How to Get DUI Charges Dropped

Don't drink and drive

DUI, or driving under the influence, is a crime in every state, and penalties began to increase dramatically in the 1980s. These penalties vary in severity according to state law but can include fines, license suspension and jail time. Nevertheless, the prosecution must prove its case against a DUI defendant beyond a reasonable doubt, and there are many ways for a good defense attorney to deny the prosecution the conviction it seeks.

Instructions

1. Get a defense attorney. It is extremely unlikely that you will be able to beat a DUI without one. Make sure your attorney is experienced in handling DUI cases. Have your attorney enter a plea of not guilty on your behalf and seek release on your own recognizance--without posting bail--if you are still in jail.

2. Obtain all evidence that the prosecution intends to use against you including police reports and notes, sobriety test results and blood tests, videos, and names of witnesses. This process is known as discovery, and the prosecution has no choice but to provide you with these materials. Discovery requests must be made on court-issued forms in many states. If discovery requests are ignored or not completely answered, you will need to seek a court order.

3. Examine your drinking patterns during the hours before you were stopped--if you had been drinking at all before you were stopped--because the body does not absorb alcohol all at once. If you drank immediately before driving, and thirty minutes or so elapsed between the time you were stopped and the time you were tested, you may have been below the legal limit when you were driving and above the legal limit by the time you were tested.

4. Look for discrepancies and contradictions in the available evidence. For example, the officer's personal notes might contradict the police report, or the police report might contradict videotaped evidence. Even small discrepancies can be used to cast doubt on the officer's credibility. If the officer asked you when and how much you drank before you were stopped, make sure that the report accurately records anything you told the officer.

5. Search for ways to challenge the original stop. The officer must have had reasonable suspicion that you were breaking a law in order to pull you over in the first place, and if he didn't, then none of the evidence gathered after the stop can be used against you, including the sobriety test. Most police cars are required to have video cameras in their car, allowing the officer to film your driving immediately prior to the stop. If the officer stated that you were weaving and the police video shows that you weren't, you can ask to have all evidence against you dismissed on the grounds that the stop and the subsequent sobriety test amounted to an illegal search in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

6. Interview any witnesses, including the officer who stopped you, and take depositions, which are out-of-court examination of witnesses. Videotape the deposition and have a court reporter prepare a transcript. This will be useful in the courtroom testimony if the witness contradicts his deposition testimony.

7. Assemble all of your possible defenses, eliminate the weakest ones, and ask the prosecutor to drop charges in order to avoid defeat at trial. If the prosecutor refuses, you can try to plea bargain the charge down to something more minor such as reckless driving.

8. Present your case at trial, and ask the judge to dismiss all charges against you. Motions to dismiss are routine in criminal trials, even after a jury has been empaneled.

Tips & Warnings

• Drivers suspected of driving under the influence of drugs are also charged with DUI, and evidence is usually established through the use of a blood test. Procedures for defending yourself against this sort of DUI charge are similar to the above.

• Repeated DUI convictions can lead to felony charges.

References

• America's DUI Defense Attoreys
• 1-800-DUI-LAWS

Resources

• Find Law: State by State DUI Penalties