Not everyone accused of a DUI charge is guilty. It is easy to be arrested by mistake, or incorrectly.

Of course, some people go out for a good time and underestimate how much they have to drink, resulting in an arrested for a DUI . Very few, however, drink themselves to the point of a near-death experience. According to the Gainesville Sun, Tavaris Linell Hills tested at 4 times the legal limit when he was pulled over for suspicion of DUI.

Hills had passed out in his vehicle at a traffic light where he slept through a few cycles of the light. When witnesses came to his aid he awoke and began crying. When he saw the police, however, he began driving again, but only for two blocks.

When he stopped, Hills exited the vehicle and refused to perform any field sobriety tests. He did, however, submit to a breathalyzer that showed he had a blood alcohol content of 0.387%. At this level it would not be out of the question for Hills to have died. Instead, he was arrested and taken to the Alachua county jail. [Read more…]

In an effort to crack down on drunk driving the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Department plans on stepping up their checkpoints this month. According to this report from WPBF the department will be “out for blood”.

As it stands citizens can refuse to take a breath test when asked for a sample by the police. The Sheriff’s Department plans on getting blood samples from those who refuse, however. This unorthodox approach is nothing new, just unusual to be done roadside.

It seems the department plans on using this more as a scare tactic than a regular practice. When an officer explains “If you refuse we can get a warrant to draw blood”, it may shake someone up enough to get them to consent to the original breath test. [Read more…]

In an attempt to nab people driving on a suspended license, St. John’s County Sheriff’s Department rolled out an interesting program over the holidays. A member of the traffic division sat outside the homes of drivers with suspended licenses and waited for them to get behind the wheel.

According to Sgt. Mulligan, the people targeted were “known” to have been continuing to drive despite their driver’s license suspension or revocation. Twenty-two arrests were made in conjunction with the “Blue Christmas” program that took place over the last few weeks of December. Deputies and members of the traffic division were given photos of the known offenders so they would recognized them and make a proper arrest once spotted getting behind the wheel.

Many people charged in the “Blue Christmas” operation in the St. Augustine, FL area had their license suspended due to DUI charges. In Florida your license can be suspended for up to one year for your first offense. The penalty climbs with each successive DUI conviction until your license is permanently revoked after your 4^th conviction within 10 years.

Driving while your license is suspended can carry 60 days in jail and a $500 fine for your first offense. If you have been previously convicted of driving while your license is under suspension you face up to 1 year in jail and $1,000 in fines for a second conviction, and up to 5 years in prison and $5,000 in fines for a 3^rd conviction.

All in all, those arrested are facing serious potential penalties. While I am not sure that having officers camped outside residences for two weeks was a worthwhile taxpayer expenses, I do know that the courts will be busier now and that those people arrested are rethinking their hasty decision to drive.

People don’t realize what an inconvenience a suspended license is until they are in that boat. Having to depend on others to get everywhere can be very stressful. More than likely these arrestees got tired of depending on others and took a chance. Unfortunately for them, the Sheriff’s Department was lying in wait for them to slip up.

If you are facing similar charges, you need experience and determination on your side when you go before the judge. Particularly if this isn’t your first offense you want to be sure you get the best defense attorney you can.

A strange story about an Ocala Florida arrest where a woman’s car is stopped on train tracks, forcing a train to stop. She was subsequently arrested for drunk driving.

One of the interesting parts of the story is that registered as under the legal limit on a breath test machine. According to the news report, she recorded a .077% on two different tests, which is just shy of the legal limit for intoxication of .08% BAC under Florida law.

A drunk driving prosecution can, and presumably will still be pursued despite this fact. According to Florida DUI laws, a breath test or blood alcohol level at .08 or higher is no the only legal standard of guilt for drunk driving. You can be arrested, charged, and convicted of drunk driving with any BAC level if there is sufficient proof that you are under the influence and/or impaired to a degree that your faculties are reduced.

However, the fact that she is technically under the legal limit is certainly evidence that she may well have not been impaired. The case will likely hinge on other behaviors, and evidence gathered at the scene.

The police say that she failed field sobriety tests, among other subjective assessments at the time of the arrest. Field sobriety tests can often be successfully challenged in court by a knowledgeable defense attorney. There are many reasons a person can fail a field test, and not be impaired. And police often administer them incorrectly, again their very training, which can cause the results to be completely invalid.

Other police statements in the news report are that she was unsteady on her feet, and her eyes were glassy and bloodshot. Again, there can be reasonable explanations for any of these conditions, and the question is also valid to ask – “Compared to what”? What are the normal conditions of her balance and eyes? Presumably the police have never met her before.

Again, this is all wild speculation based on a flimsy news report. But most any Florida DUI defense attorney would love to fight a case with a breathalyzer result under the legal limit. The result will be admissible in court, and may flip the balance and burden of proof. The prosecutors will have to establish legal intoxication despite evidence that she was under the legal limit.

After a thorough review of the actual evidence in the case, such as the police report, a smart DUI defense attorney will know what to expect in court, what the police officer will say, and how to challenge those claims with plausible explanations.

If the prosecutors and police witnesses can’t establish, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the individual was impaired and guilty of a crime, then she should be found not guilty.

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If you have been arrested on a Drunk driving / DUI / DWI charge in Florida, please contact our statewide attorneys for a free consultation. You will get an opportunity to have a legal case evaluation with an experienced attorney in DUI defense, who knows your court, and knows the law. And there is no obligation for our advice. Talk to us, and talk to other attorneys if you need to. Whatever it takes to make sure you get the best attorney you can find.

But don’t delay, contact us today.

The St. Petersburg Times has a story of a disturbing trend involving Florida DUI arrests with children in the car. Officers seem to be seeing this circumstance more frequently, and can result in additional criminal charges of child neglect being brought against the driver.

A child neglect charge is now encourages in these circumstances, which has not always been the case in the past. In addition, such a charge puts into motion an investigation of the child’s home life, and can help identify children who might have dangerous home situations that may not have been noticed.

Neglect charges are not just happening in cases of DUI stops. Any criminal activity by parents with children present may result in the additional criminal offense in an arrest, including illegal drug purchases and transactions, and many other possible situations.

In any case, while this trend is unsettling, at least law enforcement and Florida social services and the Department of Children and Families are taking the right approach to helping kids who may be in need.

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For a free consultation on any arrest or criminal charge in Florida, please contact out attorneys today.