Help from a Fort Lauderdale DUI Attorney

When law enforcement pulls you over for suspected driving under the influence, you may believe that you must provide the police officer with a breath sample. In fact, it can work to your advantage to refuse a breathalyzer test. Instead, you should call an experienced Fort Lauderdale criminal attorney to represent you right away.

Why Refuse a Breathalyzer Test?

Law enforcement officers commonly use breathalyzer tests to determine whether or not drivers are above the legal blood alcohol content level of 0.08 percent. The fact that officers commonly use it does not necessarily mean that they are the most highly trained to administer the test, however. In fact, many law enforcement offices around the country provide very little training for their officers about how to administer it properly.

Given the chance for administrator error, it can be better for you to refuse a breathalyzer test and instead take your chances with being arrested. Once you are arrested, you can make a phone call to a knowledgeable Fort Lauderdale DUI attorney. Your lawyer can review the facts of your arrest and make sure that the officer had reasonable cause to pull you over and detain you on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Know Your Rights

Under the state’s implied consent laws, you are obligated to provide a breath sample only after you have been arrested for DUI. Before you are arrested, however, you can refuse testing. Your refusal can result in your drivers license being suspended for up to a year.

Still, when you retain a good Fort Lauderdale DUI attorney, you can file an appeal of your license suspension within 10 days and prove to the court why your detainment and arrest was unwarranted. It is possible that the court could throw out the charges against you, reinstate your license and rule against the officer who arrested you.

Hiring a Fort Lauderdale DUI Attorney

The circumstances of each DUI case differ, however, which is why you need a good lawyer working for you. If the officer suspects that you are truly are drunk or high, he or she will arrest you anyway. You have no legal obligation prior to the arrest to answer questions about if or how much alcohol you have consumed or provide a breath sample.

If you have been arrested for refusing a breathalyzer test, you have rights as a defendant. Contact an experienced Fort Lauderdale criminal attorney by calling Hassett & Associates, P.A. At 954-791-3939 tod