The lights are flashing in your rear-view mirror and your heart starts pounding. You’re being pulled over, and you’ve definitely had a few drinks. What happens next?
Field Sobriety Testing and DUI Arrests
A police officer can ask you to complete a field sobriety test, which is helpful for police to weed out people who don’t really need to submit to a breath test. Naturally, if you don’t appear intoxicated or impaired during the field sobriety test, the officer may be comfortable letting you go.
However, failing a field sobriety test can lead to the officer asking you to take a Breathalyzer… and it can lead to arrest.
What Happens When the Cuffs Go On?
You’ll be taken to your local police station and asked to submit to chemical testing. It’s important that you talk to your Chicago DUI lawyer as soon as possible — preferably before you even talk to police about your innocence or guilt — because your attorney can give you valuable guidance on what to do next.
Make sure you follow your lawyer’s advice; it can change the outcome of your case.
Your attorney will evaluate everything that’s happened to you, including the circumstances surrounding your arrest, and he’ll make sure that police haven’t violated your rights.
If you do have to go to trial, your lawyer will be there with you every step of the way.
After a DUI Conviction
A DUI conviction is serious in the state of Illinois. If you are convicted, you’ll likely lose your driver’s license (your attorney may be able to work with the judge so that you can still drive to work, but every case is different). Depending on your past record and the judge’s determination of your punishment, you could end up paying fines or spending time behind bars.
Attorney Matt Fakhoury, Chicago, Skokie, Rolling Meadows and Schaumburg.
