hub pages lawyers online lawyer source news press now DWI means driving while intoxicated or driving while impaired. Most individuals that are charged with a DWI will result in a conviction. The laws against drunk driving are strictly enforced in all 50 states. It is illegal to operate a vehicle if you are under the influence of alcohol. In order to be charged with a DWI, the driver must be stopped by a police officer. The police officer must test the individual with a breathalyzer to determine if the drivers blood alcohol content (BAC) is above .08. The blood alcohol content refers to the grams of alcohol per 100 deciliter of blood. Typically the police officer will observe the motor vehicle when the drunk driver is at the wheel. The car may be swerving all over the road, or it can be involved in an auto accident. The police officer will then ask the driver to perform sobriety tests and may then ask the person to take a breath test or a blood test. If the driver refuses to take the test, it is considered an admission of guilt and the police officer can arrest them for a DWI. If an individual is convicted of a DWI, it will stay on their criminal record as a misdemeanor. The insurance rates for automobile coverage will automatically increase because the individual is considered “high risk.” Depending upon the severity of the DWI charge, the individual will have to serve jail time and may be ordered to attend alcohol rehabilitation. Immediately after being charged for a DWI, the state will suspend the driver’s license for at least 30 days. The laws vary for each state and most states will allow the driver to apply for reinstatement after 10 days. If the license is returned, the driver will have limited driving privileges while they wait for their court date. A DWI conviction is a serious offense, compared to a DUI. To be convicted of a DWI, the prosecution must prove that the police officer had probable cause to stop the driver, they must show that the individual performed the test and failure of the tests lead to their arrest, and they must have proof to support the DWI. Some attorneys can argue the rookie police officers do not have the experience of older police officers and their professional judgment of a drunk driver is not as good. The police officer only needs a reason for stopping the driver, which could mean they catch them speeding, swerving, running stop signs or stop lights, crossing the yellow line, expired registration, or slow or fast driving.Each police officer has different field sobriety tests they can use to determine if the driver is intoxicated. The officer must write down the physical appearance and demeanor of the driver. If they could see open alcoholic beverages in the car, they must include that in the report. The physical appearance of the driver will play a large role in the DWI conviction. If the police officer notices that the driver has red and glassy eyes, slurred speech, or a smell of alcohol on their breath, they can arrest them for a DWI. Normally, the officer will perform a couple field sobriety tests and ask the driver to take the breathalyzer test once they suspect the driver is intoxicated. The field sobriety tests normally include the following: * Reciting the alphabet backwards and forwards; * The hand to nose test; * Walking the yellow line forwards and backwards; * The pencil to eye test; * Other coordination tests. Most drivers that are intoxicated will not be able to perform the tests and they will seem incoherent. The police officer will then ask the driver to take a breathalyzer or blood test. The suspect has the right to deny taking the tests; however this will be used against them in court. Several police officers carry a mini breathalyzer with them. This mini breathalyzer is called an alco-sensor and it gives to police officer a rough estimate of the blood alcohol level of the driver. To be considered over the limit, the BAC reading must be .08 or above. The prosecution will use all of the evidence collected by the police officer to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the driver was operating the vehicle while intoxicated. Additional evidence, like being involved in a car accident can also be used against the driver to convict them of a DWI. If the driver refused to take the breathalyzer test, the officer will include that in their notes and the prosecutors can use that in court. In order to refuse the breathalyzer test, the driver must have a current driver’s license with no previous convictions of a DUI or DWI. They must also have a clean driving record and no unresolved issues with the Division of Motor Vehicles. Anyone that is convicted of a DWI will be punished. There are 5 different levels of punishment for a DWI. The most serious conviction is a level one offense. This punishment is for an individual with multiple DWIs or for someone who is found guilty of a DWI while engaging children under the age of 16 in the vehicle. If they are involved in a serious accident and it caused serious injuries or death to another person, they will be punished as a level one offender. This person is normally given jail time, alcohol rehabilitation, community service, heavy penalties, and a revoked license. First-time offenders with a clean record are considered a level five offender and it is the least serious punishment. The