Two-tiered level of DUI
December 14, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Mississippi and Memphis DUI lawyers might be looking at new classifications of dui’s in the future if what is going on in the West Virginia legislature is any indication.
West Virginia has a bill up that will change the ways that dui’s are prosecuted. The new legislation would make it so that two different tiers of dui’s are created.
Tier 1 would be for all dui’s in which the person blew a .08 to a .14 into the breathalyzer. For these dui’s the person would no longer need to serve 24 hours in jail and would instead be released after a few hours with just time served.
Tier 2 would be for what will be called “aggravated dui’s” in which a breathalyzer reading of .15 or higher was reached. These individuals would then be required to stay in jail for at least 48 hours.
The reasoning behind he law is that West Virginia is trying to lower the number of people required to stay in jail in order to help a crowded jail population. Currently all offenders are required to stay at least 24 hours in jail.
If this new law goes into effect it should give anyone arrested in West Virginia even more reason to hire a dui lawyer. Why you might ask? Because breathalyzer’s are not infallible. In fact they are very often wrong and an experienced dui lawyer should be able to point that out to the court. Here the difference between .14 and .15 could mean an extra few days spent in jail, and thousands of extra dollars in insurance and other costs, not to mention to possible loss of a job for being convicted of “aggravated dui”.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Memphis DUI Defense” or “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” written by DUI Lawyer James Ferrell, just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Olive Branch, Mississippi Receives Grant for New DUI Officer
December 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment
According to the latest issue of the Desoto Times the city of Olive Branch will be adding a new DUI officer to the city payrolls courtesy of a $42,000 grant received through the state.
This is good news for everyone in Olive Branch. Adding a well-trained DUI officer should end some of the unneccesary arrests that occur each year when a poorly trained officer arrests someone for DUI who clearly is not intoxicated. The truth is that a well-trained DUI officer really helps the community in two ways. The first is that he gets people off the streets who shouldn’t be driving and the second way is that he actually cuts down on the number of arrests where people weren’t actually drunk.
Statistically speaking, DUI field sobriety tests are only accurate roughly 60% of the time. That means that a large number of people who are arrested each year because of failed sobriety tests were actually not intoxicated. That’s a pretty scary statistic. Just think about it. Up to 40% of the people arrested for merely failing a field sobriety test could possibly be not guilty. That’s why we need experienced law officers and that’s why you need a good dui lawyer.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Memphis DUI Defense” or “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” written by DUI Lawyer James Ferrell, just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Famous DUI’s!
December 5, 2007 | 3 Comments
If you’re like most people when they receive a DUI here in Memphis or Mississippi the first thing you think is that you’re life is over. And although a DUI does hamper many aspects of your life a conviction is not going to ruin your life forever (it just makes it more difficult).
A DUI conviction in Kennebunkport, Maine didn’t seem to stop a young George W. Bush from going on to become the future President. And two convictions of Dick Cheney didn’t stop him from later becoming a Vice-President.
Here in Tennessee State Senator Jerry Cooper recently received a DUI. As did Al Gore’s son Al Gore, Jr. when visiting California.
Several mayors around the country have been convicted. The list includes the mayor of Boise, Idaho; Carson City, Nevada; Gore, Oklahoma, Norton, Ohio and more.
Even prosecutors get in on the act sometimes. As is the case in Miami where the city prosecutor hit two people riding a scooter while he was driving under the influence.
Remember, it’s best not to drink and drive. But if you have been convicted it doesn’t mean your life is over. Just make sure that you know your rights.
To get a copy of the free report “The Unauthorized Guide to Memphis DUI Defense” or “The Unauthorized Guide to Mississippi DUI Defense” just email us at info@lawferrell.com or call our 24/7 automated line at 1-800-546-2713 today.
Should I blow into the Breathalzyer?
November 27, 2007 | Leave a Comment
As DUI Lawyers in Mississippi and Memphis we hear this question all the time. In fact, it’s probably the most asked question that we hear. Unfortunately there isn’t a cut and dry answer. What I can say is that every year we represent people who tell us that they had only drank one or two beers before they were pulled over by the police, and even though they had only had one or two drinks they still insisted on not blowing. When we ask them why the usual answer we get is because they “had a friend tell them to blow” or “I heard a lawyer say not to blow one time”. What almost always occurs next is that these people end up losing there drivers license for at least three months and many times up to a year. If the person would have simply taken the breath test they probably would have blown below .08% and would have never have received a ticket for DUI or for refusing to blow.
Those charged with refusing to submit to a DUI breath test in Mississippi almost always lose their driving privileges. Count on it if you refuse to blow.
If your blood alcohol reading is over the legal limit of .08%, Tennessee law says that you are guilty of DUI “per se”. This means that if you operate a vehicle and exceed the legal limit of .08%, you are guilty of DUI. In other words, there does not need to be a finding of impairment in order for a judge or jury to find you guilty. Take the test, fail it, and so long as the stop and test are found to be valid, the law does not require that any further evidence be provided as to your intoxication, Mississippi DUI laws are similar.
Our DUI lawyers in Mississippi and Memphis have found that people who take the breath test and register close to the legal limit often have their case reduced to Reckless Driving. However, If you take the test and register in the higher percentage ranges, odds are that you aren’t going to have your case reduced and you will be found guilty of DUI.
Your blood alcohol level is dependant on several factors, such as how much you have had to drink, how much you have had to eat, your own metabolism, how much you weigh and how long it has been since your last drink. For the average person, 3 beers is enough to exceed the legal limit. Two five-ounce glasses of wine is enough for a 100-pound woman to exceed the limit. The breathalyzer doesn’t use any of your specific information though to determine whether or not you are intoxicated. Instead the computer uses a compilation of “averages” to make this determination. The problem is that most Americans aren’t average and because of this it is likely that the breathalyzer could indicate you are intoxicated when you actually are not.
And when the breathalyzer comes back with a result that shows you are intoxicated this is a difficult hurdle to clear (although we do have many ways to fight this) in defending you. If you believe that there is a high probability that you are intoxicated it is generally in your best interest not to blow. By not blowing we are often times able to prepare a better defense to your DUI. But you should be aware that by not blowing you are almost guaranteeing yourself that you will lose your driving privileges for some length of time.
So here’s the final answer. You should blow if you are not intoxicated, and you should not blow if you are. A better question if you are considering this should be, “Should I drive?” Even a small amount of alcohol combined with driving opens yourself up to possible bad situations. Don’t take a chance with your life or someone else’s, take a cab.
