Posted on December 17, 2020 in Criminal Law

As the winter holidays approach, including potential New Year’s Eve festivities, even during the age of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an increased likelihood of cases involving DWI (driving while intoxicated), DUI (driving under the influence), and even BWI (boating while intoxicated). As such, there is an equal increase in vigilance from law enforcement with regards to policing drunk driving. With that in mind, here is more information about one of the first things that will happen if you do get pulled over for a DWI this holiday: the breath test.

How Breath Can Be Tested for Alcohol

Alcohol moves through the alveoli of the lungs when it is consumed and evaporates into your breath. This “alveolar air,” when exhaled, provides substantial evidence to breathalyzer and other related breath tests of blood alcohol concentration (BAC). This allows officers to instantly know whether someone is drunk enough to be arrested instead of having to wait for the results of a blood or urine test.

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 Posted on November 30, 2020 in DWI / DUI

DWI (driving while intoxicated), DUI (driving under the influence), and even BWI (boating while intoxicated) are all common charges throughout the San Antonio area. However, one charge is not discussed nearly as often and yet has very serious consequences, in and outside of the courtroom: intoxication assault. Here is how Texas law defines intoxication assault, including its associated terminology and penalties.

Intoxication Assault Defined

Per Section 49.07 of the Texas Penal Code, a person commits intoxication assault if that person causes serious bodily injury to another:

• While operating an aircraft, watercraft, or amusement ride while intoxicated;
• While operating a vehicle in a public place while intoxicated; or
• As a result of assembling an amusement ride while intoxicated.

There are two key phrases in this definition of intoxication assault: "while intoxicated" and "serious bodily injury." In terms of operating motor vehicles or other modes of transportation while intoxicated, in Texas, an adult of the age of 21 or older cannot operate such a vehicle with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .08% or higher. When that happens, a charge of driving while intoxicated (DWI) is filed against the intoxicated driver; however, compound that with “serious bodily injury” of someone else, and there is intoxication assault.

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 Posted on November 12, 2020 in DWI / DUI

While being arrested and charged with DWI In Texas is bad enough, carrying with it the potential for severe penalties, including fines of up to $2,000, jail time of up to 180 days, and a license suspension if convicted for the first time alone, being charged with additional crimes at the same time certainly exacerbates your likelihood of a lighter sentence. These additional crimes, often referred to as “enhancements” when charged, will compound and complicate your DWI charges, leading to steeper penalties and punishments. Here is a profile of some common DWI enhancements.

10 Common Enhancements That Might Accompany a DWI

There are myriad charges that can accompany a DWI if you are not careful. Here are some particularly common simultaneous enhancements that could compound your sentencing and make your case much more difficult to defend.

Such enhancements include:

 Posted on October 22, 2020 in DWI / DUI

With periods of “No Refusal” for Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) testing being expanded across Texas, it is useful to know your rights when it comes to breath tests, blood tests, urine tests, and other sobriety tests. In particular, you must consider “implied consent” and how it can affect you if pulled over for driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Texas.

What Is Implied Consent?

While it might seem otherwise, driving throughout the United States is considered a privilege and not a right. This is why when you first get a driver’s license you are required to take tests. In taking and passing those tests and agreeing to the terms of your licensure, you are essentially waiving your rights to be reckless on the road. Most roads are public roads anyway, governed by the rules set forth by your local jurisdiction. To break those rules is to put other people’s safety at risk, which is against the law. By getting that driver’s license, you are giving your “implied consent” to have your blood or your breath tested for alcohol content, which can impair your driving abilities.

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 Posted on October 08, 2020 in DWI / DUI

Data over the last few years suggests that San Antonio leads the nation in drunk driving arrests; in fact, from 2009 to 2018, the city of San Antonio had the highest DWI/DUI arrest rate among U.S. cities with 5,181 arrests per 100,000 people, for a total of 77,357 arrests, according to SmartAdvocate. This leads to the important question: What precautions are being taken to prevent driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Texas?

