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Birmingham DUI Lawyers

1. Burleson Law Firm: WHY YOU SHOULD HIRE AN ATTORNEY WITHIN TEN (10) DAYS OF YOUR ARREST. Most people donÕt realize that DUI is not only a serious criminal issue but involves civil questions as well. For several years, Alabama law has authorized an automatic 90-day administrative suspension of driving privileges that is triggered by any type of DUI arrest. This suspension begins 45 days after the driver receives written notice of intended suspension. This is usually the date of arrest. The suspension can sometimes be postponed, modified or even avoided by an experienced attorney. However, proper papers must be prepared and served within 10 days of the notice of intended suspension (usually the date of arrest). If this deadline is missed, certain very important legal rights are waived. This eliminates the most effective method to defend against suspension and in all but the rarest cases means suspension cannot be avoided. WHY YOU SHOULD NOT HIRE A GENERAL PRACTICE ATTORNEY OR EVEN A GENERAL CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY. The defense of a DUI case can be highly complex. It involves extensive scientific, evidentiary, procedural, and tactical considerations. A competent DUI defense attorney must not only possess a thorough knowledge of the constitutional issues involved in all criminal defense, but also have an understanding of the procedural and scientific issues that are specific to DUI cases in particular. Just as no one would want their family doctor to perform their heart transplant, you might not want the attorney who prepared your will to defend you in your DUI case. Even many criminal defense attorneys only handle an occasional DUI case. When choosing your DUI defense attorney, you must be careful to determine that he or she has enough knowledge in this field to aggressively represent you. TYPES OF DUI CHARGES: Alabama law defines five categories of driving under the influence. You may be convicted of DUI if you drive or are merely in actual physical control of any vehicle while: (1) There is 0.08 percent or more by weight of alcohol in your blood; (2) You are under the influence of alcohol; (3) You are under the influence of a controlled substance (whether illegal or prescription) to a degree which renders you incapable of safely driving; (4) You are under the combined influence of alcohol and a controlled substance to a degree which renders you incapable of safely driving; or (5) You are under the influence of any substance which impairs your mental or physical faculties to a degree which renders you incapable of safely driving. CONSEQUENCES OF DUI CONVICTION If convicted of DUI, you may face jail time, fines, court costs, court-ordered substance abuse counseling and probation. Even if not convicted, you will receive an administrative driver license suspension because of your mere arrest for DUI unless you take action within 10 days of arrest to attempt to prevent it. If you are found not guilty on the criminal charge, the record of this suspension will be removed from your driving history. However, the consequences and inconvenience of the actual suspension cannot be undone. This suspension can result in cancellation of your auto insurance or increased rates. The specific penalties imposed for DUI convictions as of the last date of revision of this website (July 31, 2008) are listed below: FIRST CONVICTION Š Jail time for up to one year, a fine from $600 to $2,100, a 90 day driver's license suspension and a court-ordered substance abuse counseling program. If you receive any additional DUI convictions within a 5 year period of the first convictions, the penalties will be the following: SECOND CONVICTION Š Jail time of not less than 5 days and up to one year, a fine from $1,100 to $5,100, a 1 year driver's license suspension and a court-ordered substance abuse counseling program. Five days of this jail time is mandatory. This means that it cannot be suspended or probated. However, the court can choose to allow you to perform 30 days of community service instead of serving the mandatory jail time. THIRD CONVICTION Š Jail time of not less than 60 days and up to one year, a fine from $2,100 to $10,100, a 3 year driver's license suspension and a court-ordered substance abuse counseling program. Sixty days of this jail time is mandatory. This means that it cannot be suspended or probated. Alabama law does not authorize community service in place of the mandatory jail sentence for a third conviction. FOURTH CONVICTION Š On a fourth or subsequent conviction, a person convicted of DUI is guilty of a Class C felony. Punishment will be jail time of not less than one year and one day nor more than 10 years, a fine from $4,100 to $10,100, a 5 year driver's license suspension and a court-ordered substance abuse counseling program. FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS (FSTÕS) An FST is a type of test which is routinely given by police officers to individuals that are suspected of driving under the influence. The official, but not always the actual purpose