Quite simply a DUI Defense Attorney has one role in the Court process, PROTECT the client. The Court system has evolved over nearly 300 years in Massachusetts and New Hampshire to provide three distinct roles, the government prosecutor, District Attorney or County Attorney, is charged with bringing to Court those accused of the crime of driving under the influence, through their sworn law enforcement agents, the police. The Court, or Judge, is charged with the duty of presiding over the prosecution of the accused, whether that case is resolved by plea or trial, and finally sentencing those convicted of the DUI Offense. The DUI Defense Attorney’s exclusive role is that of protecting the accused. A DUI Defense Attorney is not a “plea escort service.” Only when the facts and applicable law require that a plea of guilty or admission are the best option for a client, should a DUI Defense Attorney advise a client to waive all defenses and their right to trial on the ultimate issue. Short of the facts and law being absolutely stacked against the client, a DUI Defense Attorney must be willing and able to defend the case at trial.
A qualified DUI Defense Attorney must be capable of spotting the issues that apply to the defense of any alleged DUI Offense and protect his client’s rights by raising those issues to the Court and ultimately to a Jury or Judge sitting as fact finder:
Whether the police stop, seizure and arrest of the driver is legal under applicable State and Federal Constitutional law (Motion to Suppress Evidence of Stop, Roadblock, Seizure or Arrest);
Whether the client’s admissions or statements are legally admissible against the accused at trial (Motion to Suppress Statements in Violation of Miranda):
Whether chemical evidence of alcohol concentration by blood, breath or urine testing is accurate, reliable, scientifically acceptable, and obtained only in adherence with applicable Implied Consent laws;
Whether circumstantial evidence of alcohol consumption and impairment, red/glassy eyes, slurred speech, flushed face, unsteadiness, difficulty with standardized field sobriety tests, constitute proof beyond a reasonable doubt of impaired driving;
Your choice of a DUI Defense Lawyer must start with the question “who can best protect my rights in a Courtroom.” Do not hire a plea escort service, hire an advocate that will focus only on the protection of your rights.
