Driving while intoxicated is a very serious offense. People are regularly sent to prison for long periods of time because of it.
The reason that it’s taken so seriously is that individuals who are driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol sometimes injure or kill other road users since they are unable to pay complete attention to what they are doing or because their focus slips.
All a person has to do is shift their attention away from the road for a few seconds for an accident to happen, after all.
This post will explore this topic in more detail, focusing on the legal aspects of drunk driving cases, explaining how serious a DUI case is and at which point a lawyer should be called in.
Immediately Upon Arrest
If you have been arrested, a lawyer’s help is needed immediately. Under no circumstances should you go into a police interview without a lawyer. The police will do everything they can to try and get you to make an admission of guilt before your lawyer’s arrival. Do not talk to them. Exercise your constitutional right to silence until you have a lawyer present. If you make any admissions of guilt in the interview room your case could be negatively affected. Sometimes people who have been involved in motor accidents make admissions of guilt even though they were not responsible. This is mainly due to the intense emotions they are experiencing. Make sure that you do not do this.
If you are goaded into saying something that you do not mean or that is not a true reflection of the events, tell your lawyer. It is your lawyer’s job to make sure that you do not go to prison, even if you are guilty. By telling your lawyer that you made an admission of guilt or said something that could give the police the impression you were guilty, they will have time to develop an adequate defense. In terms of asking for a lawyer, the minute the police tell you that you are under arrest or start questioning you, request one. If the police do not call for a lawyer then they are themselves breaking the law. Say absolutely nothing until your lawyer arrives. Make sure that you get the best lawyer that you can, too. The better your lawyer is, the stronger your chances of avoiding jail are.
After Being Injured
A lot of people’s first instinct upon hearing the words ‘drunk driving’ is to think about the people responsible for causing accidents of this kind, not the victims. However, victims themselves need to enlist legal help after accidents. If they do not, they could end up not getting paid the damages they are owed. The Big Auto Attorneys make clear on their website that the victims of car accidents could be owed huge amounts of money. The only way to get compensation after a car accident is to enlist the help of a personal injury attorney.
There are two ways that compensation can be made: Through insurers and privately. The latter tends only to happen in court, i.e., when a judge orders a drunk driver to pay a victim a fixed amount of compensation or when the drunk driver is threatened with court and agrees to a private settlement with their victim. Most personal injury attorneys get people compensation through insurance companies, too. Insurance companies are notoriously tricky, which is why you’ll need a lawyer’s help if you want to get money out of one. It is almost impossible to extract compensation from insurance firms without legal assistance.
Severity of DUI Cases
You need to understand how serious DUI cases are. They are one of the most oft-prosecuted types of legal cases in the United States. Unfortunately, drunk driving is very common. While most drunk drivers are not caught, some end up colliding with other road users and seriously hurting them. Drivers who do collide with other road users and are caught tend to be sent to prison, no questions asked. Most are remanded in jail. If you have been arrested for drunk driving and another person was hurt, this is likely something you already know.
If you have been involved in an accident and are the victim, however, then you need to make sure that you collect as much evidence as you can. The more evidence you get, the better. Your legal defense really hinges on the amount of evidence present. The best type of evidence after an auto accident is video or photographic. Video and photographic evidence can be good in court because it leaves no room for questions or doubt relative to your story. You should also try and obtain a medical certificate, too. A medical certificate certifying the extent and nature of your injuries will help you to get the compensation you deserve.
Being Truthful
If you are involved in a drunk driving accident, whether you’re the victim or the negligent driver, you need to be truthful. Honesty is essential in law. When people lie to the police, not only are they often caught, but they are essentially mocking the legal system of this nation, which is one of the best in the world. Truthfulness and honesty is crucial. However, just because you intend on being honest that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t still keep your mouth shut until your lawyer arrives. Saying too much (and being too honest) can work against you in a police interview room. Your lawyer will decide how much you should say.
As the victim of an accident, truthfulness is important for you, too. If you exaggerate or lie about your injuries or how the accident happened, you could get into a lot of trouble. You could also negatively affect the life of the drunk driver. If you lie, for example, about how the accident occurred, the other driver could end up being punished excessively. Always be honest, in life and when involved with the law.
Drunk driving accidents often result in injuries and fatalities. If you have been involved in one, whether you are the victim or the drunk driver, you need a lawyer’s help. Make sure that you find the most qualified, experienced lawyer you can. You can do that by conducting an online search and then reading the reviews of the lawyers that come up.