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Fort Worth DWI Lawyers

1. Mullen Law Office: A Driving While Intoxicated Charge is Serious! Getting a DWI is serious! You need to take it seriously. So should your lawyer. Even a conviction for a first-time DWI can carry serious consequences, not the least of which is $1,000 or more per year for three years just to keep your drivers license. If you are like the vast majority of those who get arrested for DWI, this is the ONLY way that you would ever have come into contact with the criminal justice system. Only because DWI laws exist do many people who would never dream of breaking the law find themselves arrested, photographed, fingerprinted, and generally treated like criminals. This IS serious business. And once you have posted your bond, the whole process is really just beginning. The Driving While Intoxicated Laws A first-time DWI is a Class B Misdemeanor. This means it carries a criminal penalty of up to 6 months in the county jail and a fine of up to $2,000. A second DWI is a Class A Misdemeanor. This grade of offense carries up to a year in county jail and up to a $4,000 fine. A third DWI is a Third Degree Felony, which carries a penalty of up to ten years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. That is penitentiary time, not county jail time. A conviction for any of these also carries a mandatory drivers license suspension of at least a year. Administrative License Revocation Since 1995, the State of Texas has had ALR. If you have been arrested for DWI, you know the police officer serves on you a Notice of Suspension / Temporary Driving Permit and takes your license away from you. From the date of your arrest, you then have 15 days to request a hearing on what will otherwise be a mandatory drivers license suspension from at least 90 days for failing a breath test, to at least 180 days for refusing to take a breath test. If this is not your first DWI arrest, then the suspension times increase dramatically. IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO GET A HEARING REQUESTED AND NOT JUST LET THE 15 DAYS GO BY!! The ALR hearing is an opportunity that should be exploited. You have the opportunity to make the arresting officer appear at the hearing and give testimony. This could come in handy at a future trial. If you took and failed a breath test, then you have the opportunity to make the breath test operator and technical supervisor show up as well. And if you request their presence and they dont show up, you win. If they do show up and you do not prevail, at least you have some testimony you may be able to use later in fighting your DWI case. The Collateral Consequences Collateral consequences are those not specifically outlined in the criminal codes, but nonetheless attach to a DWI conviction from other sources. I already mentioned the drivers license surcharge of at least $1,000 per year for three years just to keep your license. That is a collateral consequence and a bad one at that. This surcharge was enacted by the 2003 Legislature. A DWI conviction carries other consequences as well. For instance, if your insurance company finds out you are convicted of DWI, then it will no doubt drop you and you will have to get high risk insurance at a vastly higher cost. Car rental companies probably will not rent a car to you if they know you are convicted of DWI. If you have a job that requires you to be under a fleet insurance policy, such as with a trucking company, you may lose your job if the insurer finds out you have a DWI and drops you. The list goes on. The Moral of the Story: FIGHT! I go into a DWI case with the mindset that we are going to fight it. I collect all the information I can so that you can be in the best position possible to make the crucial decision whether you want to go to trial or not. There are two reasons I go into every DWI case with the intent of fighting it: (1) the consequences I have already outlined above are severe too severe, really; and (2) DWI cases are WINNABLE. Remember those tests you were given on the roadside? Here is the breakdown on the accuracy of those tests as determined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (the agency that dreamed them up in the first place): Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (the eye test): 77% accurate The Walk & Turn (the walk the line test): 68% accurate The One Leg Stand (count to 30): 65% accurate The effective criminal defense lawyer with experience trying DWI cases can make the jury understand this and thus be more apt to discount the field sobriety tests, as they are called. As you have probably guessed, most of the states witnesses in a DWI case are going to be police officers. These officers have testified time and time again in DWI trials. Effective cross-examination of these officers requires experience with DWI and the issues surrounding these particular cases (such as the field sobriety tests). But the good news is that when your attorney has this experience and knowledge, you almost always have a chance to win.
2. Pearson, David: Board Certified, Criminal Law What is a Board Certified Attorney? A Board Certified Attorney is an attorney who has demonstrated special competence in a particular field in which the Texas Board of Legal Specialization has certified the attorney's competence. To become Board Certified in a specialty such as Criminal Law, an attorney must meet certain requirements. The requirements include: * Being licensed to practice law at least five years * Devoting a minimum percentage of practice to a specialty area for at least three years * Having handled a wide variety of matters in the area to demonstrate experience and involvement * Attending continuing education seminars regularly to keep training up to date * Having been evaluated by fellow lawyers and judges * Having passed a day long written examination Only a small percentage of lawyers in the State of Texas are Board Certified as Criminal Law Specialists and in the private practice of criminal law. For more information on what it means to be board certified, see the official website of the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
3. Weathers, Doug: common sense in criminal defense is essential. You don't have to be friends with prosecutors but you should not go out of your way to piss them off either. Do you really think the threat of yet another DWI trial is going to intimidate an ADA with any experience?
4. Abe Factor: Few offenses in America's criminal justice process call for greater attorney expertise than cases involving driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol. DUI cases are especially complex because they require defense counsel to understand scientific, as well as legal processes. The legal issues are wide-ranging, involving search and seizure, due process, illegal interrogation, denial of counsel, and evidentiary issues. These legal issues intersect in a DUI case with scientific areas of expertise, such as anatomy, biology, chemistry, physiology, and toxicology, as well as pseudo-scientific areas such as field sobriety testing. DUI defense counsel must also have a working understanding of the operation of breath test equipment, hospital testing equipment, and instruments utilized by forensic laboratories in the process of testing for intoxicants.
5. Kearney & Wynn: When the stakes are high, when reputation, freedom and even a defendants life are in question ...
6. Kenneth Mullen:

   Finding an Lawyer

   As you explore your many options, these are some questions you may want to consider when selecting an lawyer:

   1. How long has my lawyer been practicing law in Texas?
   2. Does the lawyer have experience "on the inside", having been a former prosecutor?
   3. Does the lawyer routinely handle cases in the local courthouse where the State and judges know him, and his reputation?
   4. Has the lawyer earned a reputation in the community such that he has lectured to members of law enforcement, or other attorneys on criminal law topics?
   5. Is the lawyer a member in good standing of both local and statewide professional organizations that promote high standards in the practice of law and criminal defense?
7. Harold Johnson: Have you recently been charged with drunk driving (DWI - DUI)? If so, there is important information that you will want to know. A drunk driving (DWI - DUI) case is a more complex case than most people realize and therefore, it is highly beneficial to hire an experienced DWI DUI lawyer . You need an attorney who will fight for you. You must act quickly after a drunk driving (DWI - DUI) arrest. Within 15 days of your arrest you must request an administrative license revocation (ALR) hearing. At this hearing your dwi dui lawyer has a chance to depose your arresting police officer before you go to trial. And more importantly, it will give you a chance to delay your license suspension or even prevent the suspension from taking place.
8. Randy Bowers: The crime of drunk driving is generally defined in two ways: (1) having a blood alcohol content above the limit set by law, or (2) driving under the influence of alcohol. To find a person guilty under the first definition, a jury must be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the person's blood alcohol content (BAC) exceeded a certain amount. In most states the legal limit is .08 percent. Therefore, if it is proved that the person's BAC at the time of the incident was .08 percent or greater, he or she can be convicted of drunk driving, regardless of how much alcohol was actually consumed.
9. Clemente De La Cruz: Some Tarrant County police departments have begun using search warrants, in some cases, to obtain blood to test suspected drunken drivers who refuse to take a breath test.
10. Otis Clark: If you have been accused of a crime, you need the services of an attorney who will fight to protect your rights and interests.
11. Raymond Daniel: You only have 20 days from DWI arrest to hearing.
12. Scott Brown: Alcohol Related Offenses – DWI (Driving While Intoxicated), DUI (Driving Under the Influence), Intoxication Assault, Intoxication Manslaughter

    Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) charges account for a large percentage of the criminal cases prosecuted in Texas. The penalties for a first time DWI offense are severe, including the possibility of: thousands of dollars in fines, up to six months in jail for your first offense, driver’s license suspension, and $1,000.00 per year for three years in order to avoid additional suspension of your driver’s license. Penalties increase for subsequent DWI charges; an arrest for a third or greater DWI can result in felony charges with the possibility of considerable prison time.

    The majority of people charged with DWI have never been in trouble before and are unfamiliar with the criminal justice system.

13. Mullen & Whitaker: As you have probably guessed, most of the states witnesses in a DWI case are going to be police officers. These officers have testified time and time again in DWI trials. Effective cross-examination of these officers requires experience with DWI and the issues surrounding these particular cases (such as the field sobriety tests). But the good news is that when your attorney has this experience and knowledge, you almost always have a chance to win.