Ways to beat a Colorado DUI or DWAI
If you have been issued a ticket for drunk driving in Colorado, either for a DUI (driving under the influence), or for a DWAI (driving while ability impaired), you need to be aware that based on the facts of your case there may be a way to improve you chances in court, or even beat the case entirely.
First, the police officer needs a valid reason to stop you or otherwise contact you in the first place. If they did not have a reason to contact you, their case won’t get very far. Police are not allowed to stop any car on the road, they must have reasonable suspicion to stop you.
It is also possible to get the chemical test thrown out of court. Then the prosecutor is left with no test results to use against you and a big hole in his evidence. Breathalyzers have a strict set of operation rules, and the operator of the Breathalyzer may invalidate the test by not following the rules. In addition, the Breathalyzer must be properly maintained and operating correctly.
The chemical test of your blood also must follow the proper procedures and protocol to be a legally valid test. If you take a blood test, you should always retest the second sample. Sometimes the retest will come back with a lower BAC result that may improve your case. In some instances it may even come back under the legal limit.
Lack of jurisdiction is another way to beat your DUI case. Jurisdiction means the geographic area a police officer is allowed to patrol and conduct police activities. You should always check to verify that the police officer who ticketed you had jurisdiction where you were contacted. If he lacked jurisdiction, you may be able to beat your DUI.
Even in our high tech world of advanced communications, there are still certain hearings where police officers need to be physically present to give their testimony. And in some cases, no cop equals no DUI. Yeah, its a strange technicality, but this strategy may be appropriate for your case.
Now, how do you exploit these strategies? Hire a good, local DUI attorney. You are looking for someone who knows everything there is to know about these cases. You also want to hire someone who practices exclusively in the geographical area where you got your ticket. A local attorney knows the judges, prosecutors, juries, and, most importantly, the little tricks specific to that city to get you the best result possible.
Do not hire someone who is making promises or guarantees, as tempting as it may be. That person is just trying to get your money by telling you what you want to hear when he or she has no way of knowing what will happen to your case without first looking at all the police reports, scouring the chemical test reports, negotiating with the prosecutor, etc.
Finally, if you cannot afford an attorney, apply for representation at the public defenders office. Do not try to represent yourself, or you will have a fool for a client.