of administering an FST is to determine the level of impairment of the driver. There are several categories of FSTÕs: 1) Balance Performance Tests a)Walk and Turn b) One Leg Stand c) Modified Position of Attention (also known as the Rhomberg Balance Test) 2) Coordination Performance Tests a) Finger to Nose b) Finger Count c) Hand-Pat d) Coin Pickup 3) Mental Ability Tests a) Reverse Counting b) Recited Alphabet c) Written Alphabet 4) Ocular Tests a) Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) b) Pupil Reaction STANDARDIZED FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS (SFST'S) The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has attempted to create a standardized set of field sobriety tests which it recommends that officers use in DUI cases. The three such tests recommended are the following: 1) Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN); 2) One Leg Stand; 3) Walk and Turn; FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT DUI 1) You donÕt have to be actually driving a vehicle to be charged with DUI. If you are in actual physical control of a vehicle, that is enough under Alabama law to support an arrest. If you have access to the vehicle and you have access to the keys, you can be taken into custody. In other words, if you are sitting in a parking lot behind the wheel of you car and the engine is not even running but you have the keys in your pocket, you can be arrested for DUI. 2) Beyond giving your name and address, you donÕt have to answer the police officerÕs questions. You must also provide your driverÕs license, vehicle registration and proof of insurance. However, you do not have to tell the officer where you have been or what you have been doing or whether you have been drinking at all. This does not mean that you should lie to the officer. Whether you are guilty or innocent of the charges, lying can damage your case. You can unknowingly and erroneously increase the weight and significance of the breathalyzer results by giving answers that you incorrectly think will help your case. The best response to the officerÕs questions is to politely tell the officer that your attorney has advised you never to answer any questions without him/her present. Then ask the officer to allow you to contact your attorney. 3) You do not have to take the field sobriety tests (FSTÕs). Alabama law requires you to take a blood alcohol test but not the field sobriety tests. Once in court, officers attempt to convince the jury that the field tests are conclusive or fool proof. However, this is not the case. Even the three standardized tests that are recommended by the NHTSA have been shown in testing to fall well below the standard of proof required for a criminal conviction. The HGN test is currently not even admissible in the State of Alabama. Therefore, although poor performance on these tests can indicate impairment caused by intoxication, it can just as easily be evidence of some performance impairment caused by some other factor. For example, a medical condition such as a back condition can prevent an individual from properly performing tests such as the One Leg Stand or the Balance Test. Nervousness or anxiety experienced by someone who has had little or no prior contact with law enforcement can affect overall performance on all these tests. Even the face and incline of the road or other surface upon which the test is administered can affect the driverÕs performance on it. 4) You do have to take a chemical test to determine blood alcohol level. Driving a vehicle is considered a privilege, not a right. Under Alabama law, there is a concept known as implied consent. What this means is that by accepting the privilege to drive a vehicle, it is implied that you consent to submit to this test if requested to do so. It is considered an implied condition to the issuance of your driverÕs license. If you refuse to take this test Alabama law authorizes an automatic 90 day suspension of your driverÕs license in addition to the other possible penalties. 5) You do not have the right to speak to your attorney before you decide whether or not you should take the breathalyzer test. The Supreme Court of Alabama has ruled that you do not have a right to an attorney before taking a blood alcohol test. If you refuse to take the test before speaking to your attorney, it will be treated like any other refusal and you will receive a 90 day driverÕs license suspension in addition to the other penalties listed above. CONTACT THE BURLESON FIRM A competent DUI defense attorney should investigate your case thoroughly, review all of the evidence and address any legal issues that are relevant to the facts of your case. If you or someone you love has been arrested and charged with DUI and you would like to obtain legal advice on the specific facts of the case, please call The Burleson Firm at one of the telephone numbers listed below or use the navigation button on the right side of this page to access our contact form and email your inquiry. Please do not submit any confidential information in your email correspondence until you have spoken directly to an attorney.