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Fight Drunk Driving Charges: Calvino Law Associates, DUI Attorneys

A DUI charge in Rhode Island or anywhere is no laughing matter. Penalties are stiff. It can mean driving suspension and the annoyance of attending safe driving classes. Driving restrictions placed on offenders can be life-changing. You need your car for work, to drive the kids around to school and activities. When the costs of driving under the influence (DUI) are added up, it is worth fighting the charges, if only to reduce their severity and the draconian penalties that go along with it.

The cost of a drunk driving charge is easily underestimated. People often think about the fine itself. They forget about related costs, the most significant of which is a big hike in insurance premiums. They may also not be aware that time behind bars in severe cases is a possibility.

What Attorneys Do

The most important things a DUI attorney does include:

• Finding flaws in the evidence against you and using it to win a dismissal, or at the very least, a reduction in charges and penalties
• Questioning the legality of sobriety checkpoints
• Challenging field sobriety tests and illegal testing
• Examining the elements of the DUI charge and attacks the most serious
• Challenging the basics of a Breathalyzer test

Drunk Driving Defenses

What defense will your lawyer use? Depending on the charges, a good attorney will employ whatever it takes to win.

• Affirmative defenses—all charges dismissed

• Attacks the circumstances of the arrest or facts as alleged by police
• Questions procedures that may have infringed on your rights as the accused
• Challenges the operational accuracy and condition of the DUI equipment used to support the charge

Charges that procedures by law enforcement violated your rights may be caused for exoneration as they are in any criminal defense.

Cost of a DUI Charge in Rhode Island

In round figures, a lost DUI case costs around $8800, broken down as follows:

• $5000 Attorney Fees
• $750 5-day Towing Fee
• $1000 Bail
• $1000 in Fines
• $350 Registration Reinstatement Fee
• $250 License Reinstatement
• $100 Ignition Interlock Device
• $6.50 Updated License

With the aid of a good attorney, you can see how the setting aside of charges eliminates many of the fee requirements; they will always argue, at minimum, for a reduction in penalties.

Penalties in Rhode Island for a First DUI Conviction

The consequences of a conviction for first offense DUI in Rhode Island can be extremely severe. They include a mandatory license suspension, community service, and hefty fines, as well as a possible jail sentence of up to one year. Fighting the charge on your own can be extremely difficult, if not impossible.

The Calvino Law Associates Promise

If you’ve been charged with a DUI, the first thing to do is call an attorney. The legal team at Calvino Law Associates has a stellar win record in DUI cases. It is not advisable to try to fight a DUI alone. More than likely, you will lose and spend the next year or two recouping your losses.

Our experienced legal staff of experts is here for you. Call us at (401) 205-3733 or use our online contact form. We serve Providence, North Kingstown, and the surrounding areas in Rhode Island.

Calvino Law Associates

373 Elmwood Ave.

Providence, RI 02907

(401) 205-3733

Charged with a DUI? How to Prevent Conviction in North Kingstown

Choosing to combine drinking and driving is a choice that, if pulled over, will very likely have lasting consequences. Driving while Under the Influence not only takes a financial toll but an emotional toll that can affect you and your family. In North Kingstown, there are a plethora of factors to take into account if you are charged with a DUI. The most important step you can take if you are charged is to get a DUI attorney – and fast.

There are two elements that need to be dealt with right away. Without swift action, a driver’s license suspension and breathalyzer test results can drastically change your life. First, having a driver’s license suspension will affect your day to day life by limiting your ability to go places. It will put a strain on your family as they adjust to the inconvenience of having to drive you around. After you have been initially charged with a DUI, it is important to hire an attorney so that you can request a hearing in court to appeal the license suspension. The circumstances surrounding the nature of your DUI will determine whether you can avoid a driver’s license suspension or not, in some situations you may have the option of a Drivers Improvement Program that will allow you to avoid a driver’s license suspension completely.

A breathalyzer test result is a critical factor that can either make or break your case. Since it is a mechanism that determines you Blood Alcohol Level, there is an assumption that positive test results will automatically lead to a conviction. That is definitely not true! There are a lot of factors that can interfere with an accurate breathalyzer test. Breathalyzer mechanisms are not all the same; different models have specific manufacturing guidelines that need to be followed for them to be used correctly. If police, for example, have not calibrated the breathalyzer by the manufacturing guidelines, you may have a case to prevent a DUI conviction. With a seasoned North Kingstown DUI attorney, beating a DUI conviction is possible!

DUI must-know facts for Rhode Island drivers

It is pretty much common knowledge that it is illegal in any state to operate a vehicle while over the legal limit of alcohol. Most states have set that legal limit at .08 BAC (Blood Alcohol Content). There are other areas of DUI in Rhode Island that every driver should know.

When drivers are pulled over for suspicion of driving under the influence, they are usually asked to submit to a breathalyzer test. Every driver has the right to refuse, but there is some information everyone should know before exercising this option.

Rhode Island has an implied consent law that states that all Rhode Island residents are expected to comply with any DUI tests administered by a police officer. A failure to comply with these tests can lead to harsher sentences with a DUI conviction.

It is important to consider this because Rhode Island has a ‘look back’ period of five years. That means the court can look back for as many as five years and consider your DUI conviction when resolving another case involving you. Although it is your right to refuse a breathalyzer test that refusal could come back to haunt you for years to come.

There is also a new law coming into effect in 2015 that every Rhode Island driver should know. Interlock devices will be used in the vehicles of repeat offenders as well as drivers who showed a BAC of 0.15 or over at the time of their arrest.

Interlock devices require drivers to pass a breathalyzer test before the car will start. The price for those devices is required to be paid by the offender. The lowest cost of a standard interlock device is a leasing option that starts around $65.00 per month. State law prohibits drivers from owning these devices and mandate that they must be leased.

DUIs can be very expensive, but if you know what mistakes to avoid, you could save yourself a lot of money in fines when all is said and done. However, just because you are arrested for DUI does not mean you are guilty right away.

A DUI attorney at Calvino Law Associates can help you put together the best possible defense for your DUI charge. We can also advise you on the best ways to reduce any penalties, fines and jail time. For an experienced DUI attorney in Providence or North Kingston, visit our downtown office or call today and speak directly to one of our lawyers.