Legal Question in DUI Law in Washington

Re: individual circumstance taken into consideration

The entire set of facts surounding your arrest for DUI is important. I work in the area of DUI and traffic defense and have done so for over 20 years. Each case is different and each case must be defended on its own facts and issues. You need to speak with an attorney who deals in this area on a constant basis. I would be happy to assist you if you so desire.

Re: individual circumstance taken into consideration

Maybe you are not talking to the right kind of lawyer. If you�ve been charged with a DUI, you should hire a defense lawyer who focuses mainly on defending DUIs as part of his or her practice. This is the focus of my firm here in Bellingham.

The Washington State Bar Association does not recognize �specialties,� but some lawyers have established themselves in the field by taking specialized defense DUI classes and achieving national recognitions in the field of defending DUIs.

As for the facts of your case, it should greatly alarm you that the attorneys you�ve seen so far are telling you the circumstances surrounding your stop are �irrelevant.� They most certainly are relevant.

When I look at any DUI arrest, I analyze everything from before the traffic stop to the point you were released from police custody. This is because I know that even slight deviations in the police procedures can lead to huge legal issues. In some cases, the irregularities I�ve found have resulted in suppression of the field sobriety tests, suppression of answers given to the police officer and even suppression of the breath test results.

As for your question about people with a BAC test of 0.08 being treated the same for punishment purposes as those with 0.149, that question needs to be directed to your lawmakers in Olympia. You see, state law imposes the same mandatory minimum punishment on everyone convicted of a DUI with a BrAC of under 0.15, whether you were at 0.083 or 0.149 BAC. The punishment also depends on whether you have any priors or not. If anything, this should be even more reason for you to look for an attorney who has a lot of experience in defending DUIs rather than settling for a lawyer who thinks the way the cop arrested you is irrelevant!