DUI or DWAI charges involve either getting behind the wheel when alcohol/drugs has affected your ability to drive or when your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is over the legal limit. In Colorado displaying a poor performance on roadside sobriety tests or providing a breath/blood sample of above .05 BAC will cause an arrest and criminal charges.
Penalties for DUI/DWAI include jail time, probation, drug/alcohol classes, community service, and driver’s license suspension. People who drive for work may lose their commercial licensing or may learn that their employer will no longer insure them because of the additional risk.
Fighting back against charges can protect your finances, freedom, and even your career. How do people defend against drunk driving allegations?
They Challenge the Traffic Stop
Many drunk driving charges are the result of random enforcement efforts and minor traffic violations rather than a collision. Law enforcement must have a valid reason for contacting you before even beginning a DUI investigation. If their contact of you was outside the scope of the law all further evidence they collected, either in the form of roadside sobriety maneuvers or a chemical test of your blood or breath, will be suppressed and not admissible in court.
They Undermine the Evidence Against Them
If you can’t prevent the courts from hearing the evidence against you, like chemical test results, then you can raise questions about the accuracy of those results. Numerous issues, ranging from inadequate calibration to medical issues can affect how accurate chemical breath tests are.
If your circumstances give a reason to suspect that the testing unit returned inaccurate or elevated results, challenging the science behind breath testing or the unit’s accuracy could be a successful defense strategy. The exact methods you employ to defend yourself will depend on the evidence against you and your personal circumstances.
Understanding that people can and do successfully defend against drunk driving charges can motivate you to do the same thing.
