When you are convicted for driving under influence in Illinois you are likely to get severe penalties. It is even worse when you do not have an experienced attorney on your side. When you lack good defense from experienced lawyers by your side you will end up having to pay heavy penalties and fines that can amount to thousands of dollars. Depending on the severity of your conviction you can end up going to jail.
If you are wondering how a defense lawyer can help you beat a DUI we will take you through some of the defenses that they can use to help you win your case. Each case is unique since the circumstances revolving around the case are different. For that reason, there is no one way to deal with a case.
Illinois is known to be one of the states that have the strictest DUI laws and programs. A first time DUI offender can get their driver’s license revoked depending on the circumstances revolving around the accident. When you have other additional aggravating charges, for example having a minor in the car you will have additional penalties. When you are arrested the third time you will be charged with a felony offense. A great team of criminal defense lawyers can help you get a favorable outcome and avoid mandatory jail time.
Ways a lawyer Can Help You Beat a DUI Charge
When you get to the conviction it is possible to have your driver’s license permanently suspended. For you to be able to beat a driving under influence of alcohol charge you need good legal representation. There are several ways that private lawyers can help you beat a DUI charge.
They Can Challenge Reason for The Arrest
When a police officer pulls you over it will not be without reason. They would need to have seen indicators of impairment for them to ask you to pull over by the side of the road. They need to have proof that you are either driving while intoxicated or engaging in some other form of a criminal act. If they did not apprehend you and arrest you for a legal reason any DUI-related accident that they gathered at the scene is not admissible in criminal court.
There are instances where an individual has had a beer while they were standing at a gas station and the police then charged them for driving under influence and being in possession of a controlled substance. The charges can be dismissed because the parking lot does not lie under the category of public way. This shows that the police did not have not a valid reason for arresting the individual.
Challenging of the Field Sobriety Test
There are a variety of field sobriety tests that can be conducted at the scene.
- One-leg standing
- Alphabet test
- Walk-and-turn test also the heel to toe in a straight line
- Finger-to-nose test
- The Counting Test
- The Finger Count Test
Your attorney can try and dispute the results of the field sobriety tests by citing other causes that could have caused you to fail the tests. Other reasons that cause a person to fail the roadside tests include having bad balance or underlying medical conditions. They will try and find a variety of valid reasons that could have resulted in you failing the test.
Challenging the Signs of A DUI
When a police officer pulls you over for suspicion that you are driving under influence there are signs that they will look for so they can prove their suspicions. They will look for physical signs like bloodshot eyes, an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, and other signs that will help them prove that you are intoxicated.
Your legal counsel can prepare their defense to revolve around the fact that the signs you are showing are not as a result of consuming alcohol but are linked to a health condition or medication that you are taking. There are different medical conditions and medications that can cause you to act and appear a certain way. A false reading on a chemical test or field test should not cause you the loss of license or other mandatory penalties.
Defense against the Results of a Breathalyzer
When a police officer asks you to pull over they can administer a breathalyzer test. A breath testing instrument will be used by the police officer. A breathalyzer test does not give a one hundred percent accurate reading and the result of the breath test can be disputed in court.
You can as well fight the charge by stating that the breath test was not calibrated properly. The breath test device could have as well malfunctioned or it was not well maintained and it led to the device showing a false positive reading of the chemical test. There are instances where using an alcohol based mouthwash which can result in the breath testing instrument producing results that are artificially inflated.
Challenge Against Blood Test Results/ Blood Alcohol Defense
There are instances where or the blood tests can produce blood alcohol content results that are not accurate. If the blood testing has been carried out by an individual that is not experienced or the equipment used in blood testing is faulty or has a malfunction the blood alcohol concentration may not be accurate. Because of a malfunction, the blood alcohol level can be exaggerated.
Challenging the Authority’s Actions
When you are being arrested for criminal charges in Illinois, it is required that the arresting officer reads you your rights. Just as seen in the movies they will tell you that you have the right to remain silent and if and the right to an attorney if you cannot afford one then one will be provided for you. If during the arrest the police officer did not read you your rights some of the evidence that was collected at the time you were being arrested will not be included in court. This can help you to beat your case in a DUI case.
There are few instances where a police officer can make an arrest based on false allegations while they are trying to get paid for overtime. These instances are not common and it is important that there is admissible evidence to support the claim.
Learn More: Criminal Defense Lawyer vs. Public Defender
Proving That the Driver May Not Have Been In Actual Control of the Vehicle
The district attorney needs to be able to prove that the driver was actually in control of the vehicle and they were driving it at the time. An assumption by the law enforcement officer that an individual was driving the vehicle does not necessarily mean that they were. There may also not be any admissible evidence that can be presented in a court of law that can actually prove that the accused was driving the vehicle.
There are instances where individuals have been charged for a DUI crime because they decided that instead of driving they will sleep it off in the car. In such cases, independent witnesses will go a long way in building the direction of the case. They can provide evidence that will show that the individual was either not intoxicated at the time of driving or that they did not have physical control of the vehicle while they were in their intoxicated state.
Issues with Expert Witnesses
Experienced Tinley Park DUI lawyers should be able to find expert witnesses who can help in building the case. An expert witness can dispute a prosecutor’s theory about a case. Most of the expert witnesses that are called to court for a DUI hearing address issues that are related to field sobriety tests, breathe tests, and blood or urine tests.
In instances where the state is unable to disclose the experts, it will result in the witnesses not being allowed to testify against the defendant. It is crucial to have scientific evidence in driving under influence of alcohol cases. Scientific evidence in almost every case is mainly presented in the form of an expert witness testimony. When the prosecutor is unable to call this kind of a witness then it means that they are unable to prove their case or they are having a difficult task doing it.
Deadlines Not Being Met
The statute of limitation provides for a drunk driving charge to be filed in court within a certain period of time. The case should be filed within a certain period of time after an arrest or an offense. If a drunk driving charge is not formally filed in court within the required time frame the prosecutor will lose their right to proceed.
The prosecutor will permanently be barred from raising any charges against the defendant if they do not file the criminal complaint which is the charging document in this case within the required time frame.
A defendant has a right to a speedy trial. If the request for a speedy trial and they are not granted their right they can pursue the motion to dismiss the case entirely. There are instances where when an individual is not granted their legal option to a speedy trial as a result of the prosecutor’s or court’s delay the arrest charges must be dismissed.
When you have been arrested for drunk driving there are different strategies that private attorneys can use to defend your case and help you avoid a criminal record. You should have the best legal team by your side for you to have the best outcome. Contact Tommalieh Law today to schedule your FREE consultation.
