A drunk driving charge can threaten your future in a lot of different ways. Your freedom might be in jeopardy, and your job could be, too. Your reputation might be on the line, and the time guaranteed to you through a custody agreement could be at risk.
With so much hanging in the balance, you need to aggressively defend yourself in your drunk driving case. Fortunately, you might have several ways to do that.
Effective strategies for defending against drunk driving charges
The strategy that you utilize in your drunk driving case is going to depend on the facts at hand.
That said, as you analyze your case, you’ll want to look at these broad tactics to see if any one of them apply. If so, then you might be in a strong position to take charge of your case and drive towards the results that you want. Here are some of those powerful defense options:
- Evidence suppression: One of the quickest ways to derail the prosecution’s case is to have its evidence deemed inadmissible. If you can successfully do this, then you leave the state without the evidence needed to prosecute you, let alone obtain a conviction. In order to suppress evidence, though, you’ll need to show that your rights were violated in some fashion, leading to the illegal collection of evidence. You can do this by showing that the traffic stop that led to your arrest was illegal or that you confessed during an interrogation without being read your rights.
- Challenge breathalyzer accuracy: Many drunk driving prosecutions rely on breath test results. But all too often breath test results are faulty, and for several reasons. The device used to test your breath may’ve been improperly stored or calibrated, and the police officer who administered your test may’ve done so in a way that invalidated the results. You need to be able to illustrate these deficiencies to the court.
- Question the officer’s observations: The officer’s observations of your speech and behavior during your stop can also lead to your conviction. However, you might be able to raise doubt as to their observations. Although this can be difficult in many cases, you might have success if you have a medical condition that results in symptoms that are similar to those of intoxication.
- Improper interpretation of field sobriety tests: Field sobriety tests tend to give police officers the evidence they need to request a breathalyzer or blood test. But these tests are riddled with issues that can lead to inaccurate results. You’ll need to know where these issues arise and how to highlight them for the jury.
- Raise issue with allegations that you were driving: Some drunk driving cases are levied against intoxicated individuals who were doing nothing more than sleeping in their parked car. In these instances, accused individuals might want to challenge the claim that they were driving while under the influence. If they can show that prosecutors can’t even prove that they were driving, then they’re in a strong position to beat the charges levied against them.
There’s hope when facing drunk driving allegations
Your future can seem bleak once you’re charged with a drunk driving offense. But don’t let the initial blow of a criminal charge eviscerate your motivation. Now is the time to act to build the aggressive criminal defense that you need. By doing so, you might be able to seek out reduced charges, lighter penalties, or even beat the charges altogether, thereby reclaiming your future.