The DUI Attorney

DUI attorneys work to protect their clients’ rights and interests in the face of ever more strict laws against drinking and driving. What was once seen as a minor crime has become a major target for various activist groups, politicians and police. If you have been charged with drunk driving, DUI attorneys offer you the best chance of getting your life back on track with as quickly as possible.

What to Look For When Researching DUI Attorneys

While a family friend or relative may have a law degree, this does not necessarily mean that they are qualified to defend you in a drunk driving case. You need, specifically, a criminal lawyer, and with the rising number of DUI arrests there are now a large number of practitioners who specialize in drunk driving cases. Any criminal attorney should have the skills necessary to represent your interests, but such specialists may have greater familiarity with the key issues and opportunities in these cases.

How DUI Attorneys Serve Their Clients

The legal system is designed to determine the truth, and if you are guilty in fact, chances are you will be found guilty in court. Because of this, a large majority of criminal cases are actually settled before reaching trial. In these instances DUI attorneys negotiate with prosecutors for the most favorable sentence. Without an attorney you could end up in jail, on probation for years, without a drivers’ license for an extended period and otherwise in serious trouble. You may be able to avoid many of these with a good attorney.

DUI attorneys do sometimes get their clients acquitted on the charges against them. Procedural mistakes made by police can sometimes mean that the case has to be thrown out of court—police officers are human, and if they did not fill out all of the paperwork properly this can mean you are cleared. Not only this, but police must have probable cause before stopping you—if it can be shown that this was not present, your arrest may be set aside. Finally, the fallibility of breathalyzers, field sobriety tests and other means of determining drunkenness can create reasonable doubt in a jury’s mind, thus producing an acquittal.

You have options, so if you have been charged with drunk driving, you need to begin contacting DUI attorneys as soon as possible. Time is of the essence for ensuring the best outcome in your case.