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Ann Arbor Drunk Driving Lawyers

• Margolis Law Firm: Criminal charges result in serious penalties and can leave convicted criminals with a record that will affect their lives for years to come. When you or someone you love is facing serious criminal charges, you need an experienced legal team to provide an aggressive defense.
• Simon & Geheren: OWI / Drunk Driving Drunk drivingÑor Operating While IntoxicatedÑhas quickly become one of the most specialized areas of criminal defense. While many attorneys attempt to handle drunk driving defense (including many who specialize in divorce or personal injury), few understand the ever-changing statutes, sanctions and defenses this charge entails. In 2004, MichiganÕs legal alcohol limit was decreased from .10 to .08, meaning more and more ÒaverageÓ people have been charged with this embarrassing yet significant crime. Worse, on January 3, 2007, our legislature decided that a person can be charged with Felony Drunk Driving if they have 2 more priors in their entire lifetime. If you are under 21 years old, you could be charged with OWI if you have any level of alcohol in your system. Lastly, if you have the presence of any controlled substances in your bloodÑincluding marijuanaÑyou might be charged with Operating With the Presence of a Controlled Substance, even if that substance had zero effect on your driving ability. If you are convicted of OWI or OWVI, you will face significant sanctions including incarceration, probation, significant fines, immobilization of your vehicle, community service and more. Further, your driverÕs license will be either restricted, suspended or revoked, you will have points added to your record, and you will have to pay our Secretary of State hundreds of thousands of dollars in Òresponsibility fees.Ó All of this and you will have a criminal record for the rest of your life. Lastly, many prosecuting agencies have policies preventing plea reductions if you were involved in an accident or if your breath/blood level was greater than .15. In short, the reductions and changes in MichiganÕs laws have dragged people into the criminal justice system and skilled, specialized attorneys are needed to handle this important defense.
• Daniel Geherin: Drunk driving - or Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) - is quickly becoming one of the most specialized areas of criminal defense. While many attorneys claim to handle drunk driving offenses (including many who specialize in divorce or personal injury!), few understand the ever-changing statutes, sanctions and defenses a drunk drivng charge entails. Several years ago, Michigan's legal alcohol limit was decreased from .10 to .08, meaning more and more "average" people have been charged with drunk driving - an embarrassing yet significant crime. Worse, our legislature got rid of presumptive sober breath/blood levels, meaning you could be charged with Operating While Visibly Impaired (OWVI) even if your breath level falls below .08! If you are under 21 years old, you might be charged with drunk driving or OWI if you have any level of alcohol in your system. Lastly, if you have the presence of any controlled substances in your blood - including marijuana - you might be charged with Operating With the Presence of a Controlled Substance, even if that substance had zero effect on your driving ability. If you are convicted of drunk driving, OWI or OWVI, you will face significant sanctions, including incarceration, probation, significant fines, immobilization of your vehicle, community service and more. Further, your driver's license will be either restricted, suspended or revoked, you will have points added to your record, and you will have to pay our Secretary of State hundreds or thousands of dollars in "responsibility fees." All of this and you will have a criminal record for the rest of your life. Lastly, many prosecutors have policies preventing plea reductions if you were involved in an accident or if your breath/blood level was greater than .15. In short, the reductions and changes in Michigan's drunk driving laws have dragged people into the criminal justice system, and skilled, specialized criminal defense attorneys are needed to handle this important defense.
• Lynn D'Orio: There are two types of trials: Bench trials and Jury trials. In a Bench trial, the judge acts as the jury or "fact-finder." A jury trial differs from a bench trial in that citizens from the community are asked to decide the facts of a case. A trial has the following parts:
       1. Jury selection
       2. Prosecutor and Defense Attorney's opening statements
       3. Prosecutor's case in chief (prosecution witnesses)
       4. Prosecutor rests his case
       5. Defense's case, if any (defense witnesses)
       6. Closing arguments
       7. Judge's instructions to jury
       8. Verdict (Guilty or Not Guilty)
• Chris Easthope: Michigan Drunk Driving Penalties
• Peter Collins: The consequences of a criminal conviction can be devastating for you and your family.
• Donald Payne: Driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) or driving while intoxicated (DWI) is an increasingly serious problem in todays society. The laws of the state of Michigan and those of all other jurisdictions across the United States treat it as a very serious offense that can lead to harsh criminal penalties, including heavy fines, loss of driving privileges, larger insurance premiums, and incarceration. The authorities in many states are currently cracking down on DUI offenses by reducing the blood alcohol content level at which a person may legally operate a motor vehicle. If you are arrested and convicted of DUI, the consequences could be quite severe if you do not have adequate representation. However, knowledgeable legal counsel can help you avoid those hefty fines, license suspensions, or large insurance increases. Do not think you can go to court and solve the problem by yourself. You need a competent and experienced lawyer to represent you. You need someone who can raise all the available defenses or, if necessary, help you avoid the draconian consequences.
• Jeffrey Bennett: A driver in Michigan will be presumed to be driving under the influence of alcohol if his or her blood alcohol level is .08 (not .10), or greater. In addition to the usual fine or jail time, that person will now be subject to a driver assessment fee of $1,000 per year for the two years after the conviction. In addition to the possible incarceration and fines, there can be a stigma attached to being convicted of a crime.