Attorney Offices
- Oakes & Oakes:
DUI defense in Reno
Prosecutors have a four-prong approach in prosecuting Reno DUI offenders:
* Erratic driving pattern
* Intoxication determined by smell, speech, and body language
* Failed field sobriety tests
* .08 or above blood alcohol level
An attorney experienced in handling Reno DUI charges challenges evidence by:
* Demonstrating police incorrectly administered tests
* Showing a physical condition caused a false reading on breathalyzer
* Demonstrating arresting officerÕs observations were faulty
- Matsuda, Jess:
What you need to know about getting arrested for DUI:
Two entities will be trying to punish you. 1) The State or City, depending on the jurisdiction where you were arrested, will bring criminal charges against you. 2) The DMV will attempt to suspend your driving privileges.
Criminal charges:
Once you have been arrested under the suspicion of DUI, the arresting officer drafts a declaration of arrest and submits his report to the District AttorneyÕs Office or the City AttorneyÕs Office (Prosecutors). The Prosecutor will review the report and your toxicology report from the forensic laboratory that analyzed your BAC level. They will make a determination on whether there is probable cause to move forward with criminal charges. Once the ProsecutorÕs office approves a case, a criminal complaint will be handed down and procedurally your criminal case commences.
Although there are many defenses in a DUI case, there are three main points of attack. First is the initial ÒstopÓ by the Officer. Legally, did the Officer have a right to stop your vehicle? If the stop is proven not to be legally justified, your DUI case may be dismissed. Second is to attack the FSTs (Field Sobriety Tests) that may or may not have been administered. The Officer who evaluates you (on a very subjective basis) during the FSTs must adhere to strict guidelines, if the Officer deviates from these standards, it may be possible to exclude the tests and the results thereof. And third is to evaluate the results of the blood or breath sample taken. In Nevada, there is a per se BAC limit of .08. If you are at or above this limit, legally you are too impaired to operate a motor vehicle. However, DUIs donÕt only come with drinking alcohol. You can be charged with DUI for having illegal narcotics in your system above the legal limit or, having prescribed medication above the statutory limit in your system. There are many rules and regulations that must be followed when you submit to a blood or breath sample, if these rules and regulations are not followed, it may be possible to exclude the results of the blood or breath sample taken.
Criminal penalties for 1st, 2nd and 3rd DUI offenses:
1st offense
- A misdemeanor. Up to 6 months in jail, a fine imposed by the court up to $1000, attendance at the DUI school, the Victims Impact Panel, and revocation by the DMV of your driverÕs license for a period of 90 days.
2nd offense (within 7 years)
- A misdemeanor. Up to 6 months in jail, a fine imposed by the court up to $1000, attend a program of treatment for the abuse of alcohol or drugs, and revocation by the DMV of your driverÕs license for a period of one year.
3rd offense (within 7 years)
- A category B felony punishable by a sentence of imprisonment in the Nevada State Prison for not less then 1 year nor more than 6 years, a fine imposed by the court up to $5000, attendance a the Victims Impact Panel and revocation by the DMV of your driverÕs license for a period of three years.
License revocation by the DMV:
For a first offense DUI, the DMV will attempt to suspend your driving privileges for a period of 90 days. If you submitted a breath sample and your BAC was at or above .08, your license will be confiscated immediately and you will be given a temporary license (pink sheet) that will be good for seven (7) days. It is in your best interest to contact an attorney immediately so your attorney can request a hearing with the DMV to challenge the revocation of your license. For a second offense within a 7-year period, the DMV will suspend your license for a period of 1 year. For a third offense within a 7-year period, the DMV will suspend your license for a period of 3 years.
- Kelly & Sullivan:
Nevada DUI Laws are some of the toughest in the country. Quickly obtaining a Las Vegas Nevada DUI attorney, a Las Vegas Nevada DWI attorney, or a Las Vegas Nevada Drunk Driving Lawyer to review your case is extremely important!
