People who have been arrested for a DUI may rush to an attorney’s office to help. Facing a criminal charge can be terrifying since a person’s future can be ruined for a long time if convicted. There may be situations where the person arrested wasn’t truly guilty and the officer had made a mistake. It is vital to your case that you have an attorney investigate further into your arrest and develop a defense strategy.
What are police looking for when searching for drunk drivers?
When police officers are on patrol, there are more than a dozen signs that they may watch out for when searching for drunk drivers on the road. It is important to note that an officer cannot just pull over a car because they get a gut feeling that someone is drunk, there has to be observable evidence that something is awry. Those who were arrested for a DUI and believed they were driving perfectly fine, may want to talk with an attorney about whether their arrest was carried out unfairly. Here are the signs that an officer may look for when it comes to a drunk driver:
- Straddling between two lanes, over the center marker
- Performing too wide of a turn when unnecessary
- Weaving back and forth between lanes (either quickly or slowly)
- Driving off a highway
- Swerving within the same lane
- Nearly missing or actually hitting another car, object, or property
- Tailgating
- Braking excessively, especially when there is no apparent reason to
- Delayed response to changing traffic signals
- Odd slowing or stopping without an approaching stop sign or light
- Accelerating and slowing down abruptly
- Driving without the headlights on
What if the officer didn’t read me my Miranda rights?
People who have been arrested for a DUI may meet with an attorney and ask if their case can be dropped since the officer didn’t read them their Miranda rights. Unfortunately, the case may not be dismissed for this reason. Officers do have to inform you of your 5th amendment rights, but it doesn’t have to be declared until after the arrest has already taken place.
If I was arrested for being drunk behind the wheel, what charges could I face?
The most common charges for being drunk while driving include a DUI (driving under the influence), DWI (driving while intoxicated), and OWI (operating while intoxicated). Your attorney can go into further detail about the differences between these charges and which you are more likely to face depending on the factors of your arrest. Drunk driving is defined as having a BAC (blood alcohol content) of 0.08% or more.
What if my BAC was tested after my arrest?
If your BAC was tested 30 minutes up to 3 hours after your arrest, your DUI attorney in MD may recommend using the “rising BAC defense”. Studies have suggested that the body can take a half-hour to several hours before the alcohol is fully absorbed. So it is possible that the person who was arrested for a DUI wasn’t actually drunk while behind the wheel, and that their BAC level raised after the arrest as the body absorbed the drinks entirely.
Thanks to The Law Firm of Frederick J. Brynn, P.C. for their insight into criminal law and DUI defense strategies.