If you’ve been drinking or taking drugs and you see the flashing police lights behind your car, you’ll probably panic. But if the officer arrests you for DUI, it’s important that you resist the urge to lose your head. Follow these steps to improve the likelihood of achieving an ideal outcome at your DMV administrative hearing after getting arrested for DUI.
When does the hearing happen?
When the police officer arrested you for DUI, he or she confiscated your California driver license and provided you with a pink temporary driver license, which is only good for 30 days. After those 30 days have past, your license will automatically be suspended UNLESS you request a DMV administrative hearing with 10 DAYS.
Tip 1: You must request a DMV hearing within 10 days after your arrest, or you will forfeit your right to one and your license will be automatically suspended.
How do I petition for the hearing?
You must request a hearing within 10 days over the phone by contacting your local DMV Driver Safety Office. A list of the offices and pertinent contact information can be found here.
Alternatively, schedule an initial consultation with Dan Chambers of the Chambers Law Firm by calling 714-760-4088, emailing dchambers@clfca.com, or sending an online message via the CONTACT button at the top of this page, and we will take care of scheduling this DMV administrative hearing for you. In your initial consultation, you can expect to receive personalized advice from Dan Chambers himself (never a lesser associate or staff member), who will immediately begin building your defense strategy. Not only will Dan Chambers take care of scheduling your DMV administrative hearing for you, he will help you through every step of the process and work hard each day to achieve the ideal outcome in your DUI case.
Tip 2: Request discovery ASAP
What is discovery?
When the DMV schedules your hearing, you’ll have an opportunity to review the DMV’s evidence against you. Remember, the DMV is like the “prosecutor” in this hearing because it is trying to suspend your license. You can request the “discovery” in your case—the arrest report, blood alcohol results, drug tests, and any other evidence the DMV will introduce against you during the administrative hearing. This information is key to winning the DMV hearing and preventing the suspension of your license. Dan Chambers of the Chambers Law Firm will tenaciously find ways to poke holes in this evidence and introduce instances where it could be cast into doubt. Especially if you’ve been arrested for marijuana or another DUI, the police officer’s assessment could by highly subjective and not at all accurate. Perhaps the officer assumed you were intoxicated, even though you weren’t. Perhaps the chemical tests you were subjected to were administered improperly. There are dozens of potential defense strategies that could be employed at the DMV administrative hearing.
Tip 3: Gather new evidence by serving subpoenas
What is a subpoena?
When you request discovery from the DMV, take the time to also serve subpoenas on the police agency and the relevant crime lab. Subpoenas are official requests for documented information to be used as evidence in court. Dan Chambers and his staff can help you do this effectively. The importance of these subpoenas cannot be stressed enough.
How can subpoenas help my case?
If you took a blood test, make sure you subpoena the lab work, chromatography, and other materials that were used to determine whether your blood analysis was conducted properly. You can also subpoena records about the maintenance and calibration of the blood or breath machines to figure out whether they were functioning at the most accurate level when they were used on you. If there are any mistakes revealed by these records, a forensic toxicologist may be able to provide testimony in court that the blood result cannot be relied on for complete accuracy.
Tip 4: Subpoena the arresting officer to be cross-examined at the DMV hearing
Cost/benefit analysis
While it will cost you $275 (paid to the law enforcement agency) have the arresting officer present at your DMV administrative hearing, it can often mean the difference between winning and losing. Attorney Dan Chambers will have the opportunity to cross-examine the officer and could potentially discover weaknesses in the case, improper or inadequate investigation methods, or inaccurate testing procedures for the breath and/or blood test.
Tip 5: Consider enlisting a forensic expert to testify at your hearing
Why would I need a forensic expert?
The only reasons DMV administrative hearings exist are to determine the following:
- Did the arresting officer have reasonable cause to conclude that you had violated California’s drunk driving laws
- Was your arrest entirely lawful
- Were you driving a vehicle with a blood alcohol level of .08 or more
In many cases, the decision of the hearing depends on the last reason, and having a forensic expert can make a tremendous difference in terms of the DMV’s official ruling. Depending on the circumstances of your case, enlisting a forensic expert to testify might be worth it.
For more DMV administrative hearing advice and expert DUI criminal defense strategies, call Dan Chambers NOW
Call Dan Chambers of the Chambers Law Firm for a free consultation about your DUI case today. Attorney Chambers will work on guiding you through the best ways to prepare for your DMV administrative hearing while beginning to develop a fantastic defense in your criminal case simultaneously.
A DUI arrest should never be taken lightly—get Southern California’s best DUI attorney on your side today by calling 714-760-4088, emailing dchambers@clfca.com, or sending an online message via the Chat box at the bottom right of this page today.
