What to expect following a Florida DUI accusation
After your arrest for DUI in Florida you will receive notification of your arraignment date and assignment to a particular judge in county court for a misdemeanor DUI, or circuit court for a felony DUI case. If you hire a Tampa DUI lawyer to represent you prior to the arraignment, your attorney will usually file a written plea of "not guilty" and a waive arraignment form which will excuse you from appearing at the first court date.
Prior to arraignment, your attorney must also file a motion to attack the legal sufficiency of the charging document, as well as other motions including a demand for discovery. After arraignment, you will have several disposition court dates which allow both the defense attorney and the prosecutor to inform the judge about the status of the case, and whether the case is ready for trial.
In most cases, your attorney can excuse you from appearing for the disposition or status court dates. Next your case will be put on a trial calendar for a pre-trial conference, then jury trial. Each of these court dates are critical to your defense. An experience Tampa DUI attorney can fight to have your charges completely dropped, or for a negotiated resolution of your case to a reduced charge of reckless driving. Click here for more information on hiring an attorney for a DUI case in Hillsborough County, Florida.
Hiring an experienced DUI lawyer to fight your case can help you avoid a conviction which can save you thousands of dollars in fines, court costs, expenses for DUI school, vehicle impound, time and energy to complete 50 hours of community service and drastically increased insurance premiums. Avoing a DUI conviction will also save you thousands of dollars each year for the next three (3) to five (5) years in increased car insurance premiums.
In many DUI cases in the Tampa Bay area the prosecutor can be convinced to drop the charges to reckless driving which can also save you from the stiff mandatory punishments that go along with a DUI conviction. In other case, the charges can be dropped completely, especially in cases without strong evidence or when a motion to suppress is filed that may force the court to throw out certain evidence such as the driver's statements, evidence that the driver refused to take a roadside sobriety test, or the results of chemical testing.
Florida FR-44 Automobile Insurance Form
Fighting the Florida DUI case is also important because in addition to the direct cost of a Florida DUI conviction, you will also suffer many collateral consequences included increased premiums for auto insurance. Florida requires any driver with a DUI conviction obtain a FR-44 Form from the automobile insurance carrier which prove that the driver has obtained increased policy liability coverage of 100/300/50. Your insurance premiums may increase by as much as 300% for the next three to five years after a DUI conviction. Avoiding a conviction is important for this reason alone. Click here to learn more about the true cost of a DUI conviction and how to avoid it - Florida's FR-44 DUI Car Insurance Requirements.
Many insurance companies also charge higher premiums for life, medical and disability insurance to an individual with a Florida DUI conviction.
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Filing And Litigating Motions to Win Your Case
One of the most effective ways to fight your Florida DUI case is to file and litigate motions to suppress or exclude certain evidence in your case, including:
- Showing that the initial stop of the vehicle was without reasonable suspension or probable cause;
- Attacking procedures used by the police in performing a roadblock stop of your vehicle;
- Arguing that the officer made an arrest before sufficient probable cause existed to indicate that you were driving under the influence;
- Demonstrating that the law enforcement officer violated your rights by not advising you of your Miranda warnings;
- Attacking that the results of your breath test because of problems with the maintenance or calibration of the machine;
- Showing that the officer did not preserve evidence, including a video tape of your driving pattern, performance on the roadside tests, or alleged refusal;
- Showing the the officer administered the roadside sobriety tests improperly;
- Showing that your implied consent warnings were not properly given, thereby making any mention of your alleged “refusal” inadmissible; or
- Using special defenses that may be available to women charged with DUI in Florida.
By filing and litigating a motion to suppress or exclude your attorney can fight to dismantle the prosecutor’s case one piece of evidence at a time. If any evidence is excluded then the prosecutor’s chances for a successful prosecution can drop dramatically. By aggressively litigating motions to suppress and exclude evidence, we can often create the best opportunities for our clients to avoid a conviction.
DUI and Drug Recognition (DRE) Expert Testimony
For many DUI cases, obtaining the best DUI expert witness can give you a distinct advantage during pre-trial motions, pre-trial negotiations with the prosecutor, and at trial. DUI Expert witnesses can be hired to investigate and testify about flaws in the administration, maintenance or calibration of the breath test machine, the Intoxilyzer 8000 Series. Many of the expert witnesses that testify about the Intoxilyer 8000 Series are former breath test technicians or law enforcement officers who have special training on instructing other officers on how to correctly administer the breath test.
