategies that can be used against DUI charges that may be able to either reduce or eliminate the charges that you are currently facing.
Police Failed to Follow the Protocols for the Sobriety Test
Field sobriety tests must be administered in a reasonable and fair manner. In the event that you are required to take any kind of field sobriety tests, such as touching the nose, walking the line, etc. under intimidation or in bad weather, then it may be possible for your lawyer to have the test results thrown out. When a field sobriety test is given, officers have very strict protocols that they must follow, and if they fail to do this, then the results can be inadmissible in court.
You Were Not Lawfully Pulled Over by the Police
In order to pull an individual over, it is required for the authorities to have reasonable suspicion that some form of criminal activity has occurred. Therefore, you need to have been swerving, have run a stop sign, been going over the speed limit, have a busted taillight, or otherwise been disobeying the law to be pulled over lawfully and be charged with a DUI. If there is no solid evidence that shows the police officer had reasonable grounds to pull you over, then it is possible that any other evidence that was gathered during the stop and afterward can be thrown out.
Police Interrogated You Illegally
Prior to the interrogation process beginning, the officer who arrested you must officially let you know that you are being arrested and properly read you your Miranda rights. Your Miranda rights include the right to a lawyer as well as the right to remain silent. If you have not been officially issued your Miranda rights, then as a general rule, any information that the police get from you during a conversation after your arrest is considered inadmissible as evidence.
For more information on potential defenses that can be used to protect you when you have been charged with a DUI, contact a local DUI attorney.
Share