6 Ways the Government Is Helping in the Fight Against DWI

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published numerous strategies for how Texas and other states can—and oftentimes do—curb DWIs by raising awareness and better targeting this infraction. Among their suggested methods of curtailing DWIs are:

 Posted on September 21, 2020 in DWI / DUI

There are many penalties that you can face if you are convicted in Texas for driving while intoxicated. While prison time is a frightening possibility, the loss of your driving privileges is almost a given and may have a lasting effect on your life. Not being allowed to drive could cost you your job and leave you reliant on others for your basic transportation needs. A knowledgeable attorney can help you regain your driving privileges and guide you through the license reinstatement process once you are eligible.

How Long Might You Lose Your License?

The driver’s license suspension that you receive after a DWI conviction is a criminal penalty that is separate from the administrative license suspension that many people receive after being arrested on suspicion of DWI. In Texas:

• A first-time DWI conviction includes a driver’s license suspension of 90 days to one year.
• A second or third DWI conviction includes a driver’s license suspension of 180 days to two years.

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 Posted on September 09, 2020 in DWI / DUI

When a person is charged with driving while intoxicated, there is a chance that they will be dissatisfied with the outcome of their court case. They may believe that they were unjustly convicted for the charge or unfairly punished after the conviction. Luckily, anyone who has been convicted of a crime in Texas has the right to file an appeal with a higher court. An appellate court has the authority to overturn a conviction or send the case back to the lower court for a new trial with new instructions.

When Should You Appeal?

Though you always have the option of appealing your conviction, you will need a strong argument if you hope to be successful in your appeal. When an appellate court considers your case, it is not retrying your case from the beginning. Your appeal must explain how the lower court misapplied the law in a way that may have affected the outcome of your case.

Common reasons for appealing a DWI conviction include:

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 Posted on August 31, 2020 in DWI / DUI

Throughout the year, police departments across the U.S. use initiatives that increase awareness and enforcement of the laws against driving while intoxicated. Some enforcement methods are illegal in Texas, even though they are legal in other parts of the country. For instance, Texas does not allow sobriety checkpoints. Another term you may hear police departments use is “saturation patrols.” The goal of saturation patrols is the same as sobriety checkpoints, but police implement saturation patrols in a way that gets around the legal controversy of checkpoints.

Defining Saturation Patrols

A saturation patrol is an increased presence of police officers at targeted times and places for the purpose of discouraging DWI incidents and catching alleged drunk drivers. For instance, a police department may have more officers patrolling high traffic areas during holiday weekends because there are typically more drunk drivers on the road during a special occasion when people are attending parties and celebrating. Announcing the time of a saturation patrol in advance and the number of resulting arrests afterward is part of the strategy in hopes that it will discourage people from drinking and driving.

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 Posted on August 10, 2020 in DWI / DUI

Although police officers are held to a higher moral standard than most civilians are, they are still capable of making mistakes like any other person. For instance, an officer’s bias could affect their decisions if they stop you on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. An officer is required to have reasonable suspicion that you are violating the law in order to stop you and probable cause that you have committed a crime in order to arrest you. This means that the officer should look at the evidence objectively before concluding that you are intoxicated, but some officers have already formed their opinion before they even talk to you. You may be able to defeat a DWI charge against you if you can prove that the officer’s confirmation bias was the reason for your arrest.

What Is Confirmation Bias?

When a police officer already suspects that you are intoxicated, they will pay more attention to evidence that confirms their bias or interpret evidence in a way that supports their bias. This is known as confirmation bias, and there are several ways that an officer may unintentionally use it during a DWI stop:

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 Posted on July 31, 2020 in DWI / DUI

Many people expected the number of arrests in Texas for driving while intoxicated to decrease this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are a couple of factors that seem to logically point towards this:

• Many restaurants and bars have been closed, which reduces the number of people driving home after drinking.
• People are more likely to stay at home as a precaution to avoid infection.

News reports in the early months of the pandemic suggested that DWI arrest numbers had dropped, but it seems that was only a temporary effect. A recent story on DWI arrests in San Antonio claimed that the number of arrests from Jan. 1 to July 6 was down only four percent from the same period last year – 2,255 arrests in 2019 and 2,168 arrests in 2020.

Reasons Behind the Numbers

Why has the number of DWI arrests in Texas not decreased as people predicted? There are a few possible explanations:

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