Many motorists who are charged with DUI try to resolve their own cases without the help of legal counsel. They assume it is impossible to avoid getting convicted. They also assume it is impossible to get the punishment reduced since the prosecutor presumably has a good case. However, there are many instances when the prosecution does not have a good case. In some instances, the prosecutor’s case is a little weak. Some DUI cases do not have a 99.9% of conviction. That is when a DUI attorney in Stow, Ohio can be very helpful.
After hiring legal counsel, the first thing that a lawyer will do is to figure out if the initial traffic stop was legal. Police officers need to have a valid reason to stop a motorist. However, the reason for stopping a motorist can be very minor. A broken taillight or touching a lane marker is good enough to allow a law enforcement officer to pull over the motorist. The video camera on most police cars can be used to determine whether or not there was a valid reason to pull over the motorist. In most cases, the police did have a valid reason to pull over the motorist. If there was no valid reason to initiate the traffic stop, all evidence collected from the beginning of the traffic stop is not admissible. That usually results in the case being dismissed.
Next, the DUI attorney in Stow, Ohio will need to figure out if there are weaknesses in the prosecutor’s case. In general, prosecutors have strong cases that sound convincing. However, criminal courts require guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. This threshold can sometimes be difficult to meet when defense lawyers such as those from Perduk, Hamey and associates introduce evidence such as improper maintenance on breathalyzer machines. There are many potential problems with DUI traffic stops. For example, a field sobriety test administered on an icy sidewalk is not necessarily valid. If there is a chance that the prosecution will lose the case at trial, the DUI case will probably be resolved via plea bargaining. However, the prosecutor will be much more willing to reduce the punishment. That is why hiring legal counsel for DUI is often helpful even if there is a good chance of conviction.
