DWI Lawyer Arlington VA
Contact a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA if you or someone you care about has been accused of drunk driving in Arlington, Virginia. At May Law, LLP our attorneys can help you navigate this difficult situation. Call and set up a free consultation.
DWI in Virginia is a criminal misdemeanor charge that carries potential punishments including jail, license suspension, fines and probation. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will help you assess the evidence in your case, identify potential defenses, negotiate with state prosecutors, as well as organize and present a defense in a trial.
A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA knows that there can immediate issues related to a DWI charge in Virginia: you most likely have been arrested, your vehicle may have been impounded, your driver’s license may have been administratively suspended, and you likely have court appearance called an Arraignment within the next few days. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA can help you address these initial challenges.
From there your DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will go about identifying issues related to the evidence of your case. This phase of your case may also include a formalized inspection of the prosecution’s evidence called Discovery.
If you have been arrested for DWI, Virginia law compels a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) test through a mechanism called Implied Consent. In most cases this is a breath test, but in certain circumstances might be a blood test. Virginia law says that a BAC of 0.08% or more creates an inference that you are impaired by alcohol. An experienced DWI Lawyer Arlington VA has seen these kinds of cases frequently and knows the ins and outs of BAC procedures.
As definitive as a BAC test might seem – and it is a strong piece of evidence for the prosecution – there are many ways that a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA might attack the state’s evidence in a DWI prosecution.
For example, a police traffic stop based upon evidence that does not rise to the level of a reasonable and articulable suspicion of criminal activity could be the basis of the suppression (exclusion) of any subsequently collected evidence – including the BAC test. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will know how to try to convince a judge to exclude evidence obtained during such a traffic stop if the circumstances are appropriate.
Likewise, a suspect may not be arrested without probable cause to believe that the suspect is impaired. This is where a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will look to roadside interaction between police and suspect in the form of Field Sobriety Tests. To prevail on this issue would invalidate evidence that flowed from the arrest, including any BAC test.
Other possible defenses might look to forensic or scientific challenges to the BAC result itself. There can be issues related to the administration of the BAC test itself, or even issues related to the subject’s health or physiology that can impact the BAC result. A capable DWI Lawyer Arlington VA understand the science behind the case the prosecutor will need to present and will use that knowledge to try to obtain the best result at trial.
Blood tests can add additional levels of possible arguments for a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA to explore. There can even be prosecutions that don’t include a BAC test – for example, when there was a refusal to submit to the BAC test or physical inability to perform the BAC test.
A diligent DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will bring this preparation to bear in an organized and reasoned trial strategy. In some instances, compromises can be reached with prosecutors before trial. This is where experience in the local court is critical.
Checkpoints have come under fire for conflicting with Fourth Amendment rights, but there are legal grounds for these stops. As a DWI lawyer Arlington VA has to offer might tell you, it’s important for drivers to understand when these checkpoints are legal.
1. The National Highway Safety Transportation Board states that a DWI search and seizure is legal if these criteria are satisfied:
2. The checkpoint must be set up by senior authorities, and not at random by field officers.
3. The locations and how long the checkpoints will last should be determined by law enforcement in good judgment.
4. Areas with high numbers of incidents involving alcohol and drugs should be the targets for mounting checkpoints.
5. Checkpoints should be safe and should include sufficient lighting, police vehicles, warning signs, and signals.
6. Anyone stopped at a checkpoint should only be detained for questioning and determining if they are intoxicated.
7. Checkpoints must be made public before they are set up.
However, it’s imperative to know that police officers might still act in an illegal manner at a completely legal checkpoint. In these situations, a DWI lawyer in Arlington VA may be able to get their client’s charges dismissed on the grounds that the arrest was not valid.
1. If you are held longer than necessary to determine sobriety or intoxication, you may be able to claim wrongful detention.
2. If the DWI checkpoint was not made public before being set up, you may claim that you never knew about the operation and because of this, the search and seizure was unconstitutional. For this defense, the court will not accept the argument that you merely didn’t see or hear the announcement.
3. There is a required time frame for a checkpoint that should be detailed in the public notice for the operation. If the checkpoint lasted longer than the posted time, you may be able to use that as a defense.
