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Back To DUI-DWI Video Help Page
In the above video, someone wants to know if they will be able to avoid consequences for their DUI arrest just like their friend did, and I give a simple answer: “It depends.” As the video emphasizes, no two Orlando DUI cases are going to be exactly the same. Your Florida DUI attorney will be defending an entirely new set of circumstances in your case – so what happened with your friend’s DUI is not necessarily going to happen in your case.
A host of factors affect whether or not someone will actually be convicted for a DUI, and a good Florida criminal attorney will tell you that your friend’s situation has absolutely nothing to do with your case.
Speak with an experienced Florida attorney at our firm today.
Call 855-Kramer-Now (855-572-6376).
Legal Consequences of DUI Charges
The following are just a few examples of how DUI charges can be fought or why one person might avoid consequences while another person does not.
The charges are spread out over many years. This matters for two reasons. One is because years ago, DUI laws were not as strict as they are today. If you had more than one arrest for driving under the influence 20 years ago and then did not get charged for DUI again until this year, those earlier DUIs might not matter much – if at all. The second reason is because DUI laws have less harsh punishments for people who, for example, are convicted of three DUIs over a 15-year period as opposed to three DUIs over a five-year period.
No probable cause. Probable cause is largely based on subjective evidence provided by the police officer. Law enforcement must have a legal reason to pull you over and start questioning you. This one is often quite hard to prove, but if you can show that the arresting officer had no foundation for probable cause, then everything else that follows will be null and void.
Breaking protocol. If law enforcement failed to follow proper protocol during any part of a DUI arrest, the charge can be dismissed. For example, in order to be considered valid, field sobriety tests must be conducted according to very specific protocols that are outlined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA").
In the case of breath tests, the breath test machine used to obtain the breath sample(s) must be properly calibrated and in good working order. Even with sobriety checkpoints, the law enforcement must follow very strict protocol. One break in procedure and an experienced DUI defense attorney can get the results dismissed.
With blood and urine tests, police and technicians must handle and track the sample carefully to ensure that it is not tampered with. The path that the blood or urine test takes is called the chain of custody. If there is any break in protocol – any situation where there is no documentation for where the test results were drawn, stored, or transported – then the evidence can be considered contaminated or defective and kept out of court.
DUI Arrests Involve Subjective and Quantitative Evidence
Every arrest for DUI is an individual event with a lot of unique moving parts that a good attorney can examine. Much of the evidence is subjective, such as police observations and field sobriety tests. Then there is the quantitative evidence, the scientific results of the Breathalyzer test, as well as blood and urine tests. Both forms of evidence against you can be flawed; an experienced Orlando DUI defense attorney will investigate and challenge both.
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