New Arizona DUI Laws Are In Action Now

New Arizona DUI Laws In Affect After September 2008

Arizona DUI laws underwent significant changes in September 2008. These laws are in affect as of the date of this article.  Arizona already had some of the strictest DUI laws in the country.  During the 2008 legislative session the legislature amended Arizona’s already tough DUI laws to make them even harsher. This means that if your were arrested for a DUI after September 2008, the new law and DUI penalties apply to you.

New Second Offense DUI Time Frame

There were many new changes made to Arizona DUI law in 2008.  First, the prosecutor may now allege a prior DUI for up to seven years.  Under the previous law, the prosecutor could only allege a prior DUI for five years.  Unfortunately, regardless of whether your prior DUI occurred at the time when the law only allowed a prior for up to five years, the State may now use that prior up to seven years later.  This means many more people in Arizona will now be facing second or third DUI offenses because the prosecutor can now reach back seven years to find a prior DUI offense in your history.  So you will have a Second Offense DUI if you have a prior DUI within the last seven years.

No More Suspended Jail Sentences for Extreme & Super Extreme DUIs

In addition to expanding the time in which the prosecutor may allege a prior DUI, the new Arizona DUI laws enhances the mandatory minimum penalty for Extreme DUI and Super Extreme DUI offenders.  The Judge can no longer suspend a portion of your jail sentence if you are convicted of an Extreme (A.R.S. 28-1382(a)(1)) or Super Extreme (A.R.S. 28-1382(a)(2)) DUI.  This applies whether your Extreme DUI or Super Extreme DUI is a first or second offense.

New Extreme DUI Penalties

Under these new Arizona DUI laws, a person convicted of a first offense Extreme DUI, (BAC of .15 or more) in Arizona is facing a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 consecutive days in jail.  The new Arizona DUI laws require a minimum jail sentence of 120 days if you are convicted of a second offense Extreme DUI.

New Super Extreme DUI Penalties

The new Arizona DUI laws require a mandatory minimum jail sentence of 45 days for a First Offense Super Extreme DUI (BAC of 2.0 or more).  A 6 month jail sentence is required for a Second Offense Super Extreme DUI.

New Driver’s License Penalties

The new Arizona DUI laws also have several new consequences on your license.  First, before being allowed to drive following a suspension from MVD, a person charged with DUI will be required to obtained alcohol screening prior to reinstatement.  The requirement for alcohol screening is not dependent upon a conviction.  Also, following any DUI conviction, a person will be required to equip their vehicle with a certified ignition interlock for a period of not less than one year.  The period of time required for the interlock device can be expanded.

The new Arizona DUI laws are sure to affect many people.  Thus, people should be aware that if they or someone they know received a DUI conviction after September 2008, things have changed significantly and it important they contact an attorney to discuss their new case.  The new consequences of a DUI conviction can be life changing.

On May 12, 2010, Arizona DUI Attorney, Ted Agnick got his client’s Super Extreme DUI reduced to Reckless Driving. In this case, his client’s blood test result was a .212.  In addition to having an extremely high blood alcohol concentration, his client was involved in a rollover accident. This was tremendous for the client allowing him to avoid substantial DUI penalties.

Arizona DUI Attorney Ted Agnick was able to obtain this result because of potential procedural errors by the arresting police officer. Additionally, it appeared improper medical procedures were used that also may have resulted in the State’s blood results being suppressed. These issues, and some others, combined created the leverage necessary to negotiate this result and get all the DUI charges dismissed.

This result is a classic example of the value an experienced DUI lawyer can provide people charged with DUI. So, remember, do not give up on your case and explore all possible defenses.

As an Arizona DUI Attorney, I see Andrew Thomas’ (The Head Maricopa County Criminal Prosecutor) resignation as an opportunity for citizens accused of DUI to get better Justice in Maricopa County. Andrew Thomas’ last day as the Maricopa County Attorney is April 7, 2010. Many people see this as a change for the better. In fact, rumor has it that some Maricopa County Deputy County Attorneys (the attorneys that work for Andrew Thomas in the trenches prosecuting people for DUI on a daily basis) got together with Defense attorneys on the evening of April 6, 2010, to celebrate Andrew Thomas’ departure.