4. If the checkpoint was set up at an unreasonable location, a DWI lawyer Arlington VA residents trust might argue that the checkpoint was invalid. This argument would state that, because the particular area was at low risk for intoxicated drivers, the checkpoint should have never been placed there at all.
If you believe you were unfairly arrested at a checkpoint and that your constitutional rights were violated, consider contacting a DWI lawyer Arlington VA drivers trust for a consultation. At May Law, LLP, we work with our clients to build strong defenses and do what we can to gather evidence to prove a checkpoint violation.
Contact a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA Drivers Depend On
At May Law, LLP a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA can help with your case. We know exactly what you have at stake: of course, one’s liberty itself is paramount. We will work to reduce or eliminate the potential of a jail sentence whenever possible. When the evidence of a particular case indicates jail is a possibility, we will explore every alternative. In many cases, the preservation of one’s driving privilege is critical. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA understands the realities of modern life in this region can require a driving privilege to maintain employment, to pursue education, and to care for one’s family.
At May Law, LLP we have been concentrating on DWI cases since our founding more than 20 years ago. If you find yourself in need of consultation with a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA, call and talk to a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA or set up a free consultation at our Arlington offices.
Criminal Law Legal Terms Criminal law can be complex and complicated, often adding more stress to an already stressful situation. At May Law LLP, our criminal defense lawyers have extensive legal experience helping clients with all aspects of planning for the future. The following are some of the most common legal terms that many clients may need to be familiar with when dealing with accusations of criminal offenses.
Acquittal: When a defendant is found not guilty of a crime by either a jury or judge.
Arraignment: The first court appearance a defendant has after being charged. The defendant will be formally charge and enter their plea.
Bail: Also referred to as bond. This is the security that a defendant will put up as collateral that they will return for all court appearances until their case is resolved instead of having to sit in jail. If they fail to appear for any court proceedings or violate the terms of their bail, their bail will be forfeited, and they will likely be ordered held until their case is resolved.
Bench Trial: A trial that is held without a jury in which the judge decides a defendant’s guilt or innocence.
Battery: When an individual intentionally causes bodily harm to another.
Circumstantial Evidence: Indirect evidence which implies that something occurred but does not prove it directly.
Concurrent Sentence: When a defendant is convicted of multiple offenses, the court may order them to serve their criminal sentences at the same time instead of one after the other. If they are ordered to serve one after the other, it is referred to as consecutive sentences.
Double Jeopardy: When an individual is tried twice for the same offense. Double jeopardy is against the law in the United States.
Ex-Parte: When only one party meets with the judge and the other party is not present. These meetings are legally not allowed.
Felony: A classification of a criminal offense. Conviction of a felony can mean a year or more in prison.
Habeas Corpus: A legal order (also referred to as a writ) instructing law enforcement to bring a prisoner or individual to appear before the court.
Larceny: The intentional taking and walking away with the property of another without their permission.
Misdemeanor: A classification of a criminal offense. Less serious than a felony. A conviction can mean a sentence of up to 12 months in the country jail.
No Contest Plea: A plea where the defendant agrees that there are facts that support the prosecutor’s case against them that could result in their conviction so they will not contest the charge.
Plea agreement: Agreement between the defendant and prosecutor, where the defendant pleads guilty of the charges (or agreed-to lesser charges) in exchange for a lighter sentence than they were facing if found guilty during a trial.
Preliminary Hearing: In felony cases, prosecutors must show the court that there is enough evidence to show the defendant likely committed the crime.
Pretrial Conference: When the defendant and prosecutor meet to decide if they can reach a plea agreement or if the case will proceed to trial. If they agree on a plea, this plea can be entered into and sentencing can be announced at this conference.
Probable Cause: The facts and circumstances which are sufficient that convinces a reasonable person that a crime has been committed.
Voir Dire: The process of jury selection. This is when the criminal and DWI attorneys in Fairfax, VA and judge will ask potential jurors questions to determine if they are suitable for jury duty.
DWI in Virginia is a criminal misdemeanor charge that carries potential punishments including jail, license suspension, fines and probation. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will help you assess the evidence in your case, identify potential defenses, negotiate with state prosecutors, as well as organize and present a defense in a trial.
