Ann Arbor Drunk Driving Lawyer 

A drunk driving charge can lead to a suspended license, substantial legal fees and fines, and probation or jail time, which can put the brakes on both your personal and professional life. An Ann Arbor drunk driving lawyer with experience winning cases in your local courts can help you achieve the best possible outcome in your case, to minimize or eliminate your fines and the time you are kept off the road so that you can get back to your normal life. 

Ann Arbor Drunk Driving Statutes

Knowing the risks associated with drunk driving and related charges is important to frame the importance of hiring an attorney. When a driver is found to have been engaging in drunk driving, they are deemed unable to effectively operate their motor vehicle as a result of intoxication. While there is generally a minimum blood-alcohol content (or BAC) that is associated with drunk driving, a driver can still be charged with driving while intoxicated when under the BAC limit if their ability to operate the vehicle was inhibited due to chemical or alcohol intoxication. 

Drunk driving in Ann Arbor and across Michigan is defined as: 

• Driving while intoxicated or impaired by alcohol, a controlled substance, or other intoxicating substance 
• With a bodily alcohol content of .08 (driving while intoxicated offense) or .17 or more (high BAC crime)
• With any amount of a controlled substance in your body

Determining when the law was violated often depends on the perception of the police and the outcome of chemical tests. However, neither the police nor such tests are perfect measures of determining whether or not you were intoxicated at the time of the offense.  

Your experienced criminal defense attorney intimately understands what the police commonly report to justify an arrest and what the prosecution must prove to successfully obtain a conviction against you. When any factors are lacking or missing, your drunk driving attorney will help you present your defense in the strongest light possible.

Field Sobriety Tests are Often Incorrect

In cases where the BAC of the driver is below the legal limit, but the charge persists, the failure of the driver on field sobriety tests is often pointed to by the prosecution in support of the charge. If you were subjected to field sobriety tests and the police determined you were intoxicated, you may have been the victim of incorrect testing procedures. 

The police have very specific steps and processes that they must follow when conducting field sobriety tests, and when they make mistakes, the test should not be admissible in court. Your experienced defense attorney in Ann Arbor understands how to challenge these tests and will carefully review the footage and transcript of your arrest to determine whether any violations occurred and, if so, to ensure that the evidence is not allowed in court to be used against you. 

Contact an Ann Arbor Drunk Driving Lawyer Now

For a risk-free assessment to discuss your situation and determine how we can help you achieve the best possible outcome of your drunk driving charge, schedule a consultation with The Law Offices of Bradley J. Friedman today.