punishment usually consists of a suspended driver’s license, alcohol awareness courses, and community service. A level five offender will have their licensed revoked for up to one year and will need to pay reinstatement fees to have their driving privileges returned. Anyone that has a blood alcohol level at .16 or higher will need an ignition interlock system installed in their vehicle. The ignition interlock system will cause the driver to blow into a breathalyzer inside the car before the car will allow the driver to start the vehicle. The ignition interlock system costs $300 or more to install, plus a monthly fee. A DWI will cost the driver at least $10,000 in court fees, penalties, and lawyer fees. There are also fees to have the driver’s license restored, community service fees, and insurance increases. It is important to pay all the fees and comply with the orders given by the judge. Anyone that fails to meet their court date will automatically have a warrant issued for their arrest. The bail money they paid to get out of jail will be kept by the state and they will not receive any of it back. Most auto insurance companies will raise the monthly premiums and reduce the amount of coverage the driver will have. The driver can see their insurance rates increase by up to 450% of the average person. The new insurance rate will remain in tact for 3 years after the conviction of the DWI. The most important thing to do if you have been charged with a DWI is to hire an attorney. Though the attorney may not be able to get the prosecution to drop the charges, they may be able to negotiate for a lesser sentence. DWI attorneys have connections with investigators and other people that may be able to find a loophole in your case. Each year around 2 million car accidents are caused from drunk drivers. Anyone that is found guilty of a DWI and caused death to another party will be severely punished. Normally individuals cited for a DUI or DWI will plead guilty, hoping to receive some leniency from the judge. Even if the driver plans to plead guilty, they should still hire an attorney. The attorney will negotiate the terms of the plea bargain, reducing jail time, driving suspension, fines, and the charges on their criminal record. Individuals that cannot afford the costs of a professional DWI attorney have the right to legal counsel. The court appointed attorney will be granted to individuals with financial difficulties, although they may still have to pay some of the fees. The judge will look over the affidavit you file and they will determine if you are eligible to receive a court appointed attorney. You will not be able to choose who is representing you, but you have the right to refuse the right to an attorney. In some states, the driver will be responsible for all the attorney fees if you use a court appointed attorney and you are found guilty. The court appointed attorney fees will be about 40 to 50 percent less than the fees you would have with a private attorney. Because a DWI is a serious offense, it is difficult for most lawyers to negotiate for a lesser sentence. They may be able to keep their clients from losing their license or doing jail time. The trade-off may be that the driver must serve more community service hours and attend alcohol rehabilitation or alcohol awareness courses on top of heavy fines.
* How to find the best DWI attorney – A DWI offense stands for “Driving While Intoxicated”. Guilt is typically established through one of 3 methods: 1. Driving symptoms like swerving and weaving 2. Field sobriety tests like a breathalyzer or.. * So you want to avoid a DWI? So you’re driving. Everyone drives right? You’ve had a few drinks. You’ve done this too, don’t say you haven’t. You might be 5 minutes, 5 miles, 25 miles, or an hour from home. It can happen to you. Driving While Intoxicated (“DWI”) is considered a serious crime in every state. DWI and Driving Under the Influence (“DUI”) refer to the same crime. Drinking alcohol or taking drugs may affect your ability to operate cars, boats or industrial equipment in a safe manner. It is against the law in every state to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs if you cannot safely operate your vehicle. If the police observe you driving erratically or violating traffic laws, they are permitted to stop and question you for a DWI violation. If they suspect that you are intoxicated, they can ask you to submit to various tests, including a blood alcohol test.When you consume alcoholic drinks, alcohol is absorbed into your blood stream. The level of alcohol in your blood, called the Blood Alcohol Content (“BAC”), can be measured by different tests. As of 2005, driving with a blood-alcohol level of .08 or above is illegal in all states. This measurement means that your blood contains eight/one-hundredths percent of alcohol. All states have statutes that provide for lower prohibited BAC levels for commercial drivers, as well as zero tolerance laws for drivers under age 21. If the police suspect that you are drunk, they can require you to take a breathalyzer or other test to measure your blood alcohol content. Refusal to take a test may result in an automatic suspension of your license for a long period of time, as much as six months or a year, depending upon the state. You also can be convicted of drunk driving without the