A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA knows that there can immediate issues related to a DWI charge in Virginia: you most likely have been arrested, your vehicle may have been impounded, your driver’s license may have been administratively suspended, and you likely have court appearance called an Arraignment within the next few days. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA can help you address these initial challenges.
From there your DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will go about identifying issues related to the evidence of your case. This phase of your case may also include a formalized inspection of the prosecution’s evidence called Discovery.
If you have been arrested for DWI, Virginia law compels a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) test through a mechanism called Implied Consent. In most cases this is a breath test, but in certain circumstances might be a blood test. Virginia law says that a BAC of 0.08% or more creates an inference that you are impaired by alcohol. An experienced DWI Lawyer Arlington VA has seen these kinds of cases frequently and knows the ins and outs of BAC procedures.
As definitive as a BAC test might seem – and it is a strong piece of evidence for the prosecution – there are many ways that a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA might attack the state’s evidence in a DWI prosecution.
For example, a police traffic stop based upon evidence that does not rise to the level of a reasonable and articulable suspicion of criminal activity could be the basis of the suppression (exclusion) of any subsequently collected evidence – including the BAC test. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will know how to try to convince a judge to exclude evidence obtained during such a traffic stop if the circumstances are appropriate.
Likewise, a suspect may not be arrested without probable cause to believe that the suspect is impaired. This is where a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will look to roadside interaction between police and suspect in the form of Field Sobriety Tests. To prevail on this issue would invalidate evidence that flowed from the arrest, including any BAC test.
Other possible defenses might look to forensic or scientific challenges to the BAC result itself. There can be issues related to the administration of the BAC test itself, or even issues related to the subject’s health or physiology that can impact the BAC result. A capable DWI Lawyer Arlington VA understand the science behind the case the prosecutor will need to present and will use that knowledge to try to obtain the best result at trial.
Blood tests can add additional levels of possible arguments for a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA to explore. There can even be prosecutions that don’t include a BAC test – for example, when there was a refusal to submit to the BAC test or physical inability to perform the BAC test.
A diligent DWI Lawyer Arlington VA will bring this preparation to bear in an organized and reasoned trial strategy. In some instances, compromises can be reached with prosecutors before trial. This is where experience in the local court is critical.
The Legal Grounds for DWI Checkpoints
If you’ve been charged for DWI and you’re considering hiring an Arlington DWI lawyer, you might have run into trouble at a DWI checkpoint. Many state police forces set up DWI checkpoints to detect drunk or impaired motor vehicle operators. Checkpoints are often established on holidays or on busy streets where motorists are more likely to be driving under the influence. Officers randomly stop cars and motorcycles at roadblocks and interview drivers for any signs of inebriation.Checkpoints have come under fire for conflicting with Fourth Amendment rights, but there are legal grounds for these stops. As a DWI lawyer Arlington VA has to offer might tell you, it’s important for drivers to understand when these checkpoints are legal.
A checkpoint is legal if…
1. The National Highway Safety Transportation Board states that a DWI search and seizure is legal if these criteria are satisfied:
2. The checkpoint must be set up by senior authorities, and not at random by field officers.
3. The locations and how long the checkpoints will last should be determined by law enforcement in good judgment.
4. Areas with high numbers of incidents involving alcohol and drugs should be the targets for mounting checkpoints.
5. Checkpoints should be safe and should include sufficient lighting, police vehicles, warning signs, and signals.
6. Anyone stopped at a checkpoint should only be detained for questioning and determining if they are intoxicated.
7. Checkpoints must be made public before they are set up.
However, it’s imperative to know that police officers might still act in an illegal manner at a completely legal checkpoint. In these situations, a DWI lawyer in Arlington VA may be able to get their client’s charges dismissed on the grounds that the arrest was not valid.
A checkpoint is illegal if..
If you were stopped at a checkpoint and any of the conditions were not satisfied, then you may have grounds for a claim of unlawful search and seizure. A few defenses a DWI lawyer Arlington VA can provide might argue include:1. If you are held longer than necessary to determine sobriety or intoxication, you may be able to claim wrongful detention.
2. If the DWI checkpoint was not made public before being set up, you may claim that you never knew about the operation and because of this, the search and seizure was unconstitutional. For this defense, the court will not accept the argument that you merely didn’t see or hear the announcement.
