Our office recently defended a client against a second offense DWI where he was facing some very serious mandatory penalties including a two year loss of license, 2 – 90 days in jail, 1 – 2 years of an ignition interlock device, and 30 days community service. To make matters worse, the client had gotten into a car accident after allegedly blowing through a stop sign and driving straight into a highway divider. When police arrived on scene they immediately detected the odor of alcohol and observed several signs of intoxication from our client. Based upon this, they arrested him for DWI and transported him back to the police station for processing and to take the Alcotest (breathalyzer). Once at the police station, our client agreed to take the Alcotest and blew a breath alcohol reading (BAC) much higher than the legal limit. After months of back and forth, the case was eventually set for trial. On the day of trial, our attorneys provided the court with a report and testimony of a DWI defense expert to challenge the State’s evidence, including our client’s BAC reading from the Alcotest and the reliability of the officer’s observation. After hearing our expert’s testimony, the State conceded that it could not prove our client’s BAC because the Alcotest reading was not within tolerance. Next, we successfully argued that without a per se violation, (valid Alcotest reading of 0.08% or higher) the State could not actually prove the DWI since the police officers had not conducted any standard field sobriety tests because of the car accident and the furthermore that the accident contributed to our client’s disorientation. Without enough to prove intoxication beyond a reasonable doubt, the case DUI was dismissed and our client plead to a reckless driving with a 6 month loss of license. If you have been charged with a second offense DWI and would like to learn how we may be able to help you, contact our office today at (908) 838-0150 for a free consultation.
State v. H.A.
