Reader’s Question:

This is my second offense for DUI here in Indiana. I feel so dumb because I refused to take a chemical test. What are the consequences that I am facing now?

Bloomington, IN

You should know better since this is your second DUI offense in Indiana. Well, you always have an option to refuse any test. But, of course, there are several consequences that you will face.

In the state of Indiana, since this is your second offense, there will be a two-year license suspension. While there is a work-restricted license option available for those who were found guilty of a blood alcohol level above .08%, this will not be available for you. If a refusal was written in the complaint, there is a minimum jail sentence that is a mandatory penalty.

If you choose to refuse blood, urine or breath testing, the evidence can be used against you in court as consciousness of guilt. Your lawyer can suggest other possibilities, like a phobia to needles or that you were unable to blow into the breathalyzer hard enough

Reader Question

I live in Anderson, one night I went to my friend’s house for a party. There were some wines, champagnes and martinis to drink along while chatting with some oldies. I am not that drunk, I just drink around a glass of champagne that night and after an hour I drive myself home. I was driving fast since I am in a hurry to go home to watch over my little daughter who is 5 years old. An officer told me to pull over and I was talking to him he somewhat smell the alcohol as in my breath, and asked me to perform a test that is to walk on a straight line. I felt so dizzy while doing the test, so I walked on a crooked line and thus, was arrested and charged with DUI. I went through a chemical testing and it revealed that I had a blood alcohol concentration level of 0.07%.

Is there any way I can get out of this mess I am in? I don’t want to have a criminal record.

Robert, Anderson IN

Hi Robert,

Based on the story that you narrated, you were charged of DUI. The Indiana DUI law specifically stated that a person could be charged of such crime when your driving ability is impaired due to the consumption of alcohol. When the police officer smelled your breath with alcohol, it gave him the reason to let you do the walking on a straight-line test. Thus, you were charged with DUI.

But with the results of chemical testing, the blood alcohol concentration level is 0.07%, which is below the legal limit of 0.08%. You can only be charged with DUI in the state of Indiana when your blood alcohol concentration level exceeds the legal limit of 0.08%. There is a possibility that you will be acquitted of the crime charged against you.

But with winning or losing of your case will only depend on the lawyer that you hired. Hiring an Indiana DUI lawyer is the best that you can do in order to aid you with your defense and using the result of the chemical testing as strong evidence that will help you win the case.

Having a criminal record due to DUI that is charged against you will be dependent upon on how good your Indiana DUI lawyer is. So, the choice is yours. Get the best Indiana DUI lawyer and the chances are big that you will win the case.

Reader Question

I reside in Terre Haute and my friend as well. Two days ago, my friend was charged with DUI. He told me that he underwent a chemical testing and the officer chose urine to determine the blood alcohol concentration level. He was not assisted with any legal counsel when the chemical testing happened, since he was told that he couldn’t get a legal counsel during the test.

In Indiana, is it okay to have no legal counsel when undergoing a chemical testing?

Steven, Terre Haute IN

Steven,

With regard to your friend’s situation, sad to tell you indeed here at Indiana, the rules are strict when it comes to chemical testing. When the driver is told to submit himself to chemical testing he has no right or whatsoever to have a legal counsel right before the test is being undertaken. It is up to the officer to choose what to use in order to determine the level of blood alcohol concentration. The officer can choose to use the driver’s blood, breath, or urine.

With this being said, your friend should have a skillful Indiana DUI lawyer to assist him during the legal proceedings. From the moment that your friend is facing the criminal charges down to the giving of penalties or sanctions to the crime charged against him. In this way, your friend will have a chance to win the case with the aid of an Indiana DUI lawyer who knows this field very well.

The fee agreement. This is a paper that you get when you consult with a DUI lawyer in Muncie Indiana, which includes how much the services of that lawyer will cost you. It’s very valuable for you, because once you have consulted with all of the lawyers you will be considering, you can take this fee agreement home and compare to the rest.

The fee agreement will tell you what your lawyer can and can’t do, and also what you have to do to work with your lawyer (yeah, you don’t just get to lay back and wait for your day in court). There’s more to it, though, and to make sure you have the most details so you can know which lawyer is giving you the best price, don’t forget to ask.

• Will you be charging a fixed fee, or an hourly rate, or something else?
• If you are charging a fixed fee, will it be split or intact?
• Am I allowed to make payments, or am I supposed to pay all at once?
• Am I required to make down payments?
• How often can I pay?
• Will I be charged interest?
• Are there any variable charges?
• What could change this price?
• What is the range within which this price may vary?

A DUI attorney in Hammond Indiana will have to consider many things when determining how to represent your case. From your past, to your job, to your current police record and any efforts you have made to cure your alcohol problem, mostly all will be relevant in your case. However, the big tipper which determines the way your case will go with all of that is what exactly the other side has proving that you were driving drunk. Here’s a selection of possible evidences.

