Georgia DUI Defense Lawyer
The Law Offices of Howard J. Weintraub, P.C. has been dedicated to protecting the rights of the accused in courtrooms throughout the Atlanta metro area and the entire state of Georgia for more than 22 years. Our lawyer has more than 30 years of criminal law experience, including several years as an Assistant United States Attorney in Atlanta and as a federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., and is ready and willing to fight to protect your rights today.
If you have been arrested and charged with a DUI in Georgia, you may have some mistaken ideas about what you are facing. That is okay, as many people do. The important thing is to not let any ideas or feelings you have right now prevent you from contacting a lawyer as soon as possible.
Some of the more common myths and misconceptions we see include:
- "I failed the field sobriety tests and the Intoxilyzer breath test, an attorney can't help me."
Wrong. The way you supposedly performed during the field sobriety evaluations is dependent upon the subjective evaluation of the officer who arrested you. More importantly, according to the instructional manual used to train your arresting police officer, the validity of field sobriety testing "applies only when the tests are administered in the prescribed, standardized manner; and only when the standardized clues are used to assess the subject's performance; and only when the standardized criteria are employed to interpret that performance. If any one of the standardized test elements is changed, the validity is compromised." As to the Intoxilyzer 5000 breath machine test result, it is not necessarily reliable, as a person's physiological circumstances: such as having not eaten for several hours before drinking the alcohol; or being on a low carbohydrate diet; or having low body fat content; or being a diabetic, can impact on the machine's reliability and accuracy. Former federal prosecutor Howard J. Weintraub successfully has challenged the results of the supposed field sobriety evaluations and the Intoxilyzer 5000 breath machine test result in courtrooms throughout Georgia and has gotten dozens of DUI charges dismissed.
- "They can’t charge me with a DUI because I wasn't even drunk."
Wrong. You do not have to be a falling down drunk. Georgia DUI law allows prosecutors to sustain a charge even when an individual's blood-alcohol content is less than the 0.08 threshold. In addition, the threshold for individuals driving commercial motor vehicles has been set at 0.04 BAC and the threshold has been set at 0.02 BAC for drivers under the age of 21.
- "My last drunk driving conviction was more than 5 years ago. I won't face any increased penalties."
Wrong. Judges go beyond Georgia’s “five-year look-back period” when determining sentences in DUI cases. The reality is that a drunk driving conviction remains on your record forever and probably will be used against you by the judge determining your sentence on a subsequent DUI conviction occurring several years after your last conviction.
- "It's my first offense. I won't lose my license or have to go to jail."
Wrong. The reality is that if you are convicted of your first lifetime DUI, Georgia law mandates that you have to serve at least 24 hours of jail time and you face a potential sentence of up to 12 months in jail. Also, there is an automatic 12 month license suspension, but because this is your first lifetime conviction (or your first conviction within the five-year look-back period), Georgia law allows you to receive a limited use driving permit and your license can be reinstated after 120 days if you have met certain conditions.
Former Assistant United States Attorney
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At a time like this, assumptions can be your own worst enemy. Talk to someone who knows both sides of Georgia’s DUI law.
Call our law offices in Atlanta, Georgia, or contact us directly online for a free consultation. Our telephones are answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week — your message will reach us and will be returned as soon as possible. Major credit cards are accepted.
