Underage client was detained at an intersection in Atlanta because her intoxicated passenger was causing a disturbance. The disturbance drew the attention of a City of Atlanta police officer who was nearby working the scene of an unrelated car accident. The officer approached our client, searched her car and immediately placed her under arrest. The officer failed to complete a DUI investigation and failed to read our client Georgia’s Implied Consent notice. Client was never offered the opportunity to take a chemical test and was immediately transported to the jail. The DUI was dismissed and we were able to successfully resolve her case with a plea to a minor traffic offense, a small fine, and community service hours.
Recent DUI Defense Successes in Georgia Courts
DeKalb County State Court: Refusal and Speeding – DUI Dismissed
Client pulled over for speeding on Ponce de Leon Avenue. Officer noticed wristbands from a bar on client’s wrist and suspected him of drinking. Report noted many of the usual manifestations of impairment – strong odor of alcohol, slurred speech, and clues of impairment on the standardized field sobriety evaluations. Client was arrested for DUI and Speeding but he refused the State’s request for a chemical test. While viewing the video, we heard a conversation between two officers after they had dropped off our client at the jail. The arresting officer told the assisting officer that the DUI charge against our client would likely be dismissed. When we approached the State with that information and urged a dismissal of the DUI charge due to a lack of evidence showing impairment, the State refused. After motions were heard in the case, the State finally agreed to dismiss the DUI. Client entered a plea to Reckless Driving and was thrilled that we were able to save his license, keep him out of jail, and avoid a DUI conviction!
Fulton County State Court: .222 Breath Test and Accident – DUI Dismissed
Client was pulled over after failing to maintain her lane and not using her turn signal while turning onto Piedmont Road in Atlanta. As the officer approached her, she accidentally backed into his patrol car! She was charged with Failure to Signal, Failure to Maintain Lane, Reckless Driving, Improper Backing, DUI Per Se, and DUI Less Safe. At the jail she blew .222 on the Intoxilyzer 5000. Her case began in the City of Atlanta Municipal Court but we decided to transfer it to the State Court of Fulton County for trial. A year and a half after her arrest, her case was finally accused in Fulton County. We knew that there were extenuating circumstances with one of the police witnesses and that the State may have trouble getting him to come to court to testify. The State offered to dismiss the DUI and the client entered a plea to Reckless Driving. Excellent result for a .222 accident case!
Fulton County State Court (State Patrol Nighthawks): .122 Blood Test DUI Dismissed
Young female client pulled over in Buckhead by GSP Nighthawks for Failure to Maintain Lane. Arrested for DUI, refused breath test, but Trooper obtained a search warrant for blood. GBI test result was 0.122. After a contested hearing on our motions, the State conceded that the arrest was illegal, and dismissed both counts of DUI. Client simply pled Nolo to FTML, paid a fine and took a Defensive Driving course. Case closed.
Smyrna Municipal Court: .141 Breath Test – DUI Dismissed
Client was pulled over in Smyrna, Georgia for making an improper turn and driving with no headlights. The report noted that client smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech, and admitted to drinking three beers that evening. Client agreed to perform field sobriety evaluations and the video showed a mediocre performance on those evaluations. A breath test was administered at the scene and the result showed positive for alcohol. Client was subsequently arrested for DUI. When the officer read Georgia’s Implied Consent Notice, he gave our client some misleading information that led our client to submit to the state-administered breath test. At the City of Smyrna jail, our client blew a .141 on the Intoxilyzer 5000. We fought hard to convince the Prosecutor that the incorrect and misleading information persuaded our client to submit to the breath test. The Prosecutor eventually agreed and we resolved the case with a plea to Reckless Driving. Client’s license was saved, he stayed out of jail, and he avoided a DUI conviction!
Roswell Municipal Court: .163 Breath Test Case Reduced
After being stopped for Failure to Maintain Lane and Failure to Stop at Stop Sign, client agreed to take Field Sobriety Tests. Officer administered these tests very poorly, and otherwise our client looked and acted completely sober. Despite blowing .163 on the Intoxilyzer 5000, the prosecutor agreed that with the poor administration of FSTs and lack of manifestations, it was questionable that probable cause could be established. Reduced to Reckless Driving.
Cobb County State Court: Refusal and 2nd Offense in 10 Years – DUI Dismissed
Client was found in the parking lot of a business in Kennesaw, Georgia after hours. Two witnesses reported to the officer that client had been in an accident prior to when the police arrived on scene. The officer reported that our client was not responding to his questions and that there were two open bottles of liquor found in the car. Client’s case began in Kennesaw Municipal Court but was transferred to Cobb County State Court for trial. After several failed attempts to convince the Solicitor to dismiss the DUI, and a pre-trial conference with the judge, Client’s case was finally reduced to Reckless Driving on the morning of trial. This was a second DUI arrest in ten years, so the stakes were high and we had to keep fighting until we resolved it without a DUI conviction. Client entered a plea to Reckless Driving, paid the lowest fine allowable under the statute, and his case was closed!
State Patrol NightHawks: DUI Dismissed
Our young female client was stopped by the Georgia State Patrol Nighthawks in the Buckhead area for rolling through a stop sign. She had actually stopped at the balk line, then rolled forward to check for traffic before entering Roswell Road from a side street. After the case was bound over to Fulton State Court, a motion was filed challenging the traffic stop. When the State could not carry its burden of showing that the trooper had reasonable grounds to initiate the stop, our motion was granted and the entire case dismissed.
Juvenile Court: DUI Reduced to Reckless Driving
This 16-year old client was stopped in Sandy Springs after midnight for driving without headlights. She was arrested for DUI and submitted to a breath test, blowing 0.111 (the limit for under 21 drivers being 0.02). Two motion hearings were held in Fulton County Juvenile Court, and the case was set for an adjudication hearing (trial). We filed one last motion claiming the Implied Consent Law violated a child’s rights under the Juvenile Code; and after 18 months of vigorous defense, the ADA finally agreed to drop the DUI charge, and she admitted to Reckless Driving.
DeKalb County State Court: .232 Breath Test, Under-21, Accident – DUI Dismissed
Under-21 client was involved in a car accident in her neighborhood. As she was looking at the damage to her car, her passenger climbed into the driver’s seat, put the car into reverse and hit her! The Dekalb County Police Department was called to the scene and immediately arrested her for DUI, without doing any investigation or checking her for injuries. At the jail, she blew a .232 on the Intoxilyzer 5000. During a pre-trial hearing, it was clear that the officer did no investigation before deciding to arrest her. The Solicitor then requested a recess and offered to reduce her case to Reckless Driving. We were able to reset the case until the client turned 21 to save her driving privileges. Client entered a plea to Reckless Driving and was thrilled with the result.