- Clifft, Jeremiah:
DUI/DWI
Assault & Battery
Theft/Petty Larceny/Grand Larceny
Criminal Conspiracy
Probation Violations
Warrants
Drug Possession
Weapons Charges
Domestic Violence
Robbery
Burglary
Kidnapping
Solicitation
Bad Checks
Traffic Tickets
- Huggins, Shawn:
An arrest for DUI, especially if it is a repeat offense, can change your life in an instant. The stigma of a conviction can follow you everywhere, hampering professional prospects and threatening your livelihood. Your ability to travel to and from your job and your reputation may be ruined. You could also face stiff criminal fines, to say nothing of your rising insurance premiums.
- Bellon & Maningo:
* Administrative Law
* Business & Commercial Law
* Consumer Protection
* Contracts
* Business Organizations
* Criminal Law
* DUI/DWI
* Traffic Violations
* Family Law
* Adoption
* Child Support
* Custody & Visitation
* Divorce
* Litigation & Appeals
* Personal Injury -- Plaintiff
* Motor Vehicle Accidents -- Plaintiff
* Toxic Torts
- Oronoz Law Offices:
DUI Charges: Second and Third Offenses
The state of Nevada has strict DUI laws. If you have been arrested for a second or third DUI, you are at risk of serious criminal penalties, including mandatory jail time.
A second DUI conviction carries a mandatory 10 day jail sentence. If you have a third DUI conviction within seven years of previous DUI charges, you face a mandatory prison sentence of up to six years if convicted.
- Truman, James:
* Business & Commercial Law
* Construction Law
* DUI/DWI
* Traffic Violations
* Estate Planning
* Trusts
* Wills
* Personal Injury -- Plaintiff
* Real Estate Law
- Andras, Paul:
Motion To Suppress Evidence [Motion 1538.5]
One of the best defenses that can be applied to a DUI charge would be that the officer in question did not have proper grounds to directly contact you. Basically if the judge that you are assigned to is convinced of this fact though motion 1538.5m then you case will be dismissed without the need of a trial.
Scientific Defense of Rising Blood Alcohol
With the rising blood alcohol defense, the law requires that your blood alcohol level is not greater than a level of .08% at the time of driving. The blood alcohol levels before and after driving is completely irrelevant, if you can prove that when you were driving, that you alcohol level was below the .08% threshold. In most cases, you can have an expert testify on your behalf, depending on your pattern of drinking. Even though you tested higher than the .08% threshold, but you were actually below the threshold at the time of driving. This also has been a very successful defense.
- Ciciliano & Associates:
Conditions of Probation
Usually, a person who is on probation must report regularly to a probation officer or court employee for monitoring of his or her behavior. As part of a probationary sentence, the judge imposes at least one condition, but often more than one, according to the Special Report. Almost all probationary sentences contain the condition that fees, fines and court costs be paid. Most sentences require alcohol treatment and almost half require employment or training. The Special Report also lists other common conditions of probation in descending order:
* Mandatory drug testing
* Drug treatment
* Community service
* Counseling
* Confinement or monitoring
* Driving restriction
* Abstention from alcohol and drugs
Other possible conditions may include alcohol or drug education, restitution to victims or refraining from committing further crimes. Unusual conditions have included fulfilling the requirements for Boy Scout badges for citizenship and traffic safety and displaying a bumper sticker stating "CONVICTED D.U.I.-RESTRICTED LICENSE." However, similarly controversial conditions of probation have not been allowed in other jurisdictions.
The judge's discretion about which conditions to impose will depend on the laws of the particular state. Some states require certain conditions in particular circumstances, some require judges to choose among particular conditions and some give judges complete discretion. Of course, a judge may not abuse his or her discretion and the conditions of probation are limited by other laws and by constitutional protections, such as the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
If a person who is on probation fails to meet the conditions of his or her probation, the court after a hearing can modify or revoke the probation, require incarceration, impose additional penalties or any combination thereof. Sometimes the period of incarceration imposed after a failed probation can be longer than would have been originally imposed when probation was ordered instead.
