Jennifer Waggoner, Author at Orlando Criminal Team

Second Guessing Your Choices After a DUI

Jennifer Waggoner on February 6, 2015

Second Guessing Your Choices After a DUI

It isn’t unusual for anyone to replay a traffic stop in their minds. It is even more common when that traffic stop results in an arrest. You may be questioning what is going to happen to you if you cooperated and performed all tests requested of you. Here are answers to the questions that may be running through your mind.

1. I drank, but did I really drink enough to be considered drunk?

It comes as a bit of a surprise to people that it is not illegal in most states to drink and drive. What is illegal is to drink to the point of legal intoxication and then operate a motor vehicle. Having a single drink and getting behind the wheel is not against the law. Having so many drinks that your judgment is impaired and your ability to walk, talk, speak, hear, and drive normally is against the law.

2. Will performing the field sobriety test hurt me in court?

Any time an officer requests that you perform a field sobriety test, it is in an effort to gain evidence to use against you in court. That said, you are considered to be impaired when you are unable to perform normal, everyday tasks and functions. The majority of field sobriety tests do not ask you to perform normal tasks. When was the last time you stood on one leg for any length of time?

3. I blew into the machine. Am I going to jail?

The breathalyzer test is used to determine the amount of alcohol in your system. It is not able to judge your level of impairment. The only thing it produces is a number. A competent attorney can fight the results of the breathalyzer test you performed. Performing requested tests such as these does not mean you are going to jail, regardless of the number that was registered.

4. Is my driver’s license suspended forever?

If this is your first DUI arrest, or even your second, it is only in the most extreme cases that you will permanently lose your license. We understand, however, that losing your license for any length of time can present a hardship. Many people do not realize that they have 10 days to request a formal hearing in front of the DMV. You may also be able to apply for a hardship license whether or not you performed a breathalyzer test.

Do not second-guess the decisions you made during your DUI traffic stop. You can’t undo time, but you can fight for your rights going forward. This is when you need the assistance of a proven DUI attorney. Contact our offices as soon as you are able so that we can help ensure that you are treated fairly and that your rights are protected. Call now.

What Happens with A Hit and Run Charge?

Jennifer Waggoner on August 8, 2012

What Happens with A Hit and Run Charge?

In Florida, the law states that anyone involved in an accident that involves property damage or personal injury must stop and exchange information. The law states that you have a duty to give information and render aid. Leaving the scene of an accident is considered a criminal act in Florida. The punishment depends on the severity of the act. A minor accident is usually charged as a misdemeanor while an accident that involves injury or death will likely be charged as a felony. As a Florida driver you are required to provide the following information after an accident:

Name
Address
Registration
License information

Leaving the Scene of an Accident

Any time that you are involved in an accident you must stop or you will face charges of hit and run. This includes having contact with an unattended vehicle. When the vehicle is unattended you have a duty to provide your information and leave it in a place where the other driver will find it. If you have been involved in an accident with injuries you must stop and render aid or call 911. If you fail to stop, the police may find you based on witness reports, surveillance video, or other means. The police will track you down and can make an immediate arrest based on leaving the scene of an accident. The best thing to do if you have had an accident is to get help from an attorney and turn yourself in to police. It is recommended that you have an attorney present when you speak to law enforcement officials.

Defending Hit and Run Charges

If you have been in a hit and run accident you should seek legal assistance immediately. Even though the accident may have been minor, you will face much more serious charges when you fail to stop after the incident occurred. If convicted you may face penalties that include:

Misdemeanor – Accident involves property damage only. Punishable with up to 60 days in jail and up to $500 in fines.
Felony – Accident involves injury or death. Punishable with a sentence of up to 15 years in prison and fines of up to $10,000.
Additionally, you may be ordered to pay restitution to the other driver and your driver’s license may be revoked.

Many people make poor decisions after suffering a stressful situation. One bad decision should not have to haunt you forever. An experienced attorney will be able to assist you in defending the charges against you to get a successful outcome.

Search and Seizure: When is it Legal?

