Do You Need To Hire A DWI Lawyer?
DWI (driving while intoxicated) convictions can be devastating events. Such serious convictions can cause financial ruin, make you unemployable, and introduce other personal and professional problems. Because of the potentially catastrophic nature of a DWI conviction those who face a conviction invest as much money as they can to hire a DWI lawyer.
Is hiring a DWI lawyer really necessary? Why not just use a free public defender (PD)? First, it is a serious mistake to try to handle a DWI defense without an attorney. Despite the fact that a DWI is considered a misdemeanor offense, serious ramifications from a conviction can be vastly more costly than a felony.
Additionally, DWI lawyers have highly-specialized skills. Public defenders may be specialists defending cases involving a general criminal knowledge and rules of evidence. Public defenders can win common cases with their trial skills.
In contrast to a public defender, a DWI lawyer must be well-versed in the same areas as a PD, but also understand specifics unique to DWI defense. Many scientific issues are involved with DWI defense.
DWI lawyers must understand human physiology, pharmacokinetics, how breath testing devices work, breath testing procedural flaws, and electronics. They must be able to comprehend the laboratory's toxicology analysis, especially the alcohol content of the blood and urine tests.
There is a much material available offline and online about DWI defense. Educate yourself on the finer points of DWI defense, but don't rely on that as your sole source of defense.
You simply don't know the quality of the information. Even if these resources are written by the best in the field, this does not guarantee a successful defense in the hands of an amateur.
No matter how much you read on the subject of DWI defense, you are NOT a trial attorney. A blunder in the courtroom could cost you a your only chance of winning your case. Hiring a DWI lawyer after you've messed up your case could limit your appeal options if you lose.
A DWI lawyer needs to give you an honest assessment of your situation. You must thoroughly understand your options. Any competent attorney should be able to work within the current laws. An exceptional attorney will be aware of changes in the judicial system that could work in your advantage.
This article is ©2006 by Doug Smith, who provides many free and valuable articles on DWI Arrests. Learn more about DWI arrests, DWI attorneys, your DWI rights, the dangers of drinking and driving, and much more DWI information at http://DWI.FindCarsForHire.com. This article may be freely reprinted as long as this copyright notice remains intact, the article is unchanged, and all hyperlinks remain active and clickable.
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