How Important Is A Skillful Plea Bargaining In a DUI Case

Being charged with DUI is very stressful as it entails plenty of severe legal penalties. Of course, the type of penalties vary from case to case and generally depend on the circumstances of the crime. Nevertheless, in most cases, a convicted DUI offender will have to pay expensive fines and may even be sentenced to county jail. Needless to say, this is the kind of experience no one will want to have. 

Discover ways to fight your Sacramento DUI Charges Here

With that said, this is why plea bargaining is so important when it comes to DUI cases. Plea bargain essentially represents negotiations between your attorney and the prosecutor. During those negotiations your legal representative is going to do his very best to convince the prosecutor to drop the charges or at the very least to minimize the supposed sentence.

What many people do not fully realize is that there are no fixed penalties for driving under the influence of alcohol. It all depends on a variety of factors and even if it is your first time DUI, there is always a chance that you may be sentenced to jail. On the other hand, a qualified as well as experienced DUI legal representative is going to have what it takes to negotiate a better deal for you. For instance, jail time could be replaced by community service.

Another good example is the fact that most people do not fully realize that their BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) is also a determining factor – if your BAC was particularly high, you will have to attend alcohol awareness classes for a significantly longer time. A plea bargain can replace alcohol awareness classes with a few Alcohol Anonymous meetings, which is far more beneficial and will take less time and efforts from you.

One way or the other, it is 100% apparent that in case you wish to have your sentence reduced or wish to get the case dismissed or need to get a good plea bargain, it is important, crucial even, to have a qualified as well as genuinely experienced DUI lawyer by your side. He will be able to help you make the most from the plea bargain with the prosecutor. He will know how to approach the prosecutor and how to convince him that you do deserve a second chances and a better deal should be made.

Is It Possible To Get a DUI While Sleeping In The Vehicle?

No doubt, being charged with DUI will have a very negative impact on your day to day living. After all, you risk losing your driving privileges, you will have to pay expensive fines, you will need to attend alcohol awareness classes, perform community service, buy a new insurance and may even be sentenced to county jail.

With that said, in certain cases, people are committing a DUI crime without really knowing it. For instance, in case you were in a bar or a restaurant and you had a little too much to drink, chances are, you will want to sleep it off inside your vehicle. Well, one moment you were falling asleep on the driver’s seat and the next a law enforcement officer, who happened to be patrolling the area, it knocking on your car window. Police officers usually spot people, who are sleeping in a car on the side of the road or on an empty parking lot.

More information is available at www.sacramentoduilawyernow.org

Still, is this a crime to be sleeping it off inside the car? Well, it depends on two major factors. First of all, whether or not your keys were in the ignition. At times, we put the keys in because it is our first instinct. Well, if the keys are in the ignition, it implies that the driver is able to put the vehicle into motion and is physically in control of his or her car. Hence, in such cases, it is best to leave the keys in your pocket, your purse or put in the console compartment. Anywhere but the ignition is going to do just fine.

The second factor, which could lead to a DUI arrest, would be the position of the driver. In case you fell asleep on the front seat, there is a much bigger chance that you were capable of putting your vehicle into motion. Of course, even if you were sleeping on the back seat, the law enforcement officer may use it against you, but it will not make as strong of an argument.

Therefore, in case you had a little too much to drink and you are not planning on driving and would like to sleep it off on the car, keep your keys away from the ignition and do not fall asleep on the front seat of the car – these are the two major factors, which got a lot of people charged with DUI, so they had to be dealing with all the harsh legal penalties. Still, if you were charged with DUI since you were sleeping it off in the car, do not hesitate to find a good attorney as soon as possible.

Useful Information About DMV Hearing And Legal Representation in Sacramento, CA

If you were charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, the very first thing that the arresting officer is going to do will be taking your driver’s license from you. In case you do not want to lose your driving privileges, you will need to file an official request to the DMV within 10 days after the accident and initiate an administrative hearing. It is crucial that you make it happen within 19 days, otherwise your driver’s license is going to be revoked.