After obtaining any videotaped evidence of your performance on the roadside sobriety exercises, your Tampa DUI Attorney can use expert testimony from former law enforcement officers with special training in administering and scoring field sobriety exercises to attack the mistakes made by the often less experienced DUI arresting officer.
The Sammis Law Firm uses expert witnesses in many DUI cases. The cost of obtaining an expert to review your case so that the expert can be listed as a witness is very low. In many cases, just the fact that you have an expert willing to testify in your case will make it more likely that the prosecutor will offer to reduce the charges. In those cases that do go to trial the expert witness testimony is crucial to obtaining an "not guilty" verdict. The prosecutor will call an expert witness also- the arresting officer or breath test technician. By having your own DUI expert witness, who is often more qualified and experienced than the arresting officer or other state witness, you can put yourself in a position to obtain the best result possible.
DUI Roadblock or DUI Checkpoint Cases
Law enforcement officers in Florida must normally have probable cause that a crime or traffic infraction has occurred before they can stop a vehicle. One of the few exceptions to this rule is when the officers stop a vehicle during a DUI roadblock or DUI checkpoint. If you were arrested for a Florida DUI after being stopped in a roadblock or checkpoint, call our office to speak with a Tampa DUI attorney about filing a motion to suppress. If any of the strict requirements for the DUI roadblock were not followed by the arresting officers then your entire case could be dismissed even if you had an extraordinarily high breath test result.
The Florida Supreme Court has required that before a DUI roadblock is proper under the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States and Florida law a set of highly detailed written guidelines must be established. Police officers in Hillsborough County, Pinellas County, Polk County, Pasco County, Manatee County, and Sarasota County often make mistakes in drafting the DUI roadblock guidelines.
The field officers conducting the DUI roadblock must also follow strict procedures in determining which vehicles to stop. They are not allowed to stop certain vehicles that look suspicious while letting other vehicles pass through. The written DUI guidelines must establish exactly how vehicles are to be selected and the procedures used after the stop occurs. For instance, the police may articulate in the plan that every third vehicle is to be stopped. By articulating such a rule for a Florida DUI roadblock, the officers are not able to stop vehicles that they deem suspicious while at the scene.
Under Florida law, if the State does not meet the burden of showing that the DUI operational plan sufficiently limited the ability of the field officers to select vehicle, or that the field officers did not follow the plan, then all evidence of the DUI must be suppressed. That means the officers can not testify about the fact that your vehicle was stopped or use any evidence gathered after the stop. If the officers found drugs in the vehicle after the bad stop, all of the physical evidence is also thrown out.
After winning a DUI motion to suppress because of a bad stop in a DUI roadblock, the case must be dropped by the prosecutor or dismissed by the judge. Click here for more information on fighting a Florida DUI Roadblock or Checkpoint Case.
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Tampa / Hillsborough County DUI Administrative Suspension Hearing with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
After a DUI arrest, the officer typically takes your Florida Driver’s License and issues you a temporary driving permit. After your arrest you have only 10 days to request a formal review hearing to fight the administrative suspension of your driver’s license.Contact our firm today, and we can prepare all of the necessary paperwork to schedule the administrative hearing, and then subpoena or compel the appearance of all of the law enforcement officers involved in your arrest. The suspension of your driver license can only be avoided by winning the administrative hearing.
Additionally, by conducting a thorough investigation of your case prior to your administrative hearing, we are able to question the officer that conducted the stop of your vehicle and the arresting officer under oath. The testimony from the administrative hearing can them be used to “impeach” the officers at trial or a motion hearing if their testimony in court differs from their testimony at the administrative hearing. Additionally, a transcript of the testimony can be provided to the prosecutor to demonstrate weaknesses in the case so that the best pre-trial negotiations can be achieved. Click here for more information on protecting your Florida driver license after a DUI arrest during a DUI Administrative Review Hearing.
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High Blow Over .08%
Florida law provides that if you blew over the legal limit of .08%, and fail to request an administrative hearing, then your driver’s license will be suspended for a period of six (6) months for a first offense or one year for any subsequent offense. During that six month period, you will have a thirty (30) day “hard suspension,” which means that you can not drive for any reason, even to and from work. After the “hard suspension” period has been completed, you can apply for a “business purposes only” or hardship driver’s license which may allow you to drive under certain circumstances, including to and from work.
