Saving Your Reputation With The Help Of A DUI Defense Lawyer

A small business owner, who needs an excellent reputation in the community, being charged with driving under the influence can put the person's livelihood at risk. Judges and district attorneys generally do not care why the individual was driving after drinking alcohol. A DUI defense lawyer must find other ways to persuade the prosecuting attorney to drop or reduce the charges or a judge to dismiss the case. 

A Criminal Offense

Driving under the influence of alcohol is considered a criminal offense. Jurisdictions impose harsh penalties on people convicted of drunk driving to deter them and others from engaging in this behavior. 

Searching for Procedural Irregularities

DUI attorneys search for irregularities in law enforcement procedures that occurred before the prosecution filed charges. Police officers must have a justifiable cause for pulling over a driver they suspect is intoxicated. The person might have weaved across the center line, for example. 

Pulling a driver over for a safety problem like a burned-out headlight is acceptable, but charges might not be upheld if officers stopped the person because the windshield was a little dirty. This kind of requirement can be frustrating to police officers who see an individual staggering from a bar to the car, but laws are in place to protect citizens from unreasonable stops and searches.

Plea Bargain Possibility

If the defense lawyer cannot find any questionable issue, the district attorney might be persuaded to change the charge to a less serious offense. This is most likely when there has been no DUI incident in the person's legal history and the blood alcohol content was not much over the maximum allowed by law. The defendant must accept a plea bargain.

Typically, the new charge is reckless driving with alcohol as a factor. Some jurisdictions refer to this as wet reckless.

This can be a difficult decision for a business owner who would rather nobody find out that they had been driving while intoxicated. Nevertheless, accepting the plea bargain brings several advantages. The risk of going to jail is avoided and the person's driver's license is not suspended. The individual will not have a criminal conviction on the record.

Concluding Thoughts

DUI defense lawyers believe that law enforcement must follow all regulations during the stop and arrest procedure. Both the defense lawyers and the government officials may believe that some clients deserve leniency, particularly first-time offenders with blood alcohol content barely above the legal maximum. Anyone who needs representation to prevent the worst consequences of a DUI conviction may contact an attorney for a consultation.