It’s understandable to be scared when you get pulled over and charged with driving under the influence (DUI), but it’s also important to realize that a DUI charge is not the same as a DUI conviction. You always have the right to hire an attorney and fight your charges in court. Oftentimes, when your arrest is analyzed by an experienced defense lawyer, weaknesses can be revealed in the prosecution’s case against you.
At Talley, Turner, Stice & Bertman, we stand by the people in Oklahoma and hope to give them a strong voice in the courtroom. Our lawyers have handled numerous DUI cases in the past, and we’ve developed successful defense strategies that help in reducing or dismissing these kinds of charges. An Oklahoma DUI lawyer from our team can support you through every step of the legal process.
Challenging Evidence
One common defense strategy we sometimes use in DUI cases is to challenge the evidence brought forth by the prosecution. The prosecution, in this case, is usually the police. Evidence in DUI cases almost always involves field sobriety test results or blood and breathalyzer test results. Field sobriety test results can easily be challenged because a lot of factors go into these tests that can sometimes be deemed inaccurate.
One example of a field sobriety test is making a driver walk in a straight line. If a driver fails this test, there’s no proof that the driver is drunk (as opposed to just clumsy, or sick, or disabled, or otherwise unable to walk a straight line). There’s also no one but the police officer on the scene to ensure that the driver walked in a straight line or not. These tests don’t provide any real proof of drinking and driving and can often be thrown out in court.
While blood and breathalyzer tests show more scientific evidence of driving under the influence, the results can still be challenged in certain cases. For example, if the police officer didn’t calibrate the breathalyzer before administering the test, the results may be inaccurate.
Question If Your Traffic Stop Was Warranted
If the police didn’t pull you over at a sobriety checkpoint, then they must have had another viable reason for stopping you.
For example, speeding, swerving, and invalid registration are all valid reasons for stopping a driver and then noticing that they’re impaired; however, a police officer can’t stop a driver without reason and then charge them with a DUI. The DUI charge may be dismissed if an unwarranted stop can be proven.
Were Your Rights Violated in a DUI Arrest?
Every police officer must read an individual their Miranda rights before arresting them. If the officer who arrested you failed to read you these rights, you may be able to get your charges dismissed in Oklahoma court. In many cases, any evidence revealed in interrogations after your arrest will have to be thrown out if your Miranda rights weren’t read to you.
Contact an Oklahoma DUI Attorney
A drunk driving attorney from Talley, Turner, Stice & Bertman will be able to build a more detailed defense specific to your case once they speak with you and understand your situation. If you’re prepared to discuss your case in greater detail with an Oklahoma DUI lawyer, call 405-467-2858 or fill out the contact form to schedule a consultation.