Assume for a moment that the police officer has a valid reason or a reasonable articulable suspicion to stop the car. Does that mean that a driver accused of a DWI is sunk? No.

Just because an officer has enough legal grounds to stop a car does not necessarily mean that the officer has legal grounds to arrest the driver on a Driving While Impaired charge (DWI).

The prosecutor must prove that in the second phase of the police officer’s investigation he developed enough evidence to form a probable cause that the driver had been driving while impaired.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration teaches two major evidence gathering tasks at this point as part of the officer’s Phase II interaction with the driver. The first task is for the police officer to approach, observe, and interview the driver while still in the car to identify any impairment or intoxication face-to-face.

The officer will identify whether the person has bloodshot eyes, soiled clothing, fumbling fingers, alcohol containers, drugs or drug paraphernalia, bruises, bumps or scratches or whether the person is slurring his or her speech, admission to drinking, abusive language, etc.

The officer will also identify any smells – alcoholic beverages, marijuana, cover up of odors, breath-sprays, or unusual odors.

Next time I’ll talk about additional observations the police officer should record before validly arresting the driver.

The answer is: yes, you can speed up the process. You can walk into court on the first court date and plead guilty.

This is NOT something I recommend. Why? Because the plea offer you’re likely to get on the first court date is likely the worst plea offer you could get. The DA knows you’re anxious to resolve the matter. Consequently, the Wake County DA will offer you a really bad deal, one that you should almost always refuse.

There may be circumstances in which you absolutely need to get the DWI or other criminal matter resolved right away. Perhaps you’re about to enlist in the armed forces. None of the branches will take an enlistee unless all criminal matters are resolved. Consequently, you may want to “get it over with.”

But for most people, waiting is the best thing to do. Why? Because as time goes on, the state’s position almost always weakens. And DAs get more eager to offer better pleas as time goes on.

Finally, in many cases, you won’t get all of the information about your case until at least 6 to 9 months after you are first charged. For instance, if you’re charged with a DWI, and as part of your arrest you submitted to a blood test.

The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), the agency that conducts the blood test, has such a backlog, that the results of the test won’t be available until at least 6 months after your arrest.

The answer is to sit tight and wait. At most, you’ll have to make a number of appearances. If you’re out-of-state, your attorney can make those for you.

But otherwise, you can go about your life, maybe save up some money for the fines and costs you’ll have to pay, and relax.

If you’ve been stopped for a DWI, and are concerned about losing your license, paying fines, being sentenced to probation or worse – jail – call me, a Raleigh, Cary, and Apex criminal lawyer, at (919) 352-9411 weekdays, evenings, weekends or Holidays.

Level 2 is the second most severe sentencing level under North Carolina’s misdemeanor statute. Punishment for a Level 2 DWI conviction involves a fine of up to $2,000 and imprisonment for 7 days to 12 months. If the sentence is suspended, the judge must impose an active term of 7 days in jail. Only Level 1 is tougher, which is basically double the Level 2 punishments

New York is taking drunk driving with a child under the age of 16 in the car a step further. According to CNN, New York has made driving drunk with a child a felony punishable up to four years in prison.

As you can see, many people – even sons and daughters of famous people – have been arrested on Driving While Impaired. While Driving While Impaired (DWI) is a criminal offense, it is one of the most common criminal offenses in the country.

People come to my Raleigh office ashamed of having allegedly committed a crime. But what I tell them is that while no one should drive drunk, people should understand that this is a relatively common occurrence.

It’s important, however, that if you are arrested in Raleigh, Cary, or Apex or any other part of Wake County on a Driving While Impaired (DWI) charge, you should understand that North Carolina and the Wake County District Attorney treat these incidents harshly.

It’s therefore in your best interest to hire an attorney who is going to work diligently and carefully on your case, and who is ready and willing to go to trial – including Superior Court Trial – in order to defend your rights.

As I’ve written elsewhere, there are a lot of defenses to DUI/DWI charges in Wake County and North Carolina. It’s in your best interest to defend against the charges with an attorney who will defend them properly.

In addition, in most cases, you are eligible for the restoration of limited driving privileges within the first 30 days of your arrest. And you are usually eligible for limited driving privileges even following conviction.

Call (919) 352-9411 anytime – weekdays, evenings, weekends or Holidays – for information on how I can help you defend against a DWI charge.

If your license has been has been revoked due to a charge of Driving While Impaired, you may be eligible for a limited driving privilege after the first ten (10) days of revocation.  A District Court Judge may issue the limited driving privilege, but only if you are eligible.  Since judges and legal clerks are not permitted to give you legal advice, it may be worth your while to hire an attorney to help you restore your limited driving privileges.

These limited driving privileges will include the privilege to drive your car to and from work.  Those times are presumed to be 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM.  If you are interested in requesting more than the standard hours, it’s advisable that you get a letter from your employer or boss saying that your work needs you to drive later or earlier in the day.

You will also need to:

1. Completed Petition for Limited Driving Privilege (Form AOC-CVR-9)
   
2. Copy of your substance abuse assessment.
   
3. Certified copy of seven-year driving history from Department of MOtor Vehicles.
   
4. Valid proof of insurance form DL-123 from your insurance company.
   
5. Fully completed, typed, proposed, limited driving privilege (3 copies) Form AOC-CVR-10 or AOC-CVR-11
   
6. Letter from employer verifying work hours – only if requesting more than the standard hours of 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

The application is submitted, and on the next business day you or your lawyer must appear in Courtroom 1A between the hours of 11:00 am and 2:00 pm in order to petition the court in person.

I’ve received calls about a Raleigh police checkpoint over this past weekend as well. If you’ve stopped at a drunk driving checkpoint in Wake County, or surrounding communities in the Research Triangle, and need an aggressive Raleigh DWI lawyer, contact me at (919) 352-9411 weekdays, evenings, weekends or Holidays for free advice.

Checkpoints require a lawyer who will investigate the legality of the checkpoint. The Supreme Court has laid down specific guidelines that police are required to follow when they set up a checkpoint to stop cars. If they have not followed those guidelines, you may escape a conviction, even if you were drunk at the time they stopped you.

In addition, there are a lot of ways to challenge the actual DWI tests they gave you at the time you were stopped. You need a lawyer who is going to fully defend you in the matter.

Feel free to contact me, a [#apecrimlawyer#], if you have any questions about your DWI or DUI arrest in Cary, Apex, or Raleigh. You can reach me at (919) 352-9411 weekdays, evenings, weekends or Holidays.

In most cases in North Carolina, a 30-day rehab would be overkill.  I recommend clients do get an alcohol assessment if they’ve been arrested for Driving While Impaired (DWI) in Raleigh, Cary or Apex, Wake County. 

There are several reasons to get an “alcohol assessment.” First, the assessment can be used to restore limited driving privileges if the driver’s license was automatically suspended at the time of arrest. Second, the assessment is useful if the driver ever faces a conviction, because obtaining an assessment prior to sentencing is considered a “mitigating” circumstance, and can improve the defendant’s sentencing position.

If you have recently gotten a DWI, DUI, Driving While Impaired, or drunk driving charge in Wake County, Raleigh, Cary, Apex, Holly Springs, or Fuquay-Varina, give me a call weekdays, evenings, weekends or Holidays.  I am a Apex, Cary, and Raleigh criminal lawyer who can give you specific advice on what your next steps should be to have your license restored and get on with your life.