Andrew Thomas has been in the news a lot lately as he became so emboldened that he filed criminal charges against at least one Maricopa County Superior Court Judge. He also filed criminal charges against County Board Chairman, Don Stapely and County Supervisor Mary Wilcox. These three County Officials were defendants in Andrew Thomas’ unsuccessful federal civil-racketeering lawsuit he filed against them. These prosecutions resulted in Andrew Thomas reportedly being investigated by the FBI, the Arizona Attorney General’s Office and the State Bar of Arizona for alleged abuse of prosecutorial power in his handling of criminal cases against Stapley, Wilcox and a Superior Court judge.  It appears that his behavior got so far out of hand, the Feds had to step in.

Andrew Thomas’ policies affected many DUI prosecutions. My impression has been that many prosecutors wanted to do what they thought was justice and make better deals on cases or dismiss charges. However, they were bound by policy and could not participate in the justice system in the manner which they had hoped.

Andrew Thomas’ departure will hopefully result in more reasonable policies that will have a good affect on citizens charged with DUI in the Phoenix Area. It would be hard to imagine things getting any worse.

Home Detention Is Better Than Jail

Home Detention For Scottsdale DUIs

Home detention may soon become an available option in Scottsdale City Court.  This means citizens charged with DUI in Scottsdale City Court would be eligible to serve some of their jail sentence in “Home Detention” instead of the County Jail.  This is a huge benefit to people convicted of DUI.

The two biggest benefits for people convicted of DUI would be being able to get easier transportation from their home to work.  This is because most people charged with DUI serving long jail sentences also have their driver’s license suspended while they are serving their jail sentence.  So for most people, it is far easier to get a ride from their home as opposed to from the County Jail located near Durango and 32^nd Avenue.

The second huge benefit is that it will save people a lot of money.  People convicted of DUI must pay for their jail costs.  Currently, Maricopa County jail is charging Scottsdale $192 for the first day of jail and $72 for every day thereafter.  This can add up to quite a lot for people serving 30 days (the minimum sentence for a first offense extreme DUI) to six months (The minimum sentence on a Second Offense Super Extreme DUI).  The cost of home detention is far less per day and varies from service providers.  I have had clients pay less than $18.00 per day, after setup fees.  That’s a huge difference.

Under current law, a person must serve the first 15 days of their sentence in jail before they can serve any remaining portion of their sentence in home detention.  So, home detention does not mean a person will not go to jail at all, they must serve at least 15 days in jail.

Current law requires all home detention programs be approved by City Councils.  The Scottsdale City Council is currently scheduled to consider the home-detention and electronic-monitoring program on April 27, 2010, as part of its consent agenda.  If approved, a program may be put on place this summer.

But I was Not Driving, How Could I get A DUI?

Yes, You Can Get A DUI Even If You Were Not Driving

A common DUI question is whether a person can be charged or convicted of a DUI even if they were not driving when they were cited for DUI.  This typically happens when people are parked in a parking lot getting ready to leave or waiting for somebody.  I have seen it happen when people pull off the road because they think they may have had too much to drive.

That bad news is yes, you can be charged, cited and or arrested for DUI even if you were not driving when the police contacted you.  The good news is that it is that it may be difficult fr the prosecutor to convict you of DUI if you were not driving when the police contacted you.  If you are in this situation, I highly recommend you get an experienced DUI Lawyer to help you as you have a very good defense.

DUI cases that involve people not driving are commonly called Actual Physical Control cases and are referred to as APC cases. Driving is easy to understand, either your in motion or not.  Actual physical control of a motor vehicle applies when your vehicle is parked.  This can be if your just sitting in your car with engine running trying to stay warm until your ride comes.  It can be pulling of the road, shutting the car off but leaving the keys in the ignition.  I have heard of prosecutors claiming actual physical control when the engine was off, keys were out of the ignition on the passenger seat.

DUI prosecutions arise even when the person is not in their car when police arrive.  A common scenario I have seen is people crashing or leaving their cars then and then later, after police arrive, admitting to the police they were driving. In many cases like this, the police did not have probable cause to make a DUI arrest until the suspect opened their mouth and admitted they had been driving.  It is surprising how many people incriminate themselves this way.

