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An affirmative defense can work for a DUI

| Nov 29, 2017 | Criminal Defense |

Getting charged with a DUI is a shock, and you probably want to immediately do everything you can to get out of the risk of a conviction. Don’t let your fear of getting into trouble make you admit to wrongdoing or say something that incriminates you. The best thing to do after an arrest is simply to stay quiet and seek the help of your attorney.

There are defenses to DUIs, but it’s harder to defend you if you’ve already admitted to a crime. Even if you do admit to a DUI, you can still defend yourself in hopes of seeking a lesser penalty or no penalty at all. For instance, you may be able to claim that it was necessary for you to drive drunk. For example, if you are at home and someone gets hurt, you may feel you have no choice but to drive him or her to the hospital. To support this defense, you need to show the court that you chose the lesser of two evils by driving drunk.

Another reason you could have driven drunk is if you were under duress. An example of this would be if someone carjacks you and forces you to drive despite your intoxication. You are considered to be under duress if you fear a serious injury or death by not driving.

Another good defense is involuntary intoxication. Did you leave the club feeling a little more woozy than you should have when you were only drinking soda? If so, you could have had a spiked drink and been involuntarily intoxicated. Our website has more on defenses like this one and how they could help you.