DWI cases are different than any other kind of criminal defense. Defending a DWI charge requires you to fight charges in court, but the law also allows the Department of Motor Vehicles to take away your driver’s license under the administrative license suspension laws.

DWI is the only crime that allows a breath test machine to determine your fate. Under our law a breath test that exceeds .08 (or .02 for drivers in some categories) is enough evidence for a court to find you guilty. If you took a breath test and the machine reported your BAC to be above .08 you will be charged with DWI. This does not necessarily mean you will be convicted, however. The reliance on a machine to determine your guilt or innocence makes the defense of DWI cases highly technical, but it does not mean that you do not have a good defense. Machine results can be challenged by experienced DWI lawyers. The breath machines are not perfect and neither are the police officers who use them or the technicians that service and maintain them.

Even if you did not take a breath test, you can still be charged with DWI. Before arresting you, the police officer probably made you perform some roadside tests like walking on the white line and balancing on one leg. The police officer probably put a flashlight in your eyes as well. These “field sobriety tests” are designed to generate evidence that can be used to convict you. Unfortunately, the results of the test are based entirely on the arresting officer’s subjective view of your test performance. Defending these cases requires specific knowledge of the tests and experience cross-examining the police officers who testify about them.

The breath test machine and field sobriety tests barely scratch the surface of a DWI defense. We update our blog page with DWI developments from around the country. Please feel free to check our blog regularly and if you need to defend yourself against a DWI charge, make sure that you hire a lawyer with DWI defense experience.