Concentrating In DUI Defense

At The Law Offices of Carlos H. Davalos, we understand that you have a number of choices when deciding which attorney to take your case. Some attorneys work in many fields like immigration and family law and do not concentrate in DUI cases. Attorney Davalos does concentrate in DUI cases and has also been recognized by the NCDD, or “National College of DUI Defense,” as a premier DUI defense attorney in the State of Illinois. Don’t make the mistake of going to your first court appearance for a DUI with the sole purpose of pleading guilty. Speak with an experienced DUI defense attorney first. There are defenses. Attorney Carlos H. Davalos knows these defenses. We are here to help you. Our Law Offices vigorously defends people facing misdemeanor DUI and aggravated Felony DUI charges in the Cook, DuPage, and Will County areas. Felony DUI courtrooms in those Counties can be imposing, but we have been there. We know those courtrooms. Let the experience of DUI attorney Carlos H. Davalos walk in with you; our firm can explain the entire process to you down to the last detail.

Roadmap To An Acquittal

Beating a DUI case is a learned skill. In tough times, go with an experienced DUI attorney who has done it before. When defending your DUI case, attorney Carlos Davalos will thoroughly evaluate the events leading to your arrest, relentlessly looking for a way to obtain a dismissal of the DUI charge or a possible reduction to a non-alcohol driving offense. Some of the many strategies we may be able to use in your case include:

• Lack of reasonable suspicion for the police to stop you
• Lack of probable cause for the police to arrest you
• Improper sobriety checkpoint procedures
• Faulty field sobriety test administration
• Inadmissible breath test results
• Failure of the police to inform you of your legal rights
• Outright jury trial

Stopped For Suspicion of DUI

An investigation into a DUI arrest oftentimes begins long before you are aware that its happening. A police officer may be conducting roadside velocity checks or participating in a DUI saturation patrol with an eye towards observing bad driving. Upon noticing any erratic or illegal driving maneuvers, an officer will then tail a vehicle looking to observe additional traffic violations in an effort at building their case with respect to a person’s bad driving. After observing one or more moving violations, or even equipment violations in some instances (no tailight, no plate light) an officer will initiate a traffic stop. Upon curbing a vehicle, an officer will approach the driver’s side of the vehicle and either immediately request a person’s drivers license and insurance or initiate general queries regarding the purpose of the stop or where the person is headed. Throughout, an officer looking specifically for intoxicated drivers will note the look of your eyes (red? glassy? bloodshot?) as well as the manner of your speech. An officer will observe whether you understand questions or are confused by them, as well as smelling the air nearby for the scent of alcohol emanating either from the person or the vehicle.  If an officer notices some or all of the above the DUI investigation continues and the suspected person is asked to exit the vehicle. Please note that the officer will be observing the exit as well looking to see whether the person stumbles out of the vehicle or requires holding on to the vehicle, or the officer in some cases, for physical support. If the police vehicle has a dashboard camera the entire stop and the events associated with it will be recorded. Any stumbling or fallling outside the vehicle will be recorded by the camera. Also, the camera can typically record sounds as well so any slurring of speech or confusion will be documented and recorded as well.

The DUI Field Tests

If an officer then asks you whether you want to submit to field sobriety tests, you can be more or less certain that the officer already suspects that you are drunk driving and is now seeking to gather additional evidence to establish the officer’s case in court.  At this point, if you are are asked to submit to these tests, you have a decision to make: perform the tests or refuse to perform them.  An officer typically will not tell you that you have a “choice” to do the tests or not, nor will the officer inform you that you can refuse or say no.  But all stopped drivers indeed have a right to refuse any and all tests requested by law enforcement at the scene. This includes the initial HGN test where an officer will use a lighted pen or other stylus and have you follow it with your eyes while he or she checks for nystagmus. It is very difficult to refute the officer’s observations in this situation and so the defense must check whether the test was explained and conducted correctly or whether the person is subject to certain physical or medical conditions that would explain the officer’s observation of nystagmus. Another way to prevent the police from gathering flawed information in this situation is simply to refuse the test. The same applies to the walk and turn test or the one legged stand test. If for whatever reason you feel your performance on these tests will be unsatisfactory due to weather conditions, footing, or simply nervousness, respectfully refuse the tests or request that your attorney be present during any and all tests to ensure that they are properly administered per your rights. A refusal in this situation must be respected by law enforcement. Finally, the Portable Breathalyzer Test can be submitted to or refused. New case law prevents police from simply telling you to blow into the device, they must request that you do so and provide you with an opportunity to refuse. If you feel that you can absolve yourself by blowing into the PBT and render a result below .08, it is adviseable to blow. If you feel that blowing will only provide police with additional evidence against you, it would be prudent to elect refusal of this test as well.

The DUI Arrest

At the conclusion of these tests, the officer will have to make a decision whether to arrest you for DUI.  If the officer decides to place you under arrest for DUI, it is important to remember that the investigation and the gathering of evidence against you is by no means over. The investigation continues somewhat covertly in certain aspects. The officer may continue to ask you questions in an effort at causing you to look confused or admit to drinking alcoholic drinks in front of the dashboard camera. The camera on the cop car will continue to run and so if you are arrested and place your hands on the hood of the vehicle, your face and mannerisms are still being recorded. If you become belligerent and begin insulting the police officer for his or her decision to arrest you, that will be recorded as well.  Upon being handcuffed police will place you in the inside of a squad car. The squad car usually has a camera that records the back seats of the police car. This camera is typically on and working; and for good reason: it gathers alot of additional observational evidence about the person arrested. For example, if the cops leave you alone in the squad car and you begin to say things and curse the police believing you are in a private place, you are not, your statements are being recorded. If you fall asleep, start to dose off, or have difficulty staying awake while in the cop car while being driven to the police station, that is recorded. If you make additional statements to the police while on the way to the police station, that is recorded as well.  Thus, even though you’ve already been arrested for DUI, the gathering of evidence to be used against you continues unabated.