• When the police flash the light into your eye, it’s often to see if they look like they are bloodshot or reddened, both signs of heavy drinking.
• While being around drinkers or spilling a drink on yourself can make you smell, there is a special smell for someone who has been drinking heavily.
• Your driving will also indicate how clear you are in the head, and certain behaviors, like starting up and then stopping, or swerving into other people’s lanes, can indicate drunkenness.
• You will normally be asked to perform certain tests, such as line walking or a breathalyzer, usually more than one or both. How well did you do?
• Your response to any questions asked by the police. Hope you didn’t forget your right to remain silent.

The price of a South Bend Indiana DWI lawyer is not just a simple thing, and it is in fact made up of several different components. But the one string that holds all of these components together is how your lawyer chooses to charge their clients. This way of charging for services determines how the componenets react to the particulars of the case.

If your South Bend Indiana DWI lawyer, for example, if the lawyer charges an hourly rate, then they will generally also offer the cheapest rates for clients who have cases which will not result in much punishment. While still expensive, an hourly rate is the cheapest type of rate to choose if you have a case which will not require a lot of time. If that changes somewhere in the middle, then you will pay a lot, and so it’s important to examine your case.

On the other hand, if your South Bend DWI lawyer charges a single fixed fee, then that is the best type of rate for your to select if you have a case which has higher stakes, like if you have a DWI from a car crash. The fixed rate comes with two possibilities, either a single rate for all services, or a split fee for defense and preparation.

READER QUESTION:

Since I started searching for a lawyer, I have seen that occasionally a lawyer will be listed as an AV rated Lafayette Indiana DUI lawyer. What does the first part mean.

EXCELLENT QUESTION:

The rating that you see for this AV rated Lafayette Indiana DUI lawyer is something that means that they have been looked upon favorably by their lawyer colleagues, since it is a community of lawyers that makes the AV ratings. That’s a good endorsement right there.

In fact, what an AV rating often means is that the lawyer has a lot of years of experience under their belt and that these have been very exceptional years. Someone with a favorable AV rating has a high rate of success in their cases and has the respect of their community. Someone with a good AV rating is also someone who has the ability to charge more for their services because of this prestige that comes with it.

Because of those higher prices, most of the time it will do you better just to flip the page when you see an AV rated Lafayette Indiana DUI lawyer. While you of course want to have the best representation, hiring one for an uncomplicated first time DUI offense is overkill. If you’re on your third offense, or got into an accident, or something like that, it may be good to at least check the lawyer out.

–Fashun.

At the consultation with your possible choice for a Fort Wayne Indiana DUI lawyer, be ready to ask the questions that will poke into the information that you need to know to choose your lawyer. Avoid straying off topic and require detailed explanations of your lawyer’s answers; bring a notebook and take short notes while you listen. You may need to look at those notes later as you compare the. Some main points you should discuss with your attorney follow:

• Who will represent? Before making any hiring decisions, you must have a face to face (or phone to phone) discussion with the Fort Wayne Indiana DUI lawyer who will be your representation. Occasionally, a firm will have you consult with someone other than this person. Avoid that.
• What kind of knowledge has your Fort Wayne Indiana DUI lawyer gathered from their experience in DUI law? What kind of experience was that?
• What will they be charging you? Price isn’t everything, but unless you have a very difficult case you should be able to avoid extremely high costs.

As you arrive wherever it is after you are charged with DUI, whether it be home or in a jail cell, many people feel despair because they know, due to the high prices of an Indianapolis IN DUI attorney, they will never be able to afford this kind of representation. They feel like they are resigned to losing their case, no matter the evidence in their favor or lack of evidence against them. In some cases, they may be right, but if they have a felony or even a misdemeanor DUI, then chances are they are wrong.

If you fall into that category, you may be guaranteed an Indianapolis IN DUI attorney by the mandate of the law. You may start getting a bad taste in your mouth at this, thinking that it won’t do you any good because lawyers assigned by the state typically guarantee a loss, but this is only the cause of myth in rumor. On the contrary, publicly hired lawyers often do an excellent job, and have the same rate of loss as private lawyers–the good thing is that you won’t pay for them.

Public lawyers also have an extra benefit to them. Like any other Indianapolis IN DUI attorney, they have usually had a private practice, but they have also seen the inside of the system and know how it works.

Important in the making of a fee agreement which explains what the cost of Gary IN DUI attorney will be is paying close attention to the possibility of unexpected or hidden costs which come from things which a lawyer pays for but many clients don’t realize that they are charged for as well. Here are a few examples listed which might aid you in keeping an eye out for them and, if you cannot have them diminished or removed, at least being able to budget for them.

• One thing it is easy to forget is that those people who greet you as you walk into your lawyer’s office get paid too. So, often it is the case that there will be extra labor charges for when an employee does special work on your case, such as calling the courthouses or witnesses, as well as overtime.
• The little costs add up, so you can even find fees factored into your bill for things like paper usage and faxing.
• Lawyers have to make it to the courthouse someway, and if they go out of their way to get their or to bring anybody there for you, like witnesses, then you’ll often see charges for their transportation.
• It costs money to file paperwork for your case with the courthouse, and you’ll probably see this on your bill.
• Some people choose a jury trial, which has a fee.
• Your lawyer will probably need to mail something on your behalf, so there will also in many cases be a charge for this with the cost of Gary IN DUI attorney.