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Refusal to Submit to Breath Test - BAC Refusal
The Good News About a Florida DUI Refusal to Submit to Testing Case:
When the State of Florida attempts to prosecute a Driving Under the Influence ("DUI") case, the strongest evidence is usually the results of a chemical test, including a breath test, blood test, or urine test showing that the driver was intoxicated with alcohol, prescription drugs, or a controlled substance. If the driver refuses the submit to a chemical test (called a DUI Refusal BAC), then the State no longer has that evidence.
Instead, the prosecutor will them attempt to admit evidence that the driver "refused" to submit to the test and other circumstantial evidence. The prosecutor will argue that this refusal demonstrates a "guilty conscience" or the driver's belief that if he submitted to the chemical test, the test results would show that he was intoxicated from alcohol or impaired by prescription drugs or other controlled substances.
In determining whether to admit or exclude the evidence that the driver refused to submit to the test the Court will consider Florida constitutional provisions, Florida rules of evidence, Florida's common law provisions, and Florida statutory rules. Furthermore, if the State of Florida violates a driver's constitutional or statutory rights to an attorney before the blood, breath or urine test, the Court can exclude or throw out any evidence that the defendant declined to take the chemical test.
Most Florida DUI refusal cases are difficult for the prosecutor to take to trial because the prosecutor's most important piece of evidence, the test result, does not exist. If you have been charged with DUI in Hillsborough County (or a surrounding county in Florida) talk with an experienced DUI attorney before you decide how to proceed with your case. A Tampa DUI attorney may be able to get the prosecutor to reduce your charges to reckless driving.
The Bad News About a Florida DUI Refusal to Submit to Testing Case:
The consequences to your driver license are even more drastic when it is alleged that you refused to submit to a chemical test. If you refused to take the chemical test after being advised of the Florida “implied consent warnings” then your Florida driver’s license may be suspended for 12 months or a year and a half (18 months) if your drivers license has previously been suspended for refusing to submit to chemical testing.
During that one year period, you will have a ninety (90) day “hard suspension,” which means that you can not drive for any reason, even to and from work. After the Florida “hard suspension” period has been completed, you can apply for a Florida “business purposes only” or hardship driver’s license which may allow you to drive under certain circumstances, including to and from work.
A Second Refusal Can Also Be Charged as a Separate Criminal Offense:
If you have previously had your Florida driver license suspended for refusing to submit to a chemical test, then the consequences for a second or subsequent refusal will probably be an additional criminal charge for a first degree misdemeanor. In July of 2002, the Florida Legislature criminalized a second refusal to a breath, blood or urine test.
If you refuse to take a breath test a second time you may find yourself charged with two separate offenses, DUI and a second refusal to submit charge. Even if you win the DUI case, you could still be convicted of the refusal charge. The constitutionality and limitations of this new criminal offense for a "second refusal to submit" has not been fully addressed by the appellate courts. Defenses exist to fight this seperate charge of refusing to submit to a chemical test for a second time. Contact the Tampa DUI Lawyers at the Sammis Law Firm to discuss defenses that may be available under Florida law for the particular facts and circumstances in your case.
I thought I was entitled to remain silent and not be required to incriminate myself? If so, then why would the jury be told that I refused to take the roadside exercises or the breath, blood, or urine test?
Whether the fact that you refused to perform a roadside exercise or submit to a chemical test depends on the particular facts and circumstances of your case. Florida criminal law provides generally that when a DUI officer has sufficient legal clause to believe that an driver has committed the criminal act of driving under the influence ("DUI"), the DUI officer can ask the driver to participate in roadside agility exercise or a blood, breath or urine test.
The fact that the driver refused does not usually elicit a Fifth Amendment violation of the privilege against self-incrimination because the refusal is relevant to the driver's consciousness of guilt. Therefore, if the driver declines to take the test, the prosecutor can usually introduce this evidence. Furthermore, the prosecutor can argue that the refusal shows that the defendant knew that if he submitted to the chemical test, then the test results would show that the driver had drugs or alcohol in his system.
However, when making this argument the prosecutor can not reference the driver's failure to voluntarily provide evidence to disprove an element of the crime of DUI because making that argument would erroneously cause the jury to think that the driver had the burden of producing evidence. See Jackson v. State, 575 So.2d 181, 188 (Fla. 1991); Concha v. State, 972 So.2d 996 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008).
