What Devices Are Used In Field Breath Test?

A national effort to FORCE citizens to submit to field sobriety screening tests will be evident over the next decade. One primary focus will be to mandate roadside screening with portable alcohol screening devices. Manufacturers are presently making more portable devices for this purpose, including devices that print out a written score or result. Two of such devices are depicted below.

Intoximeter Alco-Sensor IV XL

Draeger Alcotest 7410 Plus DOT

DUI Charges, What Is Going To Happen In Court?

When you get pulled over while driving drunk, after performing a sobriety test you are given a breathalyzer test. If you show BAC (blood alcohol level) above the standard limits you get a police report that states that you will be charged with DUI. So, what’s going to happen in court?

When you go to court for your DUI hearing, it is best to have a DUI attorney present with you who can advocate on your behalf. An experienced DUI lawyer will know how to get the lest possible sentence in your case. You may avoid being charged with DUI altogether if you have a good attorney and if your DUI attorney can prove that you were not above the legal limit when you were caught driving.


If you are still charged with DUI, you will usually get the following penalties: a fine, time in jail AKA sheriff’s alternative program, and or community service. You will most likely be put on a three-year probation, which is not required in California. A three year DUI probation means you can’t have any blood alcohol level when you drive for the next three years. That means, no one beer two hours before, no “I had a couple of drinks four hours ago.” If you are drinking after work and get a cab home, and are still hangover in the morning when you attempt to drive, if you get pulled over you will go to jail. Even if your BAC is 0.01 you will still go to jail.

The states that take DUI the most serious are Arizona, California and some other. If you are caught driving drunk in Arizona, you must get an Arizona DUI lawyer. If you don’t, you will be very sorry, as Arizona DUI laws are the strictest.

See Also: DUI, Arizona DUI, Arizona DUI attorney, Arizona DUI Lawyer

What Are The Penalties For DUI?

A driver arrested for drunk driving will face criminal charges in court as well as a potential license suspension by the DMV. Typically a district attorney’s office will file a complaint charging two counts for the same DUI: the “a count” alleges driving under the influence of alcohol or a drug, while the “b count” alleges driving with 0.08% blood alcohol content or higher. The first, second, and third offenses within ten years are charged as misdemeanors, though a fourth offense can be charged as a felony. The DUI can also be charged as a felony if the case involves an accident with injury. In some cases a DUI can be reduced to a “wet reckless” or even an infraction.

The standard punishment for a first offense is 48 hours jail (usually served in a work program), three years probation (five years in the City of Alameda and Napa), fines and fees totaling over $1,700, and completion of a driver safety program. For subsequent convictions within ten years the court is required to increase the jail sentence and length of the program, and frequently will order longer periods of probation and installation of an ignition interlock device in any vehicle operated by the defendant.

A wet reckless normally involves no jail time, a probation period lasting one or two years, fines and fees several hundred dollars lower than for a DUI, and possibly a shorter, twelve hour class.

A driver arrested for drunk driving must request an Administrative Per Se hearing (“APS hearing”) with the DMV within ten days of the arrest or his or her license will be suspended in most cases. At the hearing the driver’s counsel can challenge the DMV’s proof that the law enforcement officer had reasonable cause to stop the driver; that the law enforcement officer had probable cause to arrest the driver for a drunk driving violation; and that the driver had 0.08% blood alcohol content or higher (or that the driver refused to perform a chemical test).

Reasons a Driver's License Can Be Suspended Or Revoked?

What are the reasons a driver's license can be revoked?

Driving a motor vehicle is a privilege. When a driver behaves recklessly, the state issuing a driver’s license will not think twice to suspend of revoke it. A state issuing a driver’s license to a driver can temporarily suspend driving privileges for various reasons. Reasons for driver’s license suspension can include:

DUI arrest and conviction, in which case a driver is caught driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is the top cause for a driver’s license suspension. Additional reasons a driver’s license may be suspended in the event of:

- Refusal to take a blood-alcohol test
- Driving without valid insurance
- Speeding ticket
- Reckless driving
- Hit and run - leaving the scene of an injury accident
- Failing to pay a driving-related fine
- Failing to answer a traffic summons, or
- Failure to file an accident report.

In many states a driver’s license can be suspended for traffic violations. In this case states use points that keep track of a driver's moving violations. Every moving violation a driver is assigned a certain number of points. If a driver accumulates too many points on a driving record, in addition to his car insurance rate premium increase, within a given period of time, the department of motor vehicles will suspends his license.