3. There is a required time frame for a checkpoint that should be detailed in the public notice for the operation. If the checkpoint lasted longer than the posted time, you may be able to use that as a defense.
4. If the checkpoint was set up at an unreasonable location, a DWI lawyer Arlington VA residents trust might argue that the checkpoint was invalid. This argument would state that, because the particular area was at low risk for intoxicated drivers, the checkpoint should have never been placed there at all.
If you believe you were unfairly arrested at a checkpoint and that your constitutional rights were violated, consider contacting a DWI lawyer Arlington VA drivers trust for a consultation. At May Law, LLP, we work with our clients to build strong defenses and do what we can to gather evidence to prove a checkpoint violation.
Contact a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA Drivers Depend On
At May Law, LLP a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA can help with your case. We know exactly what you have at stake: of course, one’s liberty itself is paramount. We will work to reduce or eliminate the potential of a jail sentence whenever possible. When the evidence of a particular case indicates jail is a possibility, we will explore every alternative. In many cases, the preservation of one’s driving privilege is critical. A DWI Lawyer Arlington VA understands the realities of modern life in this region can require a driving privilege to maintain employment, to pursue education, and to care for one’s family.
At May Law, LLP we have been concentrating on DWI cases since our founding more than 20 years ago. If you find yourself in need of consultation with a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA, call and talk to a DWI Lawyer Arlington VA or set up a free consultation at our Arlington offices.
Criminal Law Legal Terms Criminal law can be complex and complicated, often adding more stress to an already stressful situation. At May Law LLP, our criminal defense lawyers have extensive legal experience helping clients with all aspects of planning for the future. The following are some of the most common legal terms that many clients may need to be familiar with when dealing with accusations of criminal offenses.
Acquittal: When a defendant is found not guilty of a crime by either a jury or judge.
Arraignment: The first court appearance a defendant has after being charged. The defendant will be formally charge and enter their plea.
Bail: Also referred to as bond. This is the security that a defendant will put up as collateral that they will return for all court appearances until their case is resolved instead of having to sit in jail. If they fail to appear for any court proceedings or violate the terms of their bail, their bail will be forfeited, and they will likely be ordered held until their case is resolved.
Bench Trial: A trial that is held without a jury in which the judge decides a defendant’s guilt or innocence.
Battery: When an individual intentionally causes bodily harm to another.
Circumstantial Evidence: Indirect evidence which implies that something occurred but does not prove it directly.
Concurrent Sentence: When a defendant is convicted of multiple offenses, the court may order them to serve their criminal sentences at the same time instead of one after the other. If they are ordered to serve one after the other, it is referred to as consecutive sentences.
Double Jeopardy: When an individual is tried twice for the same offense. Double jeopardy is against the law in the United States.
Ex-Parte: When only one party meets with the judge and the other party is not present. These meetings are legally not allowed.
Felony: A classification of a criminal offense. Conviction of a felony can mean a year or more in prison.
Habeas Corpus: A legal order (also referred to as a writ) instructing law enforcement to bring a prisoner or individual to appear before the court.
Larceny: The intentional taking and walking away with the property of another without their permission.
Misdemeanor: A classification of a criminal offense. Less serious than a felony. A conviction can mean a sentence of up to 12 months in the country jail.
No Contest Plea: A plea where the defendant agrees that there are facts that support the prosecutor’s case against them that could result in their conviction so they will not contest the charge.
Plea agreement: Agreement between the defendant and prosecutor, where the defendant pleads guilty of the charges (or agreed-to lesser charges) in exchange for a lighter sentence than they were facing if found guilty during a trial.
Preliminary Hearing: In felony cases, prosecutors must show the court that there is enough evidence to show the defendant likely committed the crime.
Pretrial Conference: When the defendant and prosecutor meet to decide if they can reach a plea agreement or if the case will proceed to trial. If they agree on a plea, this plea can be entered into and sentencing can be announced at this conference.
Probable Cause: The facts and circumstances which are sufficient that convinces a reasonable person that a crime has been committed.
Voir Dire: The process of jury selection. This is when the criminal and DWI attorneys in Fairfax, VA and judge will ask potential jurors questions to determine if they are suitable for jury duty.