The implications of a DUI charge are significant. While mere allegations of criminal wrongdoing can damage your reputation, a conviction on these charges can lead to loss of employment, jail or prison time, fines, driver’s license suspension or revocation, and a lingering criminal record that can touch nearly every aspect of your life for a long time to come.
We don’t say that to frighten you, but instead to inform of you of the importance of developing a strong DUI defense. This is the best way to protect your interests, your freedom and your future, which is why you need to know how to navigate the law and craft compelling legal arguments.
Avoiding common DUI defense mistakes
While you need to gather evidence and build strong legal arguments to protect yourself from conviction, you also need to avoid some common mistakes that are made in these cases. Let’s look at some of them here:
- Thinking that you can’t beat the evidence: Far too many people who are charged with drunk driving automatically think that they don’t have a criminal defense, which thereby leads to an admission of guilt. This is a quick way to obtain a conviction.
It’s important to realize that even when the evidence against you seems mountainous, you may have defense options. Therefore, before saying anything to law enforcement or prosecutors, or accept a plea deal, you should carefully analyze your defense options with your attorney.
- Answering the police’s questions: Your own statements can serve as a strong basis for a criminal conviction. That’s why when the police start asking you questions about your drinking and your driving actions, you’re better off asking for an attorney before answering.
- Not understanding the implications of a conviction: As mentioned above, the ramifications of a criminal conviction can be sweeping. If you don’t recognize what conviction on certain criminal charges truly means for your future, you may end up agreeing to something that’s more damaging than you imagined.
- Not working with an attorney: A lot of people who have been charged with a drunk driving offense make the mistake of thinking that they don’t need an attorney on their side, or they go with the cheapest option. But this often leads to a plea deal that isn’t as favorable to you as it could be, as well as a poor analysis of the evidence and how you can use it to your advantage. By working with a skilled attorney, on the other hand, you can rest assured that everything is being done to protect your interests.
- Not being honest with your lawyer: Your lawyer needs to know all of the facts of your case if you want the best representation possible. One of the worst things that can happen is your attorney is taken by surprise in court or during plea negotiations. Your attorney needs to critically analyze the facts at hand and think through the best defense strategy. They can’t do this if they don’t have all of the information.
Are you ready to build your defense strategy?
If you’ve been charged with a drunk driving offense, you need to take action sooner rather than later to protect yourself. One of the best ways to do that is to seek counsel from a legal team that is experienced in these matters. Hopefully by doing so you can develop the legal strategy that you need to avoid the harshest penalties being threatened against you or even avoid conviction altogether.