McAllen DWI Lawyer Johnathan Ball

For a Free Consultation to discuss your options after a DWI arrest, and ways to avoid your license suspension, email Johnathan Ball or call 956.501.6565.

To discuss DWI related issues including:

• the reliability of Breathalyzer tests and other field sobriety tests
• the effects of a breath test refusal
• negotiating a plea bargain and the effects of pleading guilty
• drunk driving in combination with other traffic violations
• whether there was probable cause for a traffic stop when you were pulled over for drunk driving
• obtaining a temporary license or work license if your license is suspended