A thin line exists between arguing in Florida DUI cases that the refusal to submit to a breath test shows consciousness of guilt and arguing that the defendant failed to prove proof that he is innocent. In a recent Florida case, Morris v. State, 988 So.2d 120 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008), the prosecution crossed that line in a DUI case by arguing that an innocent person would speak up and protest his innocence. The prosecutor also improperly shifted the burden of proof by arguing that an innocent person would volunteer to take a breath test to prove his or her innocence. The prosecutor in that was was essentially arguing to the jury that the jury should infer guilt of the DUI charge from the fact that the driver did not speak up or take other pro-action actions to show his innocence.
The Court found these comments by the prosecutor "patently impermissible." The defendant's DUI conviction in Morris v. State was reversed because of the prosecutor's improper comments. An experienced DUI attorney needs to be constantly on guard against any attempt by the prosecutor to cross this line. And in those cases in which the prosecutor does cross the line, the DUI attorney needs to be prepared to preserve objections for appeal so that the DUI conviction can be reversed on appeal if the trial court refuses to stop the prosecutor from making such improper arguments in any DUI case.
Click here for more information on the DUI Refusal to Submit to Testing Cases.
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Eligibility for Business Purpose Only or Hardship License
If you have two prior convictions for DUI, then you will not be eligible for a “business purpose only” or hardship license. If you are otherwise eligible, you must contact the DHSMV’s Administrative Reviews Office for an appointment. At the appointment, you must provide proof of enrollment in DUI School, a recent copy of your driver’s license, and proof of liability insurance.
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Legal Definition of DUI- Two Alternative Ways the Case Can be Proven
In Florida, there are two different theories that the prosecutor can use to attempt to prove that you are guilty of DUI. First, the prosecutor can attempt to show that you were under the influence of alcohol or an intoxicating substance to the extent that your normal faculties were impaired due to alcohol intoxication or drug impairment. Second, the prosecutor can attempt to show that your performance on a chemical test, such as a breath or blood test showed a blood alcohol level of .08% or above. Regardless of the theory under which your case is prosecuted, the penalties for DUI are generally the same.
If you have been arrested for drunk driving ("DUI"), including felony DUI, refusal DUI, or high blow over .08 DUI cases, call to speak with an experienced Tampa DUI attorney. At the Sammis Law Firm, we represent clients charged with DUI in Hillsborough County, Pinellas County, Polk County, and Pasco County. If you need an experienced Tampa DUI lawyer to defend you, contact us today for a free evaluation of your Florida DUI case.
Contact us - if you need to speak with an experienced attorney following your arrest for Driving Under the Influence ("DUI") in the Tampa Bay area, including: Apollo Beach, Brandon, Bartow, Clearwater, Dade City, Dover, Durant, Gibsonton, Gulfport, Hillsborough, Lithia, Lutz, New Port Richey, Mango, Odessa, Pasco, Plant City, Pinellas, Polk, Riverview, Ruskin, Tampa, South Tampa, Ybor City, Seffner, St. Petersburg, Sun City Center, Sydney, Tampa Bay, Temple Terrace, Thonotosassa, Valrico, Wimauma. We can begin your DUI defense today.
Florida DUI Resources
Florida DUI Penalties - If you have been arrested for drunk driving in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, find out more about the DUI statutory minimum mandatory punishments that apply if you are convicted, depending on the way that your particular case is charged.
Florida DHSMV - DUI and Administrative Suspension Information - Information from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles concerning the DUI administrative suspension rules following a DUI arrest.
DUI lawyer tactic: Challenge the breath test - Article updated on January 28, 2009 about DUI breath test or intoxilyzer ruling that set precedent for reducing drunk driver sentences after breath test machine manufacturer refused to release source code information.
MADD Florida - The stated mission of Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Florida is to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking. The MADD website contains recent information about DUI statistics, and DUI stories and DUI laws throughout the country.
Pasco County DUI - If you have been arrested for DUI in New Port Richey or Dade City, Florida, find out more about how DUI cases are prosecuted in Pasco County, Florida.
Pinellas County DUI - Arrested for DUI in St. Petersburg or Clearwater, Pinellas County? Find out more about hiring an attorney to fight your Pinellas County DUI case.
Polk County DUI- Florida DUI cases are handled differently in Bartow, Polk County, Florida. Find out more about hiring a Bartow DUI Attorney to fight your DUI case in Polk County.