A DWI charge can feel overwhelming. However, as with any criminal charge, you, as the defendant, have the right to a vigorous defense that pursues the most favorable outcome possible for your case. That also means that a DWI attorney in Abilene, TX can help you to pursue lines of defense that can result in lesser charges, lesser consequences, or even a full dismissal. Here are two of the defenses that can be made.
A DWI ATTORNEY IN ABILENE, TX, CAN QUESTION THE LEGALITY OF THE TRAFFIC STOP.
In order to enact a traffic stop, an officer must have what is called reasonable suspicion that something unlawful is occurring. For example, behavior such as breaking traffic laws, speeding, or swerving can be used as reasonable suspicion to pull you over.
In addition, the officer must have probable cause to hold you at the traffic stop for longer than it takes to write you the ticket or otherwise deal with the reason they originally stopped you. For example, an open container beside you in the car, or the smell of alcohol on your breath, may be used as grounds to administer field sobriety tests or a breathalyzer to test you for intoxication.
Finally, during the traffic stop, the officer must make your Miranda rights clear, particularly when taking your statements and receiving your consent (or lack thereof) for field sobriety tests or breathalyzer tests.
If any of these requirements are not sufficiently met, the evidence gathered during the traffic stop may be suppressed, thereby making it impossible for you to be prosecuted for your DWI charge. As a result, your DWI attorney may carefully examine the circumstances of your traffic stop and arrest in order to argue that the stop itself was unlawful and, therefore, that the evidence gathered from it should be suppressed.
A DWI ATTORNEY IN ABILENE, TX, CAN QUESTION THE ACCURACY OF THE FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS.
Often, one of the main pieces of evidence used to arrest you, and to pursue DWI charges against you, is the result of any field sobriety tests you take, or the breathalyzer test you take. While these tests may feel as if they are irrefutable evidence of your guilt, it is actually possible to mount a defense based upon them.
For example, it has at times been possible to successfully argue that some of the tests are scientifically inaccurate, and therefore that their evidence should not be considered in evaluating the defendant’s guilt. At other times, it can be argued that circumstances (such as the weather, your weight or health, or other factors) affected the results of the tests or your ability to successfully complete them. At yet other times, the officer’s administration of the test may be scrutinized in order to argue that the test was not properly administered.
A DWI ATTORNEY IN ABILENE, TX, CAN QUESTION THE ACCURACY OF THE BREATHALYZER TEST.
Even breathalyzer tests can be defended against. For example, your DWI attorney may argue that the test was not calibrated correctly, or has a margin of error that is too large to guarantee that its results were accurate in your case. Even factors such as certain medications you were taking, can be used to argue that the test results were unduly influenced by factors other than intoxication on your part.
Defending yourself against a DWI is possible. As a result, an experienced DWI attorney in Abilene, TX, can be a valuable ally in achieving a positive outcome for your case. If you are facing a DWI charge, do not hesitate to reach out to the Law Offices of David M. White. We will use our years of experience to provide you with the vigorous defense you deserve in order to achieve the best possible outcome for your case.