How a Lawyer Can Help
A DUI defense lawyer can be your best investment if you’ve been charged with a drunk driving related crime in California. A DUI arrest triggers a series of serious legal problems, with significant consequences; a DUI arrest triggers a legal emergency that is not unlike a medical emergency, and trying to defend a felony or misdemeanor DUI charge without a lawyer is like trying to operate on yourself without the help of a doctor. It can be done, but it will be messy, and the results are not likely to be good.
Having a DUI defense lawyer on your side should allow you to sleep well at night, knowing that your problem is in the hands of a capable professional. The legal and scientific issues that come up in DUI cases are not readily apparent to those who are not experienced defending exactly these kinds of cases. Even experienced criminal defense lawyers refer DUI cases that cross their path to DUI defense lawyers who have undergone the special study and training in the areas of driving patterns; police investigations of drunk driving cases; field sobriety protocols; chemical testing of blood or breath; and the science relating to the absorption, distribution, and elimination of alcohol in the human body. Those lawyers that have not invested the time in learning about these areas simply will not be able to spot the legal issues that can be exploited to the client’s benefit.
Criminal defense attorneys are in the business of government prosecution quality control. Their job is to prevent prosecutors from gaining a conviction unless there is legally admissible evidence to support it. An experienced DUI defense lawyer will know whether or not the prosecutor is able to meet that burden, and can therefore leverage a better settlement when the prosecutor faces these kinds of challenges.
Prosecutors will generally offer better deals to settle DUI cases when they face a risk of loss. An experienced DUI defense lawyer, with a track record of great results, will be able to raise the issues in a way that appropriately conveys the risk of loss for the DUI prosecutor.
A California DUI defense lawyer can help present the accused in a way that is more “fair and balanced.” DUI prosecutors often consider the drunk driving defendant to be someone that is an alcoholic or drug addict, especially in the case of multiple-offense DUIs, DUIs where there are accidents, or cases involving driving under the influence of drugs. While this characterization is undoubtedly true in some cases, these kinds of generalizations do not serve the accused well, and a DUI defense lawyer can go a long way to change those perceptions by obtaining an evaluation by a licensed Substance Abuse Expert, as well as authoring a private probation report (an elaborate life history of the accused, that outlines their family history, educational background, employment history, and more). This kind of detail work is something that many criminal defense lawyers don’t consider, but is just one of the many things that sets The Kavinoky Law Firm apart from other criminal defense law firms.
Better results in your case and sleeping better at night… these are just two of the many reasons why you should retain an experienced DUI defense attorney. Do you need any more? If you’ve been charged with a DUI or related drunk driving crime, please contact our firm for a free evaluation of your DUI case.