Again, the god news is you if you have a case like this, you might have a winable case and definateley have a fightable case.  Therefore, I recomend you get the assitance of an experience DUI Lawyer as there are many legal neuances in fighting an APC case.

Going through a DUI prosecution is a nerve racking experience.  It is even worse when you do not understand what is going on with your case and what will be happening to you.  There is no need to go through the process of a DUI prosecution confused and misinformed.  Gaining a simple general understanding of the process will help alleviate anxiety and empower you to make and or feel better about decisions in your case.

Most people reading this blog have likely already been arrested for DUI and released.  They have a ticket and know they have an upcoming court date.  That is about all they know.  Some understand they may be receiving a 90 day driver’s license suspension which could start prior to their next court date.

You will gain a better understanding of the process by learning what has already happened in your case and then where it is headed.  Therefore, the explanation of the DUI process will briefly cover the DUI stop, arrest and processing before going forward to what happens at court.

Going through a DUI prosecution is a nerve racking experience.  It is even worse when you do not understand what is going on with your case and what will be happening to you.  There is no need to go through the process of a DUI prosecution confused and misinformed.  Gaining a simple general understanding of the process will help alleviate anxiety and empower you to make and or feel better about decisions in your case.

Inform yourself by reading or getting a cosultation from a lawyer.  Many DUI lawyers give free initial consultations.  It is time well spent.

DUIs have very unique issues not present in other criminal cases.  That is why it is unlikely a regular criminal lawyer can represent you as well as a lawyer very familiar with DUI cases.  Clearly, this is not an area other lawyers can dable in and do a proper job unless they can spend an inordinate of time getting up to speed.  I have received calls from lawyers asking for help because they represented a client, in a DUI case, they were trying to help and realized they got in over their head.  This is a key mistake you cannot make and should not make as you do not have to.

Typically, you can hire a lawyer with ten years DUI experience for the price of one with five DUI years.  You should try and get somebody with as much DUI experience as possible.  A good way to measure DUI experience is that the lawyer’s case load should consist of 51% or more DUI cases during each year of their experience.  The higher the percentage, the better.

DUI cases involve very unique aspects not commonly found in other criminal cases.  One significantly different area is your driver’s license consequences.  Most criminal cases do not involve driver’s license issues.  However,  DUI cases are loaded with driver’s license issues. In fact, this is one area where attorneys can save their client’s significant money.  Unfortunately, this is also an area where many lawyers make mistakes or neglect.  A lawyer can be a stellar criminal lawyer, however their unfamiliarity with driver’s license consequences will be one of the biggest barriers they face in providing good DUI representation.

In fact, many DUI prosecutors who switch their careers over to defending DUI cases have weaknesses in understanding driver’s license consequences and the process of dealing with the Motor Vehicle Department. (“MVD”)  This is because as prosecutors, they are not involved with MVD hearings, appeals, notices etc.  So when they switch sides, they are unfamiliar MVD and its processes.

Proper defense of DUI cases also requires a thorough understanding of “Field Sobriety Tests.” (“FSTs”)  All other non DUI criminal cases do not use FSTs.  These are unique to DUI cases and qualified lawyers need to be thoroughly familiar with them.  This is why I personally have paid for and attended training in administering FSTs and have the current FST training manuals in my office.

Most criminal cases do not involve breath testing machines.  Arizona, typically uses the Intoxilyzer 5000 or 8000 breath testing machines.  In order to properly defend a DUI case, the attorney must be thoroughly familiar with the Intoxilyzer in order to detect and identify all its problems.  That’s why I personally paid for and attended special training in Florida to participate in a breath testing course given to police.  It is also why I own my very own Intoxilyzer.  Regular criminal lawyers simply are not familiar with the breath testing machines, let alone thoroughly familiar with them.

Nothing can be farther from the truth.  In fact, the court prefers you be represented by a lawyer.  This helps things run smoothly for the court.  This is because lawyers are familiar with the system and will move you through the court system more efficiently.  Thus, saving the court  time.  Which is a precious resource to the court and you.  Typically, the court will also view you as more responsible and as a person who takes the matter seriously.  These things cause you to be viewed in a more positive light by the court.