Gainesville DUI Attorney Gainesville DUI Lawyer
If you are arrested for a Gainesville DUI and submit a blood or breath test with an alcohol content above .08% or higher your license will be suspended for six months 10 days after arrest for a first Gainesville DUI. If you refuse a lawful test of your blood, breath or urine your license will be suspended for a year 10 days after arrest for a first Gainesville DUI refusal. Contact a Gainesville DUI attorney to find out how to get a temporary permit and fight for your license. A Gainesville DUI attorney can explain the process of obtaining a hardship after 30 days for a breath test above .08% or 90 days for a refusal of a lawful request The legal information for this site was provided by Daytona Beach DUI lawyer Kevin J. Pitts.
What Can Be Expected In A Gainesville DUI Case
A Gainesville DUI case is initiated by the initial encounter. The initial contact can be from an accident investigation, driving pattern that does not violate a statute such as weaving in the lane, consensual encounters such as asking an officer for directions, moving traffic violations like speeding, u-turns or running a stop sign or equipment violations such as an inoperable tag light or head light. The stop is commonly challenged by Gainesville DUI attorneys. Some stops are easier to challenge like weaving in the lane than others like tag lights. Although a jury is more likely to believe the driver is impaired from bad driving than from an equipment malfunction. Many stops can be challenged and without speaking to a Gainesville DUI attorney your rights could be violated without you even knowing it. For example a crash might look bad but if proper procedures are not followed the evidence obtained after the crash might not be admissible based upon the accident report privilege.
After the stop the officer needs to observe sufficient indicators of impairment to request field sobriety exercises. The standard is relatively low to request field sobriety exercises but it generally requires more than the odor of alcohol. The field sobriety exercises are optional and should never be performed without a video. Even if they are on video they are tedious and should not be performed. For example touching your nose with the pad of your finger instead of the tip is an indicator of impairment. If you do not immediately return your hand to your side you have failed the exercise. Field sobriety exercises are used to accumulate probable cause for arrest.
After arrest implied consent will be read. Sometimes the officer will ask then if the driver refuses they will read implied consent. If implied consent is not properly read a refusal might be overturned. Many drivers think that think they should always refuse if they have had anything to drink. This is not always the case. A high breath test can be devastating to a case if admissible but a Gainesville DUI case has many areas to challenge prior to the breath test result. The problem with refusing is that the administrative consequences are much more severe. Regardless of what the breath test result is if proper steps are taken a hardship can be obtained after a 30 day hard suspension without driving. A first refusal requires a 90 day hard suspension before a hardship can be obtained. The administrative suspension is 6 months for a unlawful breath test and 12 months for a refusal.
After a Gainesville DUI arrest you will remain in custody until your normal faculties are not impaired, your breath alcohol content is less than .05% or 8 hours have passed. You will have a first appearance within 24 hours and will receive a bond amount and condition of release. You could just be released or you could be required to comply with pre-trial services. If the driver bonds out and hires a Gainesville DUI attorney they might not have conditions of release. The attorney can waive the driver’s appearance for all pre-trial matters. The Judge might not apply the conditions on release because the driver is not in front of them until the case is resolved by a plea or trial.
Once you are released from jail an arraignment will be scheduled. The arraignment can be waived by an attorney. Not guilty is the only good answer at arraignment because the driver does not have enough information to know if the state can prove the case. After arraignment the case is set for pre-trial. At pre-trial three basic options are possible. The case can be set for trial, the case can be set for a plea or the case can be continued to the next pre-trial. If the case is set for trial a docket sounding is possible prior to the jury selection to check the status of the case. Motion practice can be argued prior to trial at a scheduled hearing date. If the case is set for plea once entered the case will be closed and the accused will be sentenced. If set for trial a jury will be selected then the trial will take place.
If you are arrested for DUI in Daytona Beach contact Daytona Beach DUI Lawyer Kevin Pitts.
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