What Steps Might I Take to Have a DUI Charge in Philadelphia Pennsylvania Dropped?
Take Steps to Have DUI Charge Dropped.
The first step you can take in efforts to have a Pennsylvania DUI charge dropped is to hire a competent attorney who specializes in DUI traffic offenses. It is important to note their winning ability for prior DUI cases, and if they have a good rapport with state prosecutors whom they work with regularly in court actions. If you feel you need to consult with more than one attorney to get a feel of how they will represent you then you should do that. Once you have secured legal counsel, you can work with them to assess the weight of the evidence the prosecution may have against you.
Prosecutors must share evidence they will use against you with your attorney. If the only evidence of DUI is a field sobriety field test, you may have a strong defense to your case due to its subjective nature, in addition to other variables impacting the traffic stop. Breathalyzers are not as easy to challenge, but the results may sway a prosecutor if they are only slightly over the legal limit as opposed to grossly over that limit.
Probable Cause for the Traffic Stop.
If an officer pulled you over even though you were obeying all traffic rules, it may help your case. If you were pulled over for a mechanical notification when an officer noticed something wrong with your vehicle and you were asked to take a sobriety test as a consequence of that stop, you may be able to fight the DUI, using the argument that there was no probable cause to suspect that you were drinking.
Test Results Can be Flawed.
Test results are not always valid. If you were taking cough medicine, prescriptions or are diabetic or dieting, it might interfere with the breakdown of sugar and may be used as a defense to false positives on the breathalyzer testing. If you are wobbly on a field sobriety test for instance because you are older or recently injured a body part that would throw your balance off, that could be noted as a defense strategy.
Witnesses.
Were there eye witnesses available who saw your driving behavior before the stop? Was someone traveling with you who knew of your drinking activities before the incident involved in the DUI? If any part of your defense involves physical ailments that made you fail the field sobriety test or the breathalyzer, then have a doctor or nurse who is familiar with your illness called as a witness to explain how those conditions may have caused the discrepancy.
Case Preparation.
Being prepared is the key to building a strong defense case and may be the reason a prosecutor decides to drop a case, or work with your attorney for lesser charges that may not cause you lifelong damage. Actions of good behavior such as attending driving school, a willingness to attend AA meetings without being forced to do so and attendance at a driver responsibility class, are a few things you could do to prove good faith measures.
Plea Bargain Possible.
DUI charges are very hard to have dropped, even if the prosecutor sees there is a possibility you may win with the defense strategy you and your attorney have built. If there is a case that shows your physical ailment had something to do with faulty results, or that the traffic stop was not a clean one, it may be in the best interests of both sides to try for a plea bargain where you plead guilty to a lesser charge such as reckless driving, as it will keep the DUI off of your record, and the State will know that you have paid for the driver responsibility classes which are expensive and the insurance rates on your vehicles will be increased as penalties to your actions in this arrest.
Contact a lawyer at Metzger & Kleiner’s Philadelphia Office
1500 John F Kennedy Boulevard #1204
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone : 215-567-6616
Fax : 215-561-6326
Sources:
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=75&div=0&chpt=38
