You have been charged with DUI. You had consumed alcohol. You get arrested for it. You ask yourself, Should I hire an attorney to combat or contest the DUI charge? I think I am guilty. I was drinking. I was driving. The officer said I was intoxicated and not safe to drive.”
Simply put, yes. You are not in a position to evaluate the legal charge any more than a lawyer is in a position to tell a person that they need to have surgery for a neck injury. Everyone has their discipline, and everyone has specialized skill and knowledge in their job. A lawyer does not operate heavy machinery for a living; a roofer does not practice law. So, it follows you simply are out of your environment to assess the strength and weakness of your legal case. I once represented a lawyer in a criminal matter who was ultimately acquitted. He wanted to know when he was going to sit down with the prosecutor and tell him his story. I refused to let him do just that. But he thought because it was Law and Order, it was the thing to do. DUI defense is specialized area of the law. Regardless of what you believe, an experienced DUI lawyer will see things that no one else will. A good analogy is a basketball coach. He will watch a player shoot a free throw. After adjusting the stance, or the elbow, the shots start going in. No spectator picked up on that technique.
Now, let me scare the pants off you. The consequences are controlled by law: eleven months twenty-nine days in jail with authority to suspend portions of the jail time. Fines from $350 to $1500. Loss of license. DUI School. Liter Pickup. Community Service. Devices installed on car. Probation reports and fees. Court costs. The list is engaging.
But there is more. There are collateral consequences, such as restrictions on travel, especially international travel. Insurance rates increase exponentially, or coverage is denied. And it may affect security clearances, job opportunities. A conviction lasts a lifetime. It never disappears, and remains on your record even after your death.
We have found that when people don’t hire an attorney for their DUI case they regret it down the road because it either cost them employment opportunity or it cost them maybe a job promotion. You can never turn back the pages of time and fight a DUI charge after the fact.
Many potential clients are quite amazed once they meet with us and find out that there actually are defenses in their drunk driving case which they would’ve ever thought about or been aware of had they not had the DUI defense unique training we have here at our firm. We have been DUI instructors on DUI defense for lawyers all over the country. We teach lawyers what we know, but we don’t tell all the secrets to the DUI defense.
Hiring a dedicated Knoxville, TN DUI defense lawyer will be the first step toward easing your anxiety and making certain you will have the greatest opportunity at reducing the damaging impact a Tennessee DUI conviction will surely have on your life along with your future.
The very best results are accomplished whenever we get involved as soon as possible after the DUI arrest.
