DUI: The License Killer

One of the biggest concerns that my clients have when facing a criminal DUI charge is the effect that the charge will have on their drivers license. Most people can deal with a little probation and some fines that come along with the criminal portion of their DUI but they can’t handle not having a drivers license, and th stakes just got even higher. As of November 2011 the revocation periods for licenses of DUI drivers just went up. There are now two sets of penalties for first time offenses:

1) if a person submits to a breathalyzer and blows below a .15 then their license will only be suspended for 6 months.

2) If a person blows above a .15 or refuses then their license is suspended for 6 months and they will have an 18 month restriction on their license that requires them to install an interlock device in their car. This is a total of 24 months that a person would have to have an interlock in their vehicle.

For a second offense it is a 1 year suspension with a 3 year restriction for a total of 4 years that a person would have to have an interlock in their vehicle

For a third offense a person is subject to a three year suspension and a 5 year restriction for a total of 8 years with an interlock device in their vehicle.

The cost of an interlock device ranges from 65-80 dollars per month.

If you are charged with a DUI get an experienced criminal defense attorney to protect your rights and your right to drive.

4th Amendment: Illegal searches and seizures

As a criminal defense attorney in Tulsa, OK I have seen many disturbing actions and trends by local law enforcement but none bother me as much as their blatant disregard for the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution. The 4th Amendment was designed to protect the citizens from unlawful intrusions by the government and is seen as a fundamental principal of criminal law. The right to be secure in our personal spaces and belongings is crucial to having a fair and impartial justice system, but that is not the way law enforcement seem to see it. Law enforcement, as proven by their actions in hundreds of cases a year, have no regard for the 4th Amendment rights of citizens and will trample on this right any chance they get if they believe the person whose rights they are violating is a “bad person”. The to compound the problem the only remedy that most individuals receive is the suppression of the evidence they obtained illegally and the cops that violated the law escape scott free without so much as a reprimand from the court or their superiors for their blatant violation of the law. Until such times as there are real consequences for officers who break the law and trample on the rights of citizens I fear that this trend will continue and the status quo of the the ends justify the means will remain and our criminal justice system, and individual citizens, will continue to suffer.