DUI Lawyer Corpus Christi

There are two aspects to a drunk driving (commonly referred to as “dwi” – driving while intoxicated or “dui” – driving under the influence) conviction – an administrative license suspension and a criminal charge(s). The administrative side is governed by administrative or civil law and relates to your driver’s license and driving record. The criminal aspect is governed by criminal law and dictates fines, fees, penalties, sentencing and parole (probation).

Corpus Christi DWI Attorney

Penalties for DWI vary by state, and the severity depends on many factors, including whether the defendant went to trial and his or her criminal history. In most states, first-time penalties include a driver’s license suspension (in addition to the administrative suspension discussed above), fines, court costs, probation, community service and jail time. Additionally, penalties increase for every subsequent DWI conviction. Some states also require offenders to take classes collectively known as DWI or DUI education courses. These classes cover topics that include the risks associated with drunk driving and the consequences of such behavior.

Corpus DUI Lawyer

DWI Lawyer Corpus Christi: A single death caused by alcohol consumption is one too many. Each such death is a needless tragedy that permanently traumatizes many others.
Drugs

Drugs and driving may be a bigger problem than generally recognized. A New England Journal of Medicine report on drivers without alcohol in their systems who were stopped by police for reckless driving found that 45% had marijuana and 25% had cocaine in their systems. 5

A study by the he Insurance Institute for Traffic Safety of interstate tractor-trailer drivers found that 15% of all drivers had marijuana, 12% had non-prescription stimulants, 5% had prescription stimulants, 2% had cocaine, and fewer than 1% had alcohol in their systems. 6
Corpus DWI Attorney
Corpus Christi DUI Lawyer
Corpus DUI Attorney

The three groups are affected differently by measures to limit drinking and driving. “Normal” drivers can be deterred by the legal consequences of arrest and sanction for impaired driving and also can be affected by education and prevention methods. Arguably, much of the reduction in alcohol-involved crashes may have come from changes in the behavior of this group. In contrast, alcoholics are unlikely to be affected by anything that does not deal directly with their alcoholism. Traffic safety can play an important role by screening DWI offenders for alcohol problems and assuring that they are referred to treatment as appropriate, but other traffic safety measures are unlikely to have much effect. “High-risk” drivers are perhaps the hardest group to affect. Deterrence, even arrest and punishment, may have little influence on their behavior. Some high-risk behavior is outgrown as drivers mature. However, since high-risk behavior is rooted so deeply in some drivers’ personalities, any change requires measures for broader than those available to traffic safety.

Corpus Christi DUI Attorney
Corpus DWI Lawyer: In the majority of states, a person arrested for DWI will have his or her license suspended immediately after arrest. The suspect may request a hearing on the suspension, which usually takes place before an administrative judge. This is an administrative hearing and is separate from the DWI criminal case, which comes later. What the police must prove in such a hearing is (1) the officer had reasonable suspicion or probable cause to pull the suspect over and (2) the officer had probable cause to arrest the suspect. Because this is an administrative hearing, these two items must be proved by a preponderance of the evidence (as opposed to reasonable doubt in a criminal case). Preponderance of the evidence is a much lower standard than reasonable doubt, which is why DWI suspects often are not successful at these hearings. In most states, the period of license suspension is determined by whether the suspect provided a breath specimen; if he or she did, the period of suspension is shorter.

DWI Attorney Corpus Christi
Convinced that we can’t jail our way out of the drunk driving problem, some judges have created so-called DWI courts (sometimes called DUI courts). These innovative courts use substance-abuse interventions and treatment with defendants who plead guilty of driving while intoxicated.

Not every DWI offender is alcoholic, but most hard core repeat offenders are. And hard core repeat offenders are involved in the majority of alcohol-related traffic fatalities.

DWI Lawyer Corpus Christi

This doesn’t prove that a “tough” judge is punishing the innocent or that a “lenient” judge is turning the guilty back onto the roads. Each has to be evaluated on the basis of a sophisticated analysis of all cases heard by that judge and others in the same jurisdiction, along with all other relevant factors.

Many factors enter into conviction rates. For example, in those counties in which officers mainly charge drivers with very high BACs, conviction rates should be higher than in counties in which officers charge large numbers of drivers who barely meet the unacceptable BAC limit.

Corpus Christi DWI Lawyer

A thoughtful observer has emphasized that

The law presumes every citizen innocent, even when charged with DWI. A judge violates the judicial oath when he or she presumes that a citizen charged with DWI is guilty, gives greater weight to the state's evidence, is predisposed to find for the state, or looks for ways to assist the state in the prosecution of a case. Judges with high conviction rates are NOT fair and impartial but proxies for the prosecution or result-oriented interest groups.



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