If you’ve been charged with driving while under the influence (DUI) in New York, you may feel overwhelmed by the impending consequences. However, there is no need to panic as a seasoned Rockland County DUI Attorney can raise all available defenses to help you fight the charges brought against you. Keep reading to learn about some potential DUI defenses that may help you beat a DUI charge.
Is it possible to beat a DUI charge?
There are dozens of potential DUI defenses as there may have been police errors, breathalyzer test errors, medical conditions, and other problems with evidence. These legal flaws can be used to fight charges brought against you. However, these legal flaws regarding the evidence required to convict you can be challenging to identify without quality legal counsel. A qualified criminal defense attorney can help you explore all available defenses.
One of the most common legal defenses is breathalyzer test errors. A breathalyzer is an electronic device used to measure blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Essentially, it determines how much alcohol is in your system. Breathalyzers are often used to determine whether a motorist is driving while intoxicated. However, several issues can cause false positive breathalyzer results. This includes the device’s margin of error, improper calibration, physical differences between individuals that affect the partition ratio, and other factors. Breathalyzers do not directly measure BAC. Rather, they measure your breath alcohol and multiply it by a partition ratio to estimate your BAC. There are often issues with the partition ratio as drivers have differences in body weight breathing patterns, body temperature, and other physical comparisons that can cause inaccurate readings. Research shows that even when a DUI breathalyzer test is performed correctly by the police, this type of chemical testing has an error rate of between .005% to .02%. That being said, an attorney can use breathalyzer testing errors and inaccuracy as a defense.
Moreover, another potential DUI defense is that there was no probable cause for stopping you with reasonable suspicion of DUI. When a police officer has reasonable suspicion to believe you are impaired, they can perform a traffic stop to assess the situation. However, they can only do so if you have exhibited any driving impairment patterns such as speeding or running a stop sign. If they stop you without probable cause they violate your 4th Amendment rights. Therefore any evidence obtained cannot be used against you as it was illegally acquired through an unlawful search and seizure. You may not recognize this which is why it is critical to retain an experienced attorney who can file a motion to suppress evidence. This will exclude any evidence obtained illegally from being used against you in a court of law. If the prosecution’s key evidence is thrown out, they may not have sufficient evidence to convict you as they must prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. This can result in reduced or dismissed charges.
In addition to the above DUI defenses, several others may help you beat your DUI charge. If you have been charged with a DUI, you need a determined Rockland County DUI attorney on your side. With years of experience, you can trust our firm to protect your rights.