If a driver has too many moving violations, a DUI, the state issuing a driver’s license may revoke a driver’s license. In this event, a driver with revoked driver’s license has to wait a certain period of time to re-apply for a new driver’s license and pass certain tests in addition to paying the fee.

Additionally, some states, California in particular will revoke and refuse to issue a new driver’s license to parents in child support arrears.

Driving on a suspended or revoked license is a crime. If a driver with a revoked or suspended driver’s license is caught behind the wheel, such driver will most likely get a jail time and will have to pay heavy fines. If the driver’s license suspension was due to a drunk driving violation – DUI or DWI, the penalties will be the heaviest. Remember Paris Hilton? Having the best DUI and criminal attorneys cannot guarantee that your driver's license suspension will be prevented. However, it is possible to reduce your sentence due to a DUI with having a good DUI attorney. Particularly, in you are in Arizona, you will definitely need an Arizona DUI attorney who is experienced in the Arizona DUI laws.

Regulations To Reduce Car Accidents

The new California law says that as of July 1, 2008 drivers are not allowed to talk on the telephone while driving. This measure will hopefully prevent the number of car accidents on California roads. Recently, a Chicago politician Edward M. Burke proposed a law on drivers who use text messaging or surf the Internet while operating a motor vehicle in order to reduce car accidents in Chicago. CBS 2 Chicago reports that the ban would fine motorists who take their hands off the wheel to text $75, or $200 if an accident resulted.

In his commentary, Burke dais, "It's time for us to revisit the issue. It's as much a part of educating the public as anything else." He stated that it is important to let people know that driving and texting creates a significant hazard on the road. Hopefully the proposed regulation will reduce the number of car accidents. Studies by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration imply that driving distractions trigger close to 80 percent of the nation's car accidents. If the latest proposal passes, Burke said, he may go after other forms of distracted driving such as ticketing pedestrians, an increasing number of whom are landing in emergency rooms for injuries suffered sending texts while crossing the street.

DUI Lawyers in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles

Car accident due to DUI will require an accident lawyer. When searching for a car accident lawyer, it is best to ask around and get references from your friends and relatives who may know a good accident lawyer. A good car accident attorney can save you a lot of headache especially if your car accident occurred as a result of drunk driving. When you are at fault, it is best to seek a good DUI lawyer in your area who specializes in DUI cases. My DUI attorney who went to court for me was a personal friend. Lucky me, I did not have a car accident, otherwise, I’d have a lot of work for my attorney. In fact, I also got lucky because my DUI attorney was a personal injury attorney at the same time. In fact, he recently won a wrongful death case, so my personal injury attorney assuming a DUI attorney’s position in my case is also a wrongful death attorney.

If you live in a big city, such as Chicago, New York, or Los Angeles, chances are you know someone who knows an accident attorney, has a personal reference to a car accident attorney, or a DUI attorney. DUI attorney is your council who represents you in criminal court, so DUI is considered a criminal offence and thus you will need a criminal attorney AKA criminal defense attorney. In Los Angeles the number of DUI offences is great. Los Angeles is a big city with lots of drivers. You can’t get around without driving. There is rarely any public transit in Los Angeles, and thus DUI offences in Los Angeles are frequent. Los Angeles DUI attorneys are not cheap but are well worth the money. In fact, Los Angeles lawyers are some of the highest paid lawyers in the country. So, if you are out of luck and are caught driving drunk on the public road in LA, be prepared to pay the top dollar for your DUI criminal defense.

How To Dismiss Your DUI Charges In Phoenix, Arizona

Drunk drivers arrested for DUI in Arizona need to know that Arizona is one of the toughest state to avoid or reduce a sentence for a DUI offence. For DUI offenders in Arizona the drunk driving laws has become very strict. Recently the new Arizona DUI laws have been in effect. The new DUI law says that a driver found operating a motor vehicle with BAC of 0.150 and higher must serve thirty consecutive days of jail time, no exception.

If you have been caught driving under the influence in the state of Arizona, you will need an Arizona DUI lawyer, who knows the state laws and who specializes in drunk driving cases.

First thing to remember if you get pulled over and the police officer suspects that you have blood alcohol level exceeding the limit, after you have taken a field sobriety test and a breath test, you may want to obtain an independent test for blood alcohol level at a hospital. The testing device used for blood alcohol level testing in Arizona is the Intoxilyzer 5000 machine. It is highly inaccurate. Thus if you have been arrested for DUI in Arizona and the breath test shows that your blood alcohol level is higher than norm, get a second opinion from an independent hospital. The results of a test will help your DUI lawyer fight for you in the court.