results of a blood alcohol test or if your blood alcohol test result is lower than the statutory amount. A jury may convict you based on evidence that your breath, conduct, language, and motor movements showed that you were drunk and unable to drive safely. The penalties for drunk driving are serious. * Punishment for first time offenders includes suspension of driving privileges, points on your driver’s license, and fines. * Punishment for second and subsequent offenses increases significantly and usually means jail time. A drunk driving conviction also generally causes your automobile insurance premiums to increase dramatically. Many people charged with drunk driving request a trial to fight the charge. Legal defenses may be raised to defeat the drunk driving charge or reduce the penalties. You will need a lawyer to adequately defend yourself at trial. Questions for Your Attorney: * Does it matter whether I take a breathalyzer or blood test? Is one kind of test more reliable? * Can I present a successful defense if I want to go to trial on drunk driving charges? What are my chances? * Do the police have to do field sobriety tests, such as balance or eye gaze tests, before doing a breathalyzer or blood test? * My medical condition resulted in motor skill difficulty, but I have a valid driver’s license. Should I be concerned that my condition could be misinterpreted and strengthen the DUI/DWI case against me? Facts on DWI offenses describe the definition of this crime, the prevalence of its occurrence, the possible penalties involved, and the repercussions of a DWI conviction. A DWI is the crime of driving while intoxicated and involves the operation of any type of motor vehicle. Facts on DWI offenses show that almost 18,000 people are killed in alcohol related traffic accidents every year. A person is considered to be operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated if their blood alcohol concentration meets or exceeds 0.08. The facts on DWI laws are differ depending on the state where the DWI occurred. There are some facts on DWI cases that are true regardless of the state in which a DWI crime occurs. DWI crimes can be charged as misdemeanors or felonies, depending on the specific circumstances of the incident. Penalties for a DWI offense can be enhanced under the following circumstances: the defendant has a prior DWI conviction, children were involved in the incident, the person’’s blood alcohol concentration was comparatively high, any type of injury was incurred as a result of the DWI, and excessive speeding. Facts on DWI cases show that regardless of the state where the crime took place, a person who is charged with a DWI can face penalties including jail time, probation, fines, restitution requirements, community service, DWI school or treatment programs, and significant license restrictions. Facts on DWI convictions stay on a person’’s criminal record permanently (unless they are expunged through the legal system). Facts on DWI convictions are also reported to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Several parties have access to the facts on DWI convictions. Law enforcement, courts, insurance companies, potential and current employers, universities, professional licensing entities, and the military have access to the specific facts on DWI convictions. Facts on DWI convictions can greatly affect a person’’s future for years after the DWI incident. In cases where a DWI is charged as a felony, a person can face jail time and the other aforementioned penalties as well as a possible loss of rights. Facts on DWI felony convictions can lead to loss of opportunities in the future. Fortunately for those charged with a DWI, the facts on DWI arrests can be argued in a DWI trial. Qualified and experienced DWI defense attorneys can protect and maximize a person’’s interests in a DWI case. The facts on DWI arrests that can be contested include a law enforcement official’’s failure to follow proper DWI arrest protocol. Facts on DWI arrests can also be contested in the area of chemical testing. By law, a person who is granted a driver’’s license has implicitly consented to chemical testing of their blood alcohol concentration. Refusal to comply with these statutes can lead to further DWI related charges. The accuracy of these tests can be one of the facts on DWI arrests that can be challenged in a court of law. A good lawyer can help a person dispute the facts on DWI charges in order to mitigate the penalties in a DWI case. Kay Ezzell will never forget the night of Oct. 21, 2000. On that date, her daughter, Theresa Morse, was being driven to her job at the law enforcement communication center when Brad Adkins crashed into her car, resulting in her death. Mr. Adkins was later convicted of second-degree murder in her death, along with second-degree assault for injuries to Kenneth Morse — her husband and driver of the car — and sentenced to 35 years in prison. Nearly 10 years later, Missouri is changing the state’s driving while intoxicated law. Next Saturday, the state will begin enforcement of a new DWI law, which will expand on court records and penalties for offenders. The law allows prosecutors to seek stiffer penalties against DWI offenders and closes a reporting gap between municipal courts to state courts that prevented repeat violators from being tried as