Peoria DUI Defense

Lights. Sirens. Arrest.

No one expects to be pulled over and charged with driving while intoxicated in Peoria, Arizona. Especially if they are otherwise law-abiding citizens who have never been in trouble with the law before outside of a parking violation and maybe a speeding ticket. But statistics show that many of the people charged with Peoria DUIs fit that description to a T.

It’s not “the other guy” with a criminal record or a drinking problem getting in trouble, it’s the tax-paying average Joe with a full time job, a mortgage, and a family to take care of. Unfortunately, these are precisely the kinds of people who don’t really understand how to deal with the police in these types of situations because they’ve never had to do it.

More often than not, their minds are racing as they worry about what might happen to them (Will they go to jail? Lose their driver’s license? Their car? Their job?) and they end up talking continually and doing whatever the arresting police officer wants. The bad thing about this is that the more you say and do freely, the more evidence you are giving the police to use against you if they charge you. And when they are charged, more often than not this same type of person will be the one who just wants to plead guilty so that they can get the nightmare over with and return to their regularly scheduled lives.

Only there’s a problem with this line of thought: if you plead guilty and accept your DUI conviction, there is no return to normal. First you’ll have to complete all of the required punishments listed in the sentence, but even beyond that, you’re going to have to live with a criminal record for the rest of your life. That means that any time anyone ever does a background check on you, they will learn that you have a criminal charge. This can negatively impact your ability to find work, get a place to live, and secure a loan for a car or house.

Maybe you don’t think there’s any way to beat your DUI charge or that there is no point in fighting, but before you make a decision that you can’t go back on, talk with an experienced Peoria DUI attorney. You might learn that you have some options you never even realized – and that fighting isn’t as difficult as you thought it would be.

Types of Defenses to Use for Peoria DUI Charges

So how can a Peoria DUI lawyer defend you? Before we even get to that, there’s something else they can do that’s just as important: inform you. Most people don’t understand how the legal system works – not really – and a big part of the reason they cave and accept charges is because they are scared and confused. A good Peoria drunk driving defense attorney will make sure that you understand the full process as well as what you can expect each and every step along the path. You’ll be able to make educated decisions and feel more relaxed knowing that you are prepared.

While they take care of you and make sure you know what’s going on, your DUI lawyer will be asking you questions about the arrest to make sure that they have your story and that the officer who arrested you actually followed the law and obey correct police procedure. No one likes it when cops take shortcuts in order to make arrests, because that’s how innocent people end up going to jail. Your lawyer will then request police reports and recordings and cross reference them against your memory of what happened to look for obvious discrepancies. After that, they may even head out to the place where the arrest occurred to make sure that the officer’s report seems accurate. Sometimes cops say that they acted because they saw certain kinds of behaviors, but if your attorney notices that the facts don’t check out based on odd angles and obstructions, this can call the police officer’s report into question.

Judges have been known to dismiss charges for situations such as these, and even before you get to court, the attorneys will be bargaining with each other to reduce the charges. Find evidence of shortcuts being taken and your rights being violated and it can turn the entire case on its head.

The other important thing to note is that breathalyzer test results are not infallible. In fact, knowledgeable attorneys get judges to toss out the results regularly because there are a number of different ways that these devices might provide inaccurate readings. Just a few arguments known to work include the fact that improper storage, calibration, and use can throw off results, as can the physiology of the person getting the breath test, and any foreign substances in their mouth like mouthwash that can show up in the readings as alcohol.

What it boils down to is that you are innocent until proven guilty not matter what kind of evidence they seem to have against you, and a smart and experienced Peoria DUI lawyer knows just how to approach these types of cases to get you the best result possible.