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In the United States, laws are made based on the need for these laws and how effective they will be in improving safety or reducing crime, right? Not with driving under the influence and other alcohol-related laws. With the influence of MADD and politicians who are trying to win elections, the states are often strong-armed into enacting laws that are arbitrary or aren’t needed to protect citizens. Open container laws are just one example of laws that don’t really do any good in the fight against drunk drivers. Open container laws mean that it is illegal for drivers to have an open container of alcohol anywhere in a vehicle where it can be reached while operating the vehicle. An open container can be anything included a bottle flask, or other container used to hold alcohol. The driver doesn’t even have to be holding the container; it can be anywhere in the car that the driver can possibly reach. Do you think a driver could reach the back dashboard while driving? Probably not, but open container laws don’t take that common sense into consideration. Many states enacted open container laws simply because the federal government mandated that these laws be put into effect or else federal funding for maintaining roadways in each state would be jeopardized. The same thing happened with each state enacting laws that allow the driver’s license agency to automatically suspend the license of anyone arrested for DUI. Notice that the license of anyone arrested for DUI has their license confiscated; the licensing agency doesn’t even wait to see if each person is convicted or exonerated of the charges. States enacted these laws so that they did not lose needed federal funding for maintaining and repairing roadways. When the states start risking the loss of needed funding, it’s only natural that legislators will introduce stricter DUI laws to appease politicians and members of MADD. If you’ve been charged with DUI in California, contact a San Diego DUI lawyer as soon as possible so you can get a qualified legal professional to help you with your case.
Continue reading "States are Forced into Enacting DUI Laws or Else Risk Losing Funding" »
If you’ve been charged with driving under the influence, and you’re looking forward to telling your story to a jury who you are sure will understand your side and find you innocent, you may be looking forward to something that’s not going to happen. In many states, the right to a jury trial has all but disappeared for many DUI cases. What’s worse is, this clearly seems like a violation of the 6th Amendment right to a jury trial in front of your peers. However, the courts have interpreted the Constitution in their own way so as to be able to take this right away from persons charged with DUI. Instead of facing a jury of your own peers, many who may have been in the same situation, you may end up facing a judge who was appointed by the same political cronies who think it’s acceptable to alter the Constitution to suit their own purposes. Instead of holding that the lack of a jury trial in DUI cases violates the 6th Amendment, the courts have found that the Constitution didn’t really mean that someone has the right to a jury trial for all criminal cases. The courts interpreted the Constitution to mean that defendants do not have a right to a jury trial in a DUI case because it’s not as serious as a murder case or a manslaughter case. Instead of having the same rights as someone who may have committed murder or killed someone due to negligence, many DUI defendants must accept the decision of one politically-appointed judge who may have other interests. It’s time to take a stand against this misinterpretation of the Constitution and demand that DUI defendants get the same rights as any other type of person facing criminal charges. If you’re facing DUI charges in the state of California, contact an Orange County DUI attorney as soon as possible to preserve your rights and build the best possible defense for your case.
Continue reading "DUI Laws in Many States Violate 6th Amendment" »
If you are arrested for driving under the influence based on a display of odd traffic habits, an intoxicated appearance, failure of field sobriety tests, and a breath test reading that exceeds the legal blood alcohol limit, you will be asked to submit to chemical testing by the arresting officer. If you submit to this testing, you may or may not be able to prove that your blood alcohol level was within the legal limit. However, refusing testing is grounds for the loss of your license and you may face other criminal penalties depending on what state you have been arrested in for driving under the influence. In a nation that has daily concerns over civil rights and the protection of individual liberties, lawmakers are not concerned with the rights of the individual who has been arrested for driving under the influence and doesn’t want to submit to chemical testing. Perhaps these individuals feel that chemical testing invades their privacy or they are concerned about the safety or cleanliness of the testing procedures. This doesn’t matter to lawmakers who have made it illegal for you to refuse chemical testing if asked to submit by a law enforcement officer. Depending on what state you are in, you will lose your driving privileges from anywhere from 90 days to one year or more. You may also face criminal charges that can result in jail time, fines, mandatory alcohol education participation, and a criminal record that prevents you from obtaining employment or participating in certain activities. If you’ve refused chemical testing, you’ll need a Los Angeles DUI attorney to help you fight any criminal charges you may face and make sure you are able to get your license back as soon as possible.
