Driving Under the Influence is a serious criminal offense in the State of Florida. Consequences can include fines, suspension of driver's license, or even jail time. Whether the police had enough evidence to justify a stop, detention, and arrest for a DUI is critical to any case. DUI defense attorneys at Musca Law concentrate on DUI and know the defenses that win. Our team is ready to take on your case and get the justice you deserve by providing a rock solid defense.
The first stage in most DUI cases is the initial traffic stop for a simple traffic infraction, such as the case of our client. He was stopped for speeding after being followed by police traveling 55mph in a 35mph zone. Upon contact the officers noticed signs of impairment including; a strong odor of alcohol, slurred speech and watery eyes. The officers offered our client field sobriety testing and he refused. An individual has the right to refuse physical sobriety exercises, and should. These "tests" are designed for failure and are often difficult for people to perform when they are sober. Police arrested our client and charged him with DUI, under Fla. Statute 316.193. He refused to submit to a breath test; as a result his driver's license was suspended.
Upon arrest for DUI, or refusal to submit to a breath test, an individual's license will be suspended. Their DUI citation acts as a temporary driver's license. The person has 10 days to file the necessary paperwork to request a hearing from the Department of Safety and Motor Vehicles to challenge the suspension. Failure to request a hearing within that timeframe results in an automatic suspension.
Our attorneys filed the necessary paperwork with the Department of Motor Vehicles on behalf of our client, challenging the suspension of his license. The DMV Hearing Officer agreed with our attorney's argument, finding insufficient evidence to support the suspension of our Client's license, thereby restoring his driving privilege. After aggressive negotiations with the Prosecutor, we convinced the State they would be unable to meet the burden of proof to secure a DUI conviction. The State agreed to dismiss the DUI charge and our client plead to a lesser charge.
Broward County judges will have to consider the accuracy of breath test machines after a State inspector has been fired for tampering with them. Florida Department of Law Enforcement fired Sandra Veiga last year for allegedly mishandling the inspections of breath test machines. Veiga admitted to turning off machines that were believed to fail inspections. This could have jeopardized the reliability of the results.
