When you are arrested for DUI, it is usually for three violations: one administrative (Secretary of State rules), and two criminal offenses.
Secretary of State Charge
The administrative charge which is handled both by the Circuit Court and the Secretary of State (SOS) is for violation of the implied consent law which basically states that your license is to be suspended for driving with a blood alcohol content of .08 or greater; or because your ability to handle your car was compromised by liquor or drugs; or that you simply refused to take a blood alcohol test. Because the suspension of your driving privileges is not a criminal matter, you have no right to a public defender to help you with the suspension. If you want to try to get the suspension eliminated, you should consider hiring a private attorney who can help you in your battles with the SOS, and with the criminal charges.
Two Criminal Charges
DUI arrestees are usually upset when they read their DUI tickets and see that two of them charge DUI for one arrest. One DUI ticket charges “A1” which is driving a car while your blood alcohol level is .08 or more. If for some reason the breath test machine results can be excluded from evidence, the second ticket, which charges “A2” can be used to convict you of DUI. The A2 charge basically says that the officer believes that he can convince a judge or jury that you were driving intoxicated, simply by his describing your actions and demeanor the night of the arrest. Often the officer’s (or the driver’s) description is bolstered by a video/audio recording of what the officer saw during the arrest.
Even though there are two tickets, you can only be convicted of one DUI per arrest and given a suspension and or revocation of your driving privileges.
My address is 1702B West Main Street in Marion, web page is LauterjungLaw.com, Facebook: www.facebook.com/LauterjungLaw, my email address is Larry@LauterjungLaw.com and the phone number is 618-997-LLAW (5529).
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