Continue reading "Refusal of Chemical Testing Punishes Innocent Drivers" »
If you’ve been arrested and charged with driving under the influence, you’re going to need to hire the best legal representation possible to ensure that you are able to face these charges head-on and get the best outcome possible. It may be tempting to hire an inexpensive attorney who does not specialize in DUI or even to hire an attorney that a friend or relative is acquainted with just to get a discount price. DUI is not something you should mess around with, and hiring a lawyer to represent you in a DUI case is not an exercise in bargain shopping. It’s about finding the attorney who is best-qualified to represent you in your case and who has the experience with DUI cases that will help him or her find information that a non-specialized attorney would not be aware of or have access to. A San Diego DUI lawyer has experience in reviewing the facts of a DUI case, interviewing witnesses, obtaining chemical testing results, arguing the validity of chemical test results, and defending people who have been charged with DUI. This kind of specialized lawyer may have a good relationship with expert witnesses who can be used in your case to refute the validity of a chemical test or show that chemical testing is not as reliable as it should be for determining if someone is under the influence or not. Using the services of an attorney who is not experienced in handling DUI cases means that you may not get the best representation possible. Hiring a skilled San Bernardino DUI lawyer will ensure that you have the most qualified attorney to handle your DUI case and give you the best chance of a positive outcome. Our DUI defense lawyers and attorneys will represent those accused of driving under the influence throughout California and DUI Defense Lawyer Thomas Wallin can personally represent you on any southern California DUI case from a first offense DUI to a third strike felony DUI. Contact us for a free consultation on your California DUI matter.
If you’ve ever had to take a drug test for employment, you know that some foods and beverages can cause a false positive result even if you’ve never taken any illegal drugs. Just like poppy seeds can cause a false opiate result in a drug test, some substances can cause false breathalyzer results and land you in hot water with the law. You can also get in trouble if you have used rubbing alcohol or consumed an alcohol-containing substance and the smell remains on you while you are driving. Officers at a checkpoint or traffic stop may smell this alcohol and request that you perform field sobriety tests or answer questions about what you have been doing. If the officer is persistent, he or she may request that you take a breathalyzer test to determine an approximate blood alcohol level. Unfortunately, these testing devices are fairly sensitive to any substances containing alcohol and may show a false positive even if you haven’t had a drop to drink. Since you don’t ingest mouthwash, you’ll be able to prove your case once further chemical testing is performed. However, the false positive will result in a lot of hassles for you as you try to prove your innocence and go through the embarrassment and frustration of being arrested for a crime you know that you did not commit. Further embarrassment may be caused if someone you know recognizes your vehicle pulled over at the traffic stop or if someone sees you being arrested. Even if you did nothing wrong, your reputation could be ruined or at least tarnished until you are able to explain the situation and, even then, people may believe you are trying to cover up a driving under the influence crime. Until we stop relying on a test that produces false results and isn’t very reliable, many people will have to suffer the consequences of being falsely accused of DUI. A qualified Riverside DUI attorney can give you more information about this issue. Being arrested for DUI in Riverside can be one of the scariest things to happen to an individual. Often a DUI arrest in Riverside will be the first time someone has ever been exposed to the criminal justice system. It is important that you contact a Riverside DUI defense lawyer immediately to discuss your case and protect your rights. We handle DUI cases throughout the county of Riverside, including downtown Riverside, Murrieta (Southwest Justice Center), Temecula, Corona, Banning, Moreno Valley, Indio and Palm Springs.
Driving under the influence is often charged as a misdemeanor, but the stigma that accompanies a DUI conviction can be just as harsh as one that comes with a felony conviction for another type of offense. While driving under the influence does negatively impact the lives of many people, there are some drivers who are arrested and convicted of DUI charges even if they are not impaired due to the “per se” DUI laws in effect in most states. These per se laws mean that drivers can be arrested for driving under the influence if their blood alcohol content level reaches a certain limit, usually 0.08%. The worst part is, they don’t even need to be visibly impaired and they needn’t have violated any traffic laws. Stopping at a DUI checkpoint and ending up with a reading of 0.08% or greater means that you can be arrested for driving under the influence and charged with a criminal offense. While you may have been driving well and displaying no outward signs of intoxication, these per se laws can make you a criminal.
Continue reading "Per Se Laws Punish Individuals Who Are Not Impaired by Alcohol" »
The ignition interlock device, or IID, is an apparatus consisting of an alcohol breath-testing unit, which is connected to an automobile ignition. California law (Vehicle Code 23575) requires judges to sentence individuals convicted of driving on a DUI-suspended driver license (DWS-DUI) and repeat DUI offenders to install an ignition interlock device on any vehicle that they own or operate for up to three years. A judge may, at the court's discretion, order first time DUI offenders to install an IID onto their automobile (although this is rarely the case in California DUI cases).
California DUI law also provides repeat DUI offenders the option of installing an ignition interlock, after serving half of their license suspension period, to apply for and obtain a restricted driver license from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). See California DMV DUI FAQ's.
Continue reading "Ignition Interlock Device (IID): The Pressure's on for DUI Offenders" »
DUI checkpoints are touted as a necessary and effective method of curbing driving under the influence offenses and keeping our roadways safe for motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians. But are DUI checkpoints really a necessary use of law enforcement power and taxpayer dollars?
Continue reading "DUI Checkpoints: Effective DUI Prevention Tool or a Waste of Taxpayer Dollars?" »
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