Now, it is important to understand that the administrative DMV hearing is a separate hearing and it does not have anything to do with the criminal court hearing. Any finding from the criminal court hearing are not going to be used during the DMV hearing. Why is this important? Well, it pretty much implies that you will need to come up with a solid defense strategy in the both hearings, presenting compelling proof to the DMV representatives and to the judge in the criminal court.

To demonstrate how it works, let us review and example. Let us imagine that John was pulled over at a DUI checkpoint and the BAC test indicated that his blood alcohol content equaled 0.1%. John was summoned in court. He was represented by an attorney and with his help John has managed to prove that there is no evidence against him. Sure enough, the case was dismissed. However, John still had to attend the DMV hearing. During that hearing the DMV representatives decided that John is going to lose his driving privileges for 10 years.

As you can see, the results of those hearings are very much different. However, you must keep in mind that you have the right to be represented by an attorney during the DMV hearing. Furthermore, you have the right to question the law enforcement officer that arrested you. You can use your own documents and any testimonies in order to fight the claims. Therefore, do not make the mistake of believing that the DMV hearing is just a simple formality. It is a very big deal. In fact, the fate of your driving privileges is going to be decided right there and then.

Hence, it makes plenty of sense to hire a qualified as well as genuinely experienced legal representative to help you out during the DMV hearing. That is right – only a good attorney is going to have the skills and the expertise that are necessary to present a compelling argument to the DMV representatives. In fact, you will need to have a good Sacramento attorney by your side if you want to keep your license. The Sacramento lawyer will come up with a solid defense strategy that will eventually result in the restoration of your license. It is a very bad idea to try and work things out on your own - you do not know how to approach the DMV representative and only an attorney could assist you.

Arrested for DUI in Sacramento? Contact our DUI law offices now!

The Impact of DUI Conviction

Being charged with DUI is a genuinely frustrating as well as discouraging experience. After all, the law enforcement authorities are not all too forgiving about driving under the influence of alcohol or illegal substances. Hence, the legal penalties for DUI are severe and quite frightening. This is one of the many reasons why so many people are frightened and are ready to take any deal, any plea bargain the prosecution is offering. In most of the cases, those initial offers are rarely good ones and it makes sense to wait for the trial. Hence, it is best not to male any rushed decisions and get in touch with a qualified as well as genuinely experienced Sacramento DUI attorney at the earliest opportunity.

Furthermore, it is important for you to understand that a DUI conviction does not only involve immediate consequences – the effects of these criminal charges may affect you long afterwards:

• Probation. In most cases, if it is your first time DUI conviction, you are probably going to be facing up to three years of probation. Probation implies plenty of conditions and terms that you will have to stick with. In case you are going to break any of those conditions or commit any kind of illegal actions during your probation, you are not only going to be charged with a certain crime, but also with probation violation.
• Moral dilemma. A lot of people are ashamed of their actions, they are embarrassed because they committed a DUI crime. Nevertheless, most of those people do not even realize how many DUIs take place all over the nation every day. Still, it can be somewhat difficult emotionally for some people to get through the process.
• Jail sentence. Some DUI cases may involve time in county jail or even state prison. Of course, it largely depends on the circumstances of the crime. For example, in case it is your second time or even third time DUI conviction, it is more likely that the judge will consider sending you to jail. Furthermore, if we are talking about a felony DUI, there is surely going to be jail time involved, especially if you hurt a person or even killed one in the accident.

Regardless of what kind of previous criminal records you may have and whether or not your DUI is qualified as a felony, it is very important to consult a Sacramento DUI attorney before making any kind of decision. Most of the time, it is smarter to let the case play itself. Although the prosecutor is going to do his best in order to convince you that the plea bargain is the best option for you, you must not be confused – a better way to deal with this conviction may appear during the trial.

Seeing just how serious a DUI conviction may be, it is crucial for you to hire a professional legal representative in order to create a solid defense strategy to fight your DUI case in Sacramento. A good lawyer is going to have all the skills and the expertise that will help him deal with the judge and the prosecutor. Therefore, if you are accuse of DUI, do not hesitate to find an attorney as quickly as it is possible.