WHAT WE DO ON A DWI CHARGE

 

 

Retainer Agreement:

 

When you retain our Law Office to represent you in defense of the charges against you we will be certain you have a clear understanding of the fees inherent in that representation. We will have a clear agreement as to fees early on, and move forward together defending your charges. The fee agreement will include a standard fee for collecting all discovery, reviewing it, consulting with experts and attending Court hearings. Trial costs and expert fees will be separate. The agreement will address motions, or legal documents, we may file with the Court for pre-trial arguments. For instance, these might include, if applicable to your Case, motions to compel the State to produce certain discovery if they have not complied with their obligations in that regard, motions to suppress, or not allow at trial, evidence the police may have obtained in violation of your Constitutional rights, motions regarding the States proofs that you were operating the motor vehicle or other motions that might be applicable to the facts of your particular case.

 

We don’t have hidden costs or bills. DWI defense may involve a variety of techniques, so we don’t bill you for everything we might do. We bill for what needs to be done in your case. We have the experience to anticipate possible legal issues that might arise in each case, so we segment our bill to keep our initial retainer low and then move forward with a specific plan.

 

Your Information  

 

The first thing we do is review your recollection of the incident and obtain a police report. Please see the link “What You Must Do” and fill out the questionnaire in detail. The facts are important and I did not witness the incident, so part of building your defense is reviewing your complete version of the incident and the facts and circumstances as you recall them. Details are important.

 

We obtain Discovery

 

Discovery is the package of evidence the State is required to provide to us. It includes the police report, which will include written comments by the investigating and reviewing police officers in relation to your case, observations of your demeanor, conduct and comments during the course of the investigation and your arrest, results of breath tests or blood tests, breath test and equipment certifications regarding valid operation of DWI apparatus, documentation regarding the reliability of the breath test apparatus, observations and comments regarding the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests, video tapes and dispatch tapes, if they exist, witness statements and other relevant discovery.

 

What we look for

 

We have a lengthy process of review in defending a DWI case. A summary of the tasks we undertake on your behalf includes, but is not limited to, reviewing the constitutionality of the stop. Did the police have probable cause to believe you were violating the law, and, if so, did the police have probable cause to arrest you? The Police must have probable cause to administer tests, and they must prove you were operating the vehicle. We review the testing procedures utilized in taking breath samples and in administering the field sobriety tests and standardized field sobriety tests. Standardized infers there is a way to properly administer the test and often police just don’t perform the tests correctly, creating an argument that if the tests were negligently administered they should not be allowed at trial because they are not valid as a matter of scientific fact. We know the standards. Further, videotapes can contrast greatly with a police officer’s written observations. The video tape might show a seemingly meaningless action such as you getting out of your car and walking to the back of your vehicle, standing while waiting for a test to be administered, all with perfect balance, yet the Police report says your appeared stumbling, with loss of balance. This creates credibility issues for a Judge to consider. While we respect the police and the job they have to do, their credibility can, and should, be challenged. You are innocent until proven guilty, and the consequence of guilt is serious enough to warrant scrutiny over the procedures utilized to arrest you. Breath test equipment and documentation must be carefully reviewed for compliance. It is a mechanical device and maintenance records must be updated and provided to me so as to prove the device was operating correctly and is therefore credible. Factors may affect the validity of the equipment and we explore those possibilities in detail. In drug cases, we determine the expertise and credibility of the drug recognition experts. We review their procedures and determine if they are sufficient to satisfy the State’s burden.

 

We review all of the discovery, witness statements, your comments and expert opinions in detail. We will then discuss with you the merit of filing motions to defend you. As explained previously, these motions can take a variety of forms, from contesting the constitutionality of the police conduct at certain points from the initial stop to the arrest and conduct of the police subsequent to the arrest, to contesting the admissibility of evidence the State needs to prove it’s case. Motions can involve seeking dismissal of the case in it’s entirety for failure to prove you operated the vehicle, to motions to dismiss for the States failure to provide required discovery. Note that while some or all of these motions may be prudent in one case, another case might not yield facts, circumstances or evidence to make a reasonable argument in defense of such position.

 

Each DWI case is fact specific. We carefully review everything. We focus on what’s relevant and we work diligently for you.