Did You Get Pulled Over for Drunk Driving on St. Patrick's Day?

Bar hopping and merrymaking may be all the rage during St. Patrick’s Day. However, too much alcohol and partying could lead to getting pulled over by the police and being arrested for OWI. A conviction of OWI or Operating While Intoxicated comes with severe penalties. Aside from possible jail time and costly fines, losing your driver’s license and getting slapped with driving restrictions could have significant implications on your personal and professional life.

Fortunately, working with a lawyer who has extensive knowledge of OWI laws and court systems could help in reducing your charges or having them dropped altogether. With this in mind, here common defenses that OWI attorneys can use to fight OWI charges.

Challenging the Results of Chemical or Breath Tests

The majority of OWI charges that have been successfully dismissed were done so by refuting the validity and/or accuracy of a chemical or breath test. But skilled OWI lawyers know how the devices used for these tests work, and in certain situations, can challenge the device’s mechanics or how the test was conducted. Besides improper or faulty device calibration, certain medical conditions could also be demonstrated to affect the test results’ reliability and accuracy.

Challenging Probable Cause for Testing

If you were pulled over by a police officer and you denied being intoxicated, you will be asked to perform FSTs or field sobriety tests if the officer suspects that you’re intoxicated. You’re not legally obligated to perform these tests. Sober individuals can even fail these tests due to an injury, disability, age, a medical condition, and taking certain medicines.

Do note, however, that refusing to perform these tests will result in you losing your driver’s license for at least a year. To stop this automatic revocation, you’ll need to appear at the license suspension hearing and prove one of the following:  

·        You had a valid reason for not performing the test.

·        The police officer did not have a legitimate reason to pull you over.

·        The police officer didn’t have probable cause to ask you to perform the test.

·        The police officer had no probable cause to suspect you of being intoxicated. 

Challenging the Legality of Stopping You

There are certain situations in which the police could be proven to have illegally pulled you over or lacked probable cause to stop you. For instance, police officers can only stop vehicles for these reasons:

·        Irregular or erratic driving behavior

·        Traffic violations

·        Equipment violations like broken taillights or side mirrors

·        OWI checkpoints

·        Appearing to look like a crime suspect or stolen vehicle used in a crime

Beat an OWI Charge with Help from an Experienced OWI Attorney

Call the Cohen Law Offices at 715-514-5051 or schedule a free consultation with our experienced lawyers through our online contact form for help fighting an OWI charge.

All the luck in the world won’t help if you were pulled over for drunk driving, even on St. Patrick’s Day. So work with an experienced OWI attorney who can evaluate every aspect of your case and determine the best legal arguments to ensure that your rights will be protected and the impact of the evidence against you will be lessened.