Variations on Probation
Judges and legislatures have become more creative in fashioning probationary sentences. One type of sentence, sometimes called work release, allows the defendant to go to and from work, otherwise leading a restricted life. About a third of drunk-driving probationers serve split sentences, where a period of incarceration is combined with the period of probation. Sometimes the judge sentences the defendant first to a short jail term intended to shock him or her by exposure to the severity of incarceration, followed by probation. This type of sentence is known as "shock probation" and is gaining popularity. "House arrest" is probation served mostly at home while wearing an electronic tracking device.
- Bohn & Morris:
State and federal procedures in a criminal trial must protect a defendant's due process rights. If a defendant who is legally incompetent to stand trial is convicted of a criminal offense, the defendant's due process rights are violated. A defendant cannot be prosecuted if he or she is incompetent to stand trial.
- Reiff, Joseph:
Whether you have been injured in any kind of accident, been arrested, or been issued a traffic ticket - don't go it alone.s
- Gensler, Harry:
You may discover that you do not need to appear in court at all.
- Hartsell Law:
In
making a decision as to which attorney to hire to represent you in a specific criminal matter, you should always take into consideration the attorney's background
- Walter B. Fey:
Ten Myths about DUI
1. I have to be driving in order to be convicted of Driving Under the Influence in the State of Nevada
Actually, no. Driving is not required. All that is needed is that you are in ãactual physical controlä while having a prohibited concentration of alcohol in your blood or breath. That means that if you get behind the wheel of your vehicle, and decide that you have had too much to drink, your decision to ãsleep it offä in your car may lead to a conviction of the offense anyway, just as if you had decided to take a chance and drive home. It is immaterial that you felt as if you were doing the prudent thing.
TIP: If you have to sleep it off in your vehicle, it is better if you sleep in the back seat, or the passenger seat, and do not put the key in the ignition. This is not really recommended, however, as prosecutors may still argue that you had the ability to start the vehicle and drive away. Call a cab whenever you are unsafe to drive.
2. If I am stopped by a police officer, I have the right to consult with a lawyer to determine whether to answer his questions, or to decide whether submit to a blood or breath test.
Your constitutional right to speak with an attorney doesnât allow you to consult with one before deciding whether to remain silent, or before deciding whether to submit to an evidentiary test of your blood or breath. It is only after you answer the officerâs question, and after you submit to the testing, that you can call a lawyer to determine what you should have done.
TIP: Although you are generally expected to answer a police officerâs legitimate ãidentityä type questions, you should not admit to having consumed any alcohol or any controlled substances. By doing so, especially with the controlled substances, you may be admitting to a felony. When in doubt, donât talk. You should only agree to take tests that are required by law. Donât volunteer to take any tests that are not required. Ask if the test is required.
3. I have to be intoxicated, or ãunder the influenceä in order to be convicted of Driving Under the Influence.
Your driving patterns, your ability or inability to safely operate your vehicle, and indeed, your intoxication, or lack of intoxication, are often irrelevant. While some drivers are convicted of Driving Under the Influence because of their poor driving, the overwhelming majority are not what we would normally call ãintoxicated.ä In fact, most drivers are convicted not because they are operating a vehicle while they are intoxicated, but rather because the evidentiary test of their blood or breath indicates a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) above the legal limit, which is now 0.08 BAC.
4. In order to be convicted of Driving Under the Influence, it is necessary to prove that I was driving at the time that my blood or breath was over the limit.
Thanks to aggressive lobbying, the national advocacy organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) was able to force the enactment of legislation in Nevada which allows the prosecution and conviction of drivers whose blood tests over the legal limit not only at the time they were driving, but also for a period of up to two hours after driving. In other words, it is immaterial that your blood contained sufficient alcohol at the time you were operating a vehicle, so long as it tested above the limit later.
5. I have the right to refuse a test of my blood or breath, even if the officer tells me to submit to one.
Years ago, it was possible to refuse to submit to a blood or breath test, without very much fallout. Today, however, should you refuse to submit to a ãpreliminaryä test of your breath, the officer is permitted to arrest you, if he has ãreasonable groundsä to do so, and to force you to take an evidentiary test of your blood or breath. If you are asked to submit to an ãevidentiaryä test of your breath or blood, and you refuse, the officer can use reasonable force to compel you to take the test.
