If you have the facts or law on your side, you may be able to make a favorable deal on a California DUI charge.
Contrary to popular belief, most legal cases — both criminal and civil — never make it to trial. In the criminal world, plea bargains are struck in the majority of cases. DUI cases are no different; a skilled Orange County DUI attorney can often have DUI charges reduced to a wet or dry reckless charge or even have the charges dismissed entirely.
Of course, negotiating a plea depends on the facts of the case — and on your attorney. Learn more about how your lawyer can help you “cop a plea” on a California DUI charge.
Evaluating The Evidence
The first step in building a case for a plea bargain is a thorough evaluation of the evidence against you and the strengths and weakness of the state’s case. Many people mistakenly believe that an attorney just has to be a fast talker to get a good plea bargain. This simply is not the case; a lawyer has to put in work to analyze your case before going to the prosecutor to attempt to get a deal.
First, your Orange County DUI attorney will investigate the facts of the case to see if there are any possible defenses to the charge. The police may have violated your rights in stopping or arresting you, or made a mistake when they tested your breath, blood or urine. If the police did this, your attorney could have a strong case for getting the charges reduced or dismissed. Beyond police error, there may be a factual defense to the charge. There are many reasons why you may appear to be intoxicated — or had a false positive breath test — when you were actually sober. A false positive blood alcohol content result could be due to a medical condition like diabetes or GERD, or a special low carb diet. Or you could appear to be drunk because of a medical condition, such as a muscle coordination issue that makes you appear to stagger or be unsteady on your feet.
Next, your Orange County DUI attorney will use his experience handling DUI cases to convince the prosecutor that your charges should be reduced or dismissed. A seasoned lawyer will know how cases similar to yours are usually handled by the state — and will be able to use this knowledge to his advantage. This is why it is so important to hire a DUI defense lawyer who has handled many cases in your jurisdiction. In Orange County, the Chambers Law Firm has handled hundreds of DUI cases and use this knowledge and experience to negotiate a deal.
If your lawyer cannot achieve a favorable plea bargain, he may recommend that you take the case to trial. The decision to go to trial is yours to make, but your attorney’s advice and experience is invaluable in making this decision. Going to trial can be risky, but it may be necessary if the prosecutor is unwilling or unable to make a deal. Talk to your lawyer about your options, including the possible outcomes of a trial, before making a decision about how to proceed.
When you hire a skilled Orange County DUI attorney, you are gaining the significant advantage of having a lawyer who knows the system, the law and how to negotiate with the prosecutor. As a former prosecutor, Attorney Dan E. Chambers knows how to strike a deal for his clients. Contact the Chambers Law Firm today at 714-760-4088 or dchambers@clfca.com to learn how our firm can help you if you’ve been charged with a California DUI.
