Being arrested for a DUI in Arizona is always a serious situation for someone to face, and people in this position should know that Arizona DUI laws have become some of the harshest in recent years with regards to the penalties that could be faced upon a conviction.  Therefore anyone who has been arrested for a DUI in Arizona should take immediate steps to obtain the help of an experienced Arizona DUI lawyer.  However, this process should involve more than simply choosing the name of someone who claims to understand Arizona DUI laws.  Below you’ll find some factors to consider when searching for an Arizona DUI lawyer.

Experience

Despite the fact that Arizona DUI laws have been changing in recent years, the first factor that you should look for when retaining an Arizona DUI lawyer is experience.  That’s because experience can make all the difference with an Arizona DUI case given the fact that many of the same people are involved and many of the same approaches are used by those who are supposed to earn a conviction.

Legal Knowledge

Not only have the Arizona DUI laws changed rapidly in recent years, but many of the nuances that are related to an Arizona DUI arrest and prosecution are also extremely detailed and meticulous in nature.  Therefore, someone who has been arrested for DUI in Arizona and who needs the help of an Arizona DUI lawyer should retain someone who understands all of these details and nuances so that they can avoid problems that come with overlooking these issues.

Reputation

Every Arizona DUI lawyer earns a reputation over time, and this reputation is critically important for defendants.  That’s because a reputation can completely set the tone for how a prosecutor will handle a specific case.  For instance, if an Arizona DUI lawyer is known as someone who deals fairly with prosecutors but who will not hesitate to take a matter to trial can feel reasonably reassured that prosecutors will deal with that matter in hopes of simply finding a resolution.  However, if an Arizona DUI lawyer has not earned a positive reputation, it could lead to harsh dealings and inflexible terms from the prosecutor.

Overall, being arrested for DUI in Arizona is a difficult situation to face.  Those who find themselves in this position need to take it upon themselves to act immediately in order to protect their legal rights.  That should start by seeking the help of an Arizona DUI lawyer who has earned the reputation that’s needed to benefit clients who have been charged with this crime.  If this includes you or someone you love, contact the Law Offices of Douglas E. Schwab today to schedule an initial consultation.

When people are injured because of the negligence of others, they are forced into an immediate situation of loss. Those who suffer in this manner are facing financial losses, income losses and the loss of their quality of life. As a result of the common nature of these situations, laws exist that allow people facing this challenge to seek justice. However, this should only be done with the help of California personal injury attorneys who understand what it takes to obtain results for injured clients. Below are a few ideas to consider as you go about finding help from a personal injury attorney in Sacramento.

Do Your Legwork

Oftentimes, people will simply retain the first personal injury attorney in Sacramento who responds to their inquiry, as they want to simply get started on their case. While urgency is certainly an understandable emotion for someone in this position, an injured person owes it to himself or herself to take some time to learn about the California personal injury attorneys in their area. This can be done by reviewing Web sites and spending some time reading about their qualifications.

Pay Attention to Service

While it’s not necessarily a good idea to simply hire the first personal injury attorney in Sacramento who responds to your inquiry, you should still pay some attention to how quickly you do receive responses from the personal injury lawyers in California you contact. This can be indicative of the level of service you will receive if your case is filed, and California personal injury attorneys who understand the profession will make it a point to provide clients with the reassuring level of service that they need.

Ask Questions

Finally, after you’ve schedule what should be a free initial consultation with a personal injury attorney in Sacramento, you should prepare questions for that meeting. Specifically, you should ask any personal injury lawyers in California with whom you meet about their experience with these types of cases, ask them for a brief breakdown of how many of their cases have settled and gone to trial, how their results have come about and finally how their fee arrangements work. You’ll need to trust your instincts in these meetings and ask any other questions you feel are important to have answered.

Overall, being put in this position is an injustice and one that deserves an opportunity to be heard and to obtain a recovery. If you or someone you love has been injured by someone else, seek the help of personal injury lawyers in California who have been fighting for the rights of clients for nearly 20 years. Contact Demas & Rosenthal today to schedule a free initial consultation.

When the government charges someone with a misdemeanor DUI in Arizona, there are a number of charges that come along with it.  There is usually never just a single Arizona DUI charge. This is why it is so critical to hire a competent Arizona DUI lawyer.

The first charge is driving under the influence.  What that means is the government is alleging the defendant was driving a motor vehicle, and while driving, the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs to at least the slightest degree.  With is charge, called driving under the influence, the driver’s blood alcohol concentration is irrelevant.    The government can convict you even with a minimal amount of alcohol in your system. In other words, you did not have to be above the legal limit of alcohol, which is .08 in Arizona, the state to convict you of driving under the influence.  Ironically, if you have a very good tolerance to alcohol you could potentially beat this charge by saying your high tolerance allowed you to drive without any affect, regardless of how high the blood alcohol concentration actually was. If the state convicts you of this charge, the minimum time in jail is one day in custody. In a driving under the influence charge only, the blood test results by themselves are not dispositive.  The first kind of evidence the government will use is the police officer’s observations. All officers in Arizona are certified peace officers, and they all have taken certain courses in DUI investigations. These courses are all standardized NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) classes, the same across the country. The police officer will testify as to how he saw the accused drive and how he saw the accused behaved once he got out of the car. The testimony is always right out of the NHTSA playbook, practically memorized. The police officer will testify to no end how the accused exhibited the NHTSA “nighttime driving cues of impairment.” That is just copspeak for “he looked like he was driving drunk.”  Next, the police officer will testify about the field sobriety tests, or FSTs. According to NHTSA, the FSTs are standardized and are a reliable way to determine if someone has had too much to drink. The tests typically include the horizontal gaze nystagmus, the walk and turn, and the one legged stand. Allegedly, these tests are validated.

The second count in a typical misdemeanor Arizona DUI case is called the per se charge. This charge means your blood alcohol concentration was above the legal limit.  In these sorts of cases, the blood test results are usually dispositive.  For non-extreme DUI charge, the legal limit is 08. For an extreme DUI charge  the legal limit is .15.  The per se charge means that regardless of how high your alcohol tolerance is, you drank so much alcohol that it increased your blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit.  It does not matter for the per se charge that the alcohol you drank did not affect your ability to drive.  If the state convicts you of the first per se charge, ie, blood alcohol concentration above the .08, the minimum time in jail if one day in custody. If the state convicts you of the extreme DUI charge, the minimum time in jail 30 days in custody. With any DUI conviction, even for a first offense, you must have an interlock device for at least 12 months after you get your license reinstated.

Importantly, even if the state convicts you on all three counts, that does not mean you have a three DUI convictions on your record. As long as it is for the same DUI stop, it is only one Arizona DUI conviction.

If you have been charged with a DUI, please contact the Law Office of Vladimir Gagic for a free initial consultation regarding your case.