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Allegations of driving under the influence (DUI) offenses in Colorado can result in multiple potential consequences. A judge can send someone to jail, order them to pay major fines and also suspend a defendant’s driver’s license. Those who have prior infractions or who cause injury to others can expect more severe penalties than those who are arrested for first-time offenses that don’t cause harm.
Despite these potentially life-disrupting penalties, it is quite common for those accused of a DUI offense to simply plead guilty. Some people assume that they cannot defend themselves because of how the state develops DUI charges. However, many defendants accused of impaired driving can avoid a conviction if they use the right approach given their circumstances.
How do people successfully avoid a conviction after accusations of drunk driving?
They challenge the legality of the traffic stop
There are many rules limiting what police officers can do to enforce the law, and if they break those rules, the evidence they gather may not be useful in court. They typically need to have probable cause to suspect a primary traffic infraction if they want to pull someone over on public roads.
When drivers can show that police officers violated their rights, possibly by pulling them over without justification, they may be able to exclude the evidence gathered during the traffic stop from their criminal trials.
They present an alternate explanation
What looks like impaired driving could actually be someone over-adjusting for a recent issue with their vehicle or showing signs of a pre-existing health condition. Drivers accused of a DUI could potentially raise questions about the validity of the evidence against them by presenting alternate explanations for why they failed the breath test or performed poorly on field sobriety tests.
Some drivers can even raise questions about the accuracy of chemical testing when are no other grounds to challenge the evidence against them in criminal court. gaps in the maintenance records for a testing unit could help someone raise questions about the test results, especially if there is no other evidence that someone was under the influence at the time of a traffic stop.
Reviewing what the state has gathered as evidence is often an important starting point for those who are hoping to defend against Colorado DUI charges with the assistance of an experienced legal professional.
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