Can an DUI offender plea bargin a DUI case?
Due to current law enforcement trends that focus on the prevention of DUI cases through harsh penalization, most district attorneys refuse to negotiate plea bargains in DUI cases, especially if evidence of the violation is strong. In fact, many states have enacted laws prohibiting government attorneys from entering into plea bargains with DUI defendants. However, rare circumstances may reduce a DUI charge to a lesser offense, such as reckless driving or an open beverage violation.

What is a "rising BAC defense?"
It is illegal to have an excessive blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) at the time of driving, NOT at the time of being tested. Since it takes between 30 minutes and 3 hours for alcohol to be absorbed into the system, an individual's BAC level is likely to continue rising for some time after the individual has stopped drinking. Typically, it is an hour or more after a DUI apprehension when a blood, breath or urine test is administered to a DUI suspect. If the suspect's BAC level measures .10%, and assuming he or she has continued to absorb alcohol since the arrest, the suspect's BAC level at the actual time of driving may have been .07% or lower, depending on when alcohol consumption began. Thus, the suspect's BAC at the time of arrest may have been under the legal limit.

What DUI symptoms is an officer typically looking for?

The traditional symptoms of drug and alcohol intoxication are:

• Flushed face
• Red, glassy, or bloodshot eyes
• Odor of alcohol on breath and in vehicle
• Slurred speech
• Failure to comply with the officer's questions
• Staggering when exiting vehicle
• Instability on feet
• Leaning on car for support
• Combative, argumentative, or other inappropriate attitude
• Soiled or disorderly clothing
• Stumbling while walking
• Disorientation as to time and location

If the arresting officer does not read me my rights, can the case be dismissed?
No. Although the officer is supposed to give a 5th Amendment warning after placing a DUI suspect under arrest, quite often they do not. The only consequence to this is that the prosecution cannot use any answers to questions asked by the arresting officer to help their DUI conviction in a court of law.

If a police officer asks me if I've been drinking, do I have to answer that?
No. You are not required to answer any potentially incriminating questions. However, admitting that you have consumed one or two drinks is not necessarily incriminating, as it may not be sufficient to cause intoxication, and it may explain the odor of alcohol coming from you.  It may also display a willingness to cooperate with the officer, which is never a bad thing.

What is "mouth alcohol"?
"Mouth alcohol" refers to the existence of alcohol in the mouth or esophagus. If mouth alcohol is detected during a DUI breath test, the results can be inaccurately high. Breath machines assume that any detection of alcohol is coming from the lungs. Thus, even a tiny amount of alcohol breathed directly into the machine from the mouth or throat, rather than from the lungs, can have a substantial impact.

Mouth alcohol can be caused in many ways, such as belching, burping, hiccupping or vomiting within 20 minutes before taking a breathalizer test. In fact, using a breath freshener such as Binaca or Listerine, which contain alcohol, can cause the machine to produce an elevated BAC reading.  Dental bridges and dental caps can trap alcohol in the mouth, and a "reflux" condition from gastric distress or a hiatal hernia can also cause elevated BAC readings.