chronic drunken drivers. “I can only hope it works,” Ms. Ezzell said. “Mr. Adkins had other convictions of DWI, but this one killed my daughter.” Under the new law, courts also will be allowed to establish DWI-only dockets that could offer substance abuse programs as part of an alternative to jail. More cases will move from municipal courts to state courts, where penalties can be tougher and create better communication among courts statewide. Buchanan County Prosecutor Dwight Scroggins is co-chairman of the Division of Highway Safety panel that had a part in crafting the new law. He said it will benefit all who travel on Missouri highways. Between 2007 and Aug. 13, 2010, more than 400 repeat offenders were convicted of a DWI in Buchanan County. “A lot of research and logic went into this new law,” Mr. Scroggins said. “In Buchanan County, the law won’t change much because we have had a collaborative effort between the courts for strong communication. But it will hopefully mean better communication throughout Missouri.” The new law expands the ability of prosecutors to bring evidence of prior DWI offenses through the use of criminal history records, certified driving records maintained by the Department of Revenue or the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Driving While Intoxicated Tracking System (DWITS). The law also closes a loophole that permits a DWI offender with a single prior offense to have that offense expunged from his record, even if that offender has a new DWI charge pending. Mr. Scroggins explained that if a person is pulled over and tests at the .13 blood-alcohol-content level, that person would be seen by the courts as a repeat offender. A level of .15 blood-alcohol content would tell the court that the person almost certainly is a repeat offender, and .2 blood-alcohol content shows a person who has a substantial alcohol problem. “I hope this will stop other (DWI) victims, but it can’t stop the ripple effect that Theresa’s death caused our family,” Ms. Ezzell said. “People need to get it in their heads that they cannot drink and drive.” Mr. Scroggins said the next step is to initiate a misdemeanor DWI court in Buchanan County. He hopes the new court can begin at the end of the year.
Conviction of a DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) offense in Houston can produce a negative stain on your record for the rest of your life. In Texas, the legal intoxication limit is .08, and Texas also has a zero-tolerance policy for anyone who is discovered to be driving while intoxicated. It is important that anyone arrested for a Houston DWI obtains an experienced and knowledgeable DWI attorney who can help them to battle the accusation in court. A strong defense is imperative in a Houston DWI case.
A good Houston DWI attorney can assist the defendant in developing the case toward a number of different defense strategies that may help to reduce the sentence or punishment.
The legal limit of intoxication in Texas is .08, as I said before, with a zero-tolerance policy for anyone caught drinking and driving under twenty-one years of age. That means that if a minor is pulled over and the officer detects alcohol, the minor can go to jail no matter the level of intoxication.
There are numerous defenses for a DWI offense, not the least of which is the methods that law enforcement officers use to detect the presence and level of alcohol in the blood stream of the defendant. The chemical testing procedure adopted by law enforcement agencies is a defense used by nearly half of the defendants prosecuted for DWI offenses in Houston.
As soon as you are able, locate and contact an experienced DWI defense attorney who is well-schooled in the state laws of Texas and who has handled similar cases before. Disclose all information regarding the arrest to your attorney, including whatever happened between your car and the jail. From there, your attorney will be able to put together a defense that can protect your legal rights.
The most important thing is that you never admit guilt, because if you apologize to the officer for drinking while intoxicated or if you admit that you have been drinking, that officer will testify to your admission in court.
An experienced Houston DWI attorney can create a strong defense argument in your favor by systematically pointing out any of the mistakes that were made by the law enforcement officers present during a DWI conviction or arrest. Your defense attorney will also be experienced enough to know how much or how little to press a point. Often, defendants who represent themselves go too far in front of a judge or jury, thereby ensuring their conviction.
For instance, law enforcement officers have been guilty of tearing a male defendant differently from a female defendant. Likewise, the proper standard operating procedure is more familiar to your DWI attorney than it is to you, the defendant.
A DWI attorney can prepare a solid defense based on these types of issues that might come up. How your DWI attorney proceeds will depend on whether or not you have been convicted of a DWI in the past, the precise level of your blood-alcohol, and any other offenses you may have committed in the last decade.
The most important thing is to hire an experienced and knowledgeable Houston DWI attorney who can provide you with the best defense possible.