Chicago Criminal Lawyer Blog
Being arrested for a DUI can be a very confusing and stressful experience for most people. Based on my over-27 years of experience in handling DUI cases throughout Chicago, Cook County, DuPage County Kane County, and Lake County, I can tell you that most of the people that I have represented for a DUI are not criminals, nor are they bad people. Most of the people that I have represented for a DUI are hard-working citizens who have no criminal record. Some of them have never even received a traffic ticket. They simply made a mistake and were at the wrong place at the wrong time when they were caught driving when they had too much to drink. As a result, most of the people calling me wanting to discuss their DUI have lots of questions and want some guidance on what they need to do and what is about to happen to them. I want to take this opportunity to explain the process and what to expect.
If a police officer takes you down to the police station and asks you to take a breathalyzer test you have the right to refuse to take a breathalyzer test. But if you refuse to take a breathalyzer test, you will be facing a mandatory 12-month suspension of your driver’s license. If you agree to take a breathalyzer test then you must listen very carefully to the instructions given to you by the police officer. If you fail to properly blow into the machine, that failure will be considered a refusal to take a breathalyzer test which will result in the 12-month suspension. It’s not enough to argue you tried to follow the police officer’s instructions the best you could but failed to provide an adequate breath sample. It is your responsibility to listen to the instructions and provide the adequate breath sample.
If you take a breathalyzer test and the test indicates that the blood alcohol level in your system was .08 or above, you will be facing a six-month suspension of your driver’s license. The suspension of your driver’s license will begin 46 days after the arrest. Until then you can legally drive your car.