Jennifer Waggoner on November 29, 2011

The Fourth Amendment constitutionally limits what law enforcement may do and the actions a police officer may take when attempting to gather evidence to use against you in a criminal proceeding. This is the amendment that addresses issues of search and seizure. The United States Constitution prohibits law enforcement from forcing their way into your home or onto your property to look for evidence, or to take anything they find suspicious, unless certain conditions are met.

One pivotal aspect of the Fourth Amendment is that it does not apply to most public places. The law says that if you’re in a public place, you’ve automatically given up your right to privacy. A law enforcement officer can search you and take whatever he finds in your possession. Likewise, if you leave something in plain view, you’ve given up your right to privacy regarding that object or evidence. This might be the case if you’re stopped for suspicion of driving under the influence and you’ve got an open bottle of vodka in your lap at the time. You’ve placed it somewhere where it is clearly visible, so the arresting officer can use that against you.

If the arresting officer violates the provisions of your Fourth Amendment rights in some way, you need a qualified and experienced criminal defense attorney immediately. Any evidence he gathered is probably inadmissible in court if he violated your rights when gathering it. If you’re not a lawyer, you may not know that, so you should never take the chance of representing yourself. If you’re not a lawyer, you may not know the proper arguments to make to the court to have the evidence thrown out.

The attorneys at Katz & Phillips are intimately familiar with all the nuances of your Fourth Amendment rights and we’ll fight determinedly to make sure they’re not violated in court. We can use them to potentially keep you out of court if the only evidence against you breaks the legalities of the Fourth Amendment’s rules. If you have questions about how law enforcement collected evidence against you, call us today so we can review your case and let you know where you stand.

To Blow or Not to Blow

Jennifer Waggoner on June 30, 2011

To blow or not to blow when you’re stopped on suspicion of driving under the influence is a question I am asked with some frequency. It’s not an easy one to answer. DUI arrests are two-pronged. They involve criminal charges as well as administrative challenges in the form of the DHSMV hearing you’re permitted to schedule within 10 days of your arrest to address the issue of retaining or losing your driver’s license. Taking or refusing a breath test affects both factors.

If you do blow and your BAC is .08 or higher, you could potentially lose your driving privileges for six months at the DHSMV hearing. Florida allows you a special license so you can drive for business or work purposes only, but you can’t request this until you’ve been without your license for a month. That said, you now have to address the repercussions of blowing over in criminal court. In some counties, your breath test results are not admissible as evidence. This takes an important weapon out of the prosecution’s arsenal when trying to convict you. However, in other counties, the results are admissible. If you blew over .08, you may be doomed to a conviction if you took the breath test.

Alternatively, if you do not take the breath test, the DHSMV will not be happy. If you refuse the breathalyzer, you’ll lose your driver’s license for a year. If you ever refused before, that time period extends to 18 months. And you can’t apply for a special license to drive for work purposes for three months. The impact of not taking the breath test can affect your criminal proceedings in one of two ways. On one hand, it makes it more difficult for the prosecutor to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were impaired – he’s missing the concrete black-and-white evidence of your reading and will probably have to rely on the testimony of the arresting officer regarding your condition when you were stopped. However, an experienced attorney can often present a good case for why you refused. Maybe you wanted to talk to a lawyer first and couldn’t. Maybe you wanted to take a blood test instead. Maybe you’ve heard that the breathalyzer is often inaccurate and can be affected by other factors besides how much you’ve had to drink. Maybe you didn’t want to risk that. You’d have to testify to convince a jury of this, but if you’re a believable witness, this could work in your favor. By the same token, the law allows the prosecutor to try to convince the jury that you’re fibbing about your reasons. He’ll try to convince them that you refused the breath test because you knew you were intoxicated and that you’d probably blow over. In legal terms, this is called “consciousness of guilt,” and the prosecutor will try to use it against you.

Finally, the issue of whether to blow or not to blow is further complicated if you’ve ever found yourself in this situation before. If you previously declined the option to blow when involved in another DUI matter, and if you do it again, the stakes go up. The state of Florida can charge you with a first degree misdemeanor. This carries a penalty of a year in jail, a year of supervised probation, or a $1,000 fine, and possibly all three.