The holiday season is upon us. Over the next few months, people will be celebrating Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year’s. Many will celebrate the special occasions with alcoholic beverages, and some may use these festivities as opportunities for throwing caution to the wind.
However, this means that more police officers than usual will be on patrol and searching for people who may be driving under the influence. If you have been arrested for a DUI, you face serious charges with serious potential consequences. Here is some information on defending a DUI during the holidays.
Why Did the Police Pull You Over?
Reasonable suspicion that a crime has been or may be committed is what the police need in order to have a reason for stopping you. Before stopping someone, they need to suspect that this person may be committing a criminal act, or otherwise behaving in violation of a law. The police could cite a variety of reasons for stopping you, such as swerving, driving with the headlights off, and exceeding the legal speed limit. If they stop you and then find a reason to believe that you may be driving while intoxicated, this could result in a DUI charge.
Whatever reason they have for making you pull over, the police officer responsible for arresting you will have to provide that reason to the court if a motion is filed or a trial is demanded in your court case. If that reason seems unconvincing or if their story has holes, your defense attorney may win a motion that results in the court throwing out the case. This is one of your rights as an American citizen; to challenge your arrest. The police must be held accountable if they violate the laws of Illinois, no matter what is thrown out of court as a result.
Did Anything Possible Compromise the Breathalyzer Test?
In Illinois and in most states across the country, the standard legal interpretation of intoxication is having a blood alcohol content (BAC) equal to or greater than 0.08%. One common method that police use for detecting this in drivers is the breathalyzer test. If the device reads that your BAC matches or exceeds 0.08%, the police (and most importantly the Judge) may view that as supporting evidence that you were properly arrested for a DUI. The police will use this scientific evidence against you in court.
As solid as these measurements may seem to some, machines can be fallible. A number of factors could affect the results of the test, including faulty calibration or mishandling by the officer. Your defense lawyer could push for an assessment or analysis of the breathalyzer’s proper operation. If there is a possibility that the officer used a faulty device or that the results may be unreliable, the evidence could be held inadmissible. Due to machine tolerances, the breath machine evidence may also be challenged if the BAC measured during the test was exactly at or just slightly above 0.08%.
Contact a Skilled Chicago DUI Attorney Today
Defending a DUI during the holidays – or any other time of the year – may seem difficult to those unfamiliar with the legal process. However, there is no need to go through this on your own. The Chicago DUI lawyers at Mitchell S. Sexner & Associates LLC have decades of experience in fighting these cases. If you or a loved one face such charges, we can use that experience to defend you in court. You can start speaking with an experienced DUI attorney immediately by calling (312) 644-0444.