Remember, that Arizona has very strict law when it comes to DUI and a reading error in your breath test result can impact your sentence.

When you have the results of your blood alcohol level from the hospital, call your DUI attorney in the state of Arizona and make the records available to him. Unless you fight for your rights and hire a knowledgeable Arizona DUI attorney, you will be sentenced for thirty days in jail even if the result of your breath blood alcohol test was an error.

Personal Injury Lawyer Wins $3M Lawsuit

A personal injury attorney specializing in malpractice wins a lawsuit alleging the county in not properly maintaining a tree that fell on a car killing a mother of a seven year old. This case reminds me on a car incident that I have personally undergone through. I was driving on a public road in the bad weather with my daughter in the vehicle when a tree fell on my company van. We sustained no personal injury but the vehicle sustained damage. There was a dent on the roof, a crack in the windshield and the passenger side mirror fell off completely and was hanging on a single cord. The next day I took the vehicle to a body repair shop and the company insurance estimator was expected to come in shortly to estimate the damage on the vehicle.

Next thing I know, an insurance company rep called me to find out the details of the accident and the location. After determining that the tree that fell on my car was located on a public road, the insurance company rep asked me whether it was a county or city property. I had no idea how to answer that question. The insurance rep explained that the county was at fault for not properly maintaining the tree and that the insurance carrier was going to file a lawsuit on said allegations.

Here is a video where a personal injury lawyer talks about the laws related to a similar accident in my area.

Car Insurance Estimates For DUI Offenders and Bad Driving Record

Cheaper car insurance is a big saver for a DUI offender. DUI conviction can significantly increase car insurance rates. If a driver convicted of a DUI offence has had bad driving record and a track record of previous car accidents, whether a legal action was initiated and a DUI lawyer was involved or not, car insurance costs can be significant. However, it is still possible to qualify with cheap car insurance companies that can offer the insured a discount car insurance.

When you have been convicted of a DUI offence it is always advisable to switch to a different car insurance carrier. You can shop car insurance rates online and get car insurance quotes online from a variety of car insurance companies. Instant car insurance rates are available online once you have completed a form provided by a car insurance company. Of course, when a driver is facing DUI charges, he needs morethan car insurance. There are always other penalties involved, such as a fine, a potential of community service hours imposed on a DUI offender, a sheriff’s alternative program and driver license suspension. However, car insurance rates increase is a significant penalty of a DUI offence on its own and a DUI offender needs an experienced DUI lawyer to lessen the penalties. But at the same time, inexpensive car insurance can be a big saver and if you shop car insurance quotes on line, you can find the cheapest car insurance rates that will yield you huge savings on your car insurance premiums over time.

Many car insurance companies nowadays offer online car insurance quotes, whereas you can get instant car insurance online. Car insurance prices will vary significantly across different car insurance carriers and depending on your state, location, your car loan balance and your previous driving record, you can get car insurance rates that are much far apart. To find the cheapest car insurance, just do a search for “car insurance estimates”, “car insurance quotes”, or “car insurance quotation” on line and compare car insurance prices across different companies. When you have decided on a car insurance carries, you will be able to speak with a car insurance specialist on the telephone before getting car insurance coverage that suits you. There are different options you can choose from within one car insurance company and the car insurance prices will depend on the type of coverage you chose. When you speak with a car insurance agent on the phone, ask him how you can lower your car insurance payments or premium. The car insurance agent may advise you a few options that will help you chose the cheapest car insurance available in your situation.

Drunk Driving On a First Date; DUI Doesn’t Get You Laid

My DUI program required watching videos about drunk driving, drunk drivers and real people telling real stories about their drunk driving experiences. I remember a sweet young woman at the hospital telling the reporter the story about how she ended up at the hospital.

She was out on a first date. She and her date were at a bar where they had a couple of drinks. After all it was a Friday night and neither had to go to work the next day. After the bar they decided to go to a dance club. They danced and drank late into the night and as the club closed its doors they proceeded to the parking lot. She insisted on taking a cab, but her date convinced her that he wasn’t that drunk and since her house was only a few miles down the street, he would be ok to drive.

The young couple was just a few blocks away as the car approached an intersection on high speed. The driver was in a hurry to get back to the woman’s house in the hopes that his drunk buzzed date would let him stay overnight. Driving over the speed limit he crossed the intersection on red and crushed into a UHAUL truck. Both, the driver and the passenger ended up at the hospital instead of the girl’s house. Don’t drink and drive and watch this short funny drunk driving on a date video.