TIP: Cooperate, but donât volunteer to take tests. Your refusal to take a test may result in your being charged with an additional charge of obstructing or resisting an officer. Be polite, and if told that you have to submit to a test, then submit to it and fight about it later, in court.
6. If I want to fight my case, I can force the prosecutor to prove my guilt to a jury of my peers.
The constitutional right to a jury trial does not compel a court to order one in misdemeanor cases. Since most DUI offenses are misdemeanors, this effectively means that it is extremely unlikely you will get such a jury trial. Instead, you will appear before a Justice of the Peace, or a Municipal Court Judge who has ãheard it all.ä Sometimes, in certain communities in Nevada, the Justice of Peace is not even trained in the law, yet he or she will be deciding your case.
7. If I am convicted of Driving Under the Influence, and I lose my driverâs license, I can get a restricted license.
Yes, and no. It is not necessary to be convicted of DUI in order to have your driverâs license revoked for a period of time, 90 days on the first offense. The Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) can, and does, revoke driverâs licenses without requiring a court conviction of an offense of Driving Under the Influence. In fact, should your blood or breath test over the 0.08 BAC, your license will be automatically revoked for 90 days, without your appearing in any court or administrative hearing. Even if you are acquitted of DUI in the Justice Court or Municipal Court, your license revocation may still stand, since the procedures and rules of the DMV operate independently of the court system. Further, a restricted license is only available when ¸ of the revocation period has been served, which means that any such restricted license would only be available after 45 days of buses, bikes, and bumming rides had elapsed.
TIP: By challenging a license revocation with the DMV, you can control just when your license will be revoked, rather than when the DMV or the arresting officer says it will happen. Also, some officers do not show up at the administrative hearing, and you win by default. As Woody Allen says, ãHalf of winning is just showing up.ä
8. Even if I am convicted of Driving Under the Influence, because of my excellent driving record, I will probably get probation, and not have to go to jail or do community service.
Your excellent driving record means diddly when it comes to sentencing on DUI offenses. No probation is possible, and every person who is convicted of such an offense must serve at least 2 days in jail, or must perform at least 48 hours of community service. No exceptions, unless you agree to enter a long and costly alcohol rehabilitation program. These are the minimum jail and community service penalties for a first offense. The actual penalties can be much higher.
TIP: Your agreement to enter an outpatient educational or treatment program may reduce the mandatory periods of both jail time and community service.
9. If I am stopped and arrested for Driving Under the Influence, I am as good as convicted.
Despite the attitude of many courts and prosecutors, there are defenses to the crime which should be raised by you. Sadly, there are law enforcement officers who are not above coloring the truth and are willing to do so. Also, many officers who investigate DUI cases are not qualified to administer the sobriety tests, and they make serious mistakes in so doing. Remember this: If you plead guilty, you have a 100% chance of being found guilty. If, however, you are willing to fight for your rights, and to contest the prosecutionâs case, you will have the best chance of a satisfactory outcome.
TIP: Pleading Not Guilty at the Arraignment does not mean that you cannot change your mind later. For this reason, do not plead guilty until you are satisfied that nothing can be done to improve your legal position. Your attorney will know how to advise you.
10. I can defend myself effectively in this kind of case, if I just let the judge know the facts.
If you have a headache, it is perfectly acceptable to take an aspirin or two. Similarly, a small cut on your may heal perfectly well without your doing anything to remedy it. If your appendix bursts, however, you need to consult an expert, and no one would suggest that you should personally attempt to remove that appendix. If you are arrested for Driving Under the Influence, you need professional help to get past the many pitfalls and adverse consequences. You need a competent lawyer, one who is experienced in the defense of Driving Under the Influence cases, and who is well versed on the law and facts regarding these offenses. Your investment in such representation is essential.
TIP: Hire the best attorney you can afford, one with depth of knowledge and experience in defending other drinking drivers.
Brought to you by Colorado DUI Drunk Driving Defense
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