Should I go to court to fight this DUI charge?

Question

Not fighting it:
-Just pay the $1000 fine and get on with my 1 year suspension, be done by Feb 2012.
-Have a misdimeanor on my criminal record for at least 3 years.
-Insurance rate thru the roof (although I can just get my sister to insure my car under her name)

Go to court:
-Pay a lawyer $5250 to argue the point below - he indicated a chance of over 10% but less than 50% of this arguement working.
-If acquitted, no further consequences.
-If convicted, start my suspension in Aug 2011, ending Aug 2012. and insurance still will go up

Would a charge of driving with illegal blood-alcohol level be worth going to court over with the following factors?

And yes, I blew over the legal limit.

-Between being stopped and adminstering the breath test, when asked if I had been drinking I said no.
-Officer's reason for administering the breath test was due to odour of alcohol in the vehicle. My passengers had been drinking and the officer does not mention in his police report anything about liquor on my breath, just that the vehicle smelled of it. At that point, he asked me into his vehicle to take the test and says that he smelled alcohol, but again no mention of it being on my breath. I had also been cooking dinner with wine that evening which may have contributed to the odour.

The lawyer said that this would be his argument in court because the officer could not have assumed beyond reasonable doubt that I had consumed alcohol without having smelled it on my breath.

1) Is this something that I can argue for myself? Or is paying a lawyer $5000 worth it?
2) What is the likelihood that this argument could result in an acquittal of the charge?

Do you see a likely chance of getting off here?

I should also add that I went home and counted 4 beers drank in 6 hours (I am female and have a small frame), I had no qualms abour driving because I felt no symptoms of impairment, the cop mentions nowhere in his report symptoms of impairment, the cop also asked my female passenger to blow to confirm that she could drive home. She had drank apporox 2 beers in 1 hour and blew zero in the device.

Answer 1

If you know the cop was right, then do not fight. Just pay and never do it again. Justice will win.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

Well that is a tough choice. Here about 50-60 DUI arrest a week and most of the police work is done in a sloppy manner because so many don't fight it. On average about 7 out of 10 could get off just by a screwed up warrant, charge or-what happens the most is the arresting officer doesn't show up for court. We had a case here where a very stupid(now unemployed) IT guy erased all the video of over 400 arrest-every single one was dismissed. So, you just never know.

Say you were Lindsy Lohan-if that is how you spell it-first thing the lawyer would do is hire 2 or 3 private investigators to go dig around in the arresting officer's background to see what they could find out. You would be surprised how effective this is-If he has marriage problems or gambling or whatever he is involved in is-detrimental to his occupation advancement- then that could change things as well.

I don't know what I would do in your situation but remember to think it out carefully then decide what you want to do. The Police, judges and the courts make mistakes too. Also, in first time DUI cases they mainly want to send you a message by inconveniencing your life for a while. The message that a DUI can happen to the best of people who put themselves in a situation they should never have been in the first place. Ok now understand if it happens again you have a problem and could kill someone or yourself and you will be treated very differently next time. If you get caught again they will do their best to ruin your life to keep you off the road because your a dangerous person.



just think about it,



LL

Answer 4

Well think about this:



You're going to be paying a lawyer $5250 to argue a case that they have clearly stated has a little over 10% chance of winning in your favor. If they win, you won't have to be as careful, you won't have a misdemeanor, but you will still have paid over $5000. If they lose, you will have to pay another $1000 for the fine, and still have the same consequences as if you didn't challenge the charge. So even if you win, you'll still be paying over $4000 more than if you just let it go.



On another note: You're going to lose! You blew over the legal limit. You were driving drunk. You have no chance. Your lawyer is just trying to scam you by taking on your case knowing that you have no arguement. And trust me, the officer smelling alcohol in the car is reason enough. So good luck and next time, even if you don't feel drunk, don't drive.

Answer 5

You dont have a prayer, you just admited you took a test and blew over the legal limit. Just plead guilty, pay the $1000 fine and take the 1-3 year driving ban.

Answer 6

If you were drinking, you got caught, tough, pay it and learn the lesson.

Answer 7

Ha, ha, ha... I've had great meals cooked with Whisky....Ha

Thanks...ya made my day. As for your case... "Ya can't break

the Law, ya only break Yourself against the Law".....Fess up, and

QUIT MAKING EXCUSES. (You are better than that).....

Answer 8

do your time