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Payette DUI Lawyers

1. David Posey: DUI mean "Driving Under the Influence of alcohol or drugs." In Idaho (and in most other states) the driving part means that you are driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle. Actual physical control means you are in the driver's seat with the engine running. Under the influence means that the alcohol or drugs adversely affects you ability to drive. As for alcohol, the legislature has determined that as a matter of law you are under the influence if your blood alcohol content (BAC) is 0.08% or higher as determined by analysis of your breath, urine or blood. As for the drugs part, you can be found guilty of DUI if there is evidence of any (legal or illegal) drug in your system and it adversely affected your ability to drive. Should I take the breath or urine test? The answer is that if you need to drive you should generally (there are exceptions depending on your previous record and whether you think you can pass the test) take the test. Idaho (like most states) has an "Implied Consent Law" that says that if you have an Idaho driver's license or choose to drive on the highways of the state of Idaho you have consented to the taking of a breath, urine or blood test chosen by a law enforcement officer to test for alcohol or drugs if the officer has reasonable cause to believe that you were driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you refuse to take the test your driving privileges will be suspended for a full six months with no driving for any reason for the full six month period, no exceptions. The only defenses to a refusal involve issues concerning whether the officer had the right (reasonable cause) to ask you to take the test in the first place. To raise these issues you must request a hearing and the request for hearing must be filed with the court within seven calendar days of the day you received the ticket or were arrested or you lose automatically. If you take the test and it shows a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08% or higher you are subjected to another separate suspension by the Idaho Department of Transportation called and Administative License Suspension (ALS). If you have an Idaho driver's license it will be seized and you will be given a temporary permit to drive that is good for 30 days. To fight this suspension you must file a request a hearing with the Idaho Department of Transportation in Boise and they must receive the request within seven calendar days of the day you took the test. The first ALS within a five year period is for 90 days starting 30 days after the test was given and there is nodriving at all for the first 30 days of the suspension. You may apply for a permit for necessary driving for the remaining 60 days. A second ALS within five years results in an absolute (no permit of any kind) for a period of one year. (This is one of the situations that you may want to refuse the breath test in that the suspension for refusal is an absolute suspension for six months but a second ALS within five years is an absolute suspension for a whole year.) Because of these suspensions it is vitally important that you contact an attorney the next business day after you are charged with DUI or you may lose important rights and options. If you have been charged with DUI, call 642-9339 to set an appointment for a free consultation with David Posey, Attorney at Law. Top Home What should I do if I am arrested? If you are arrested you should exercise your constituional rights, including the right to remain silent and your right to an attorney. Do not answer any questions or volunteer any information without first talking to an attorney. The Miranda warnings that were approved by the US Supreme Court say "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in a court of law." This is absolutely true and the things that you say will be most likely twisted around by the State to make it look like you confessed to a crime. There is almost nothing you can say that can't be taken to mean just the opposite of what you meant. The first thing you should say to the police is that you want to talk to an attorney. The fact that you ask for an attorney is not an indication of guilt and can never be claimed in court to be an admission of guilt. I repeat, if you are arrested immediately ask for an attorney and do not answer any question or volunteer any information. If you are arrested or charged with a criminal offense, call 642-9339 to set an appointment for a free consultation with David Posey, Attorney at Law. Top Home Should I talk to the police? If the police come to you and it becomes apparent that they are investigating a crime and you may be the subject of that investigation, you should not talk to them. Police solve most crimes by getting people to confess to the crime or getting people to make statements that appear to be a confession or can be twisted around to seem like a confession. If the police have a good case against you they won't question you before you are arrested. If they want to talk first, they are looking for a confession or statements from you that will make their case. You have the absolute right to not talk to the police. If you choose to talk to the police, do not lie to them - lying to them is a crime. Police can lie to you and many times will to get you to confess and the law says that is okay, but you can't lie to them.