Arizona DUI charges are common and complicated experiences. The more you know, the safer you will be. Here are some of the most commonly overlooked DUI facts:
- You can be pulled over for minor infractions. A rolling stop, failure to use a blinker, broken headlight, or driving slightly above the speed limit are some of the reasons a police officer needs to initiate a stop. They can even use these as excuses, possibly because they already suspect you of being impaired.
- Be polite: I can’t tell you how many stories I have heard where the driver makes it a lot worse for themselves by acting belligerent and disrespectful toward the officer. There are many ways to get your point across without raising your voice, using sarcasm or using profanity, all of which DEFINITELY will go into the police report… that will be read by prosecutor and judge.
- You can deny the field sobriety tests and portable breathalyzer. You may even deny a breath test or blood draw after you are arrested. Although refusing a blood or breath test after you’re arrested may result in a further license suspension. The result of your refusal depends on when you were consuming alcohol and how much. But the refusal could be good for your defense. If the officer has to get a warrant to draw your blood because you refused, it may buy you a little more time for the alcohol to leave your system.
- If you have been drinking, you WILL most likely fail the field sobriety tests. Officers are trained to use the FSTs objectively to determine if you are impaired. But if they smell alcohol in the car at all, those FSTs will not stand in the way of the officer moving forward with the arrest.
- You could be arrested even if the breath shows under a 0.08: If the officer has reasonable suspicion that you are impaired, the number on the Breathalyzer won’t mean anything. Driving impaired is a separate charge than driving over a 0.08 and could stand-alone.
An Arizona DUI may be common, but they are not straightforward. An experienced attorney is a must in order to get the most thorough review of all the evidence against you, and to have the best chance of getting the charges reduced or even dropped completely. There could be mitigating circumstances in your case that might easily be overlooked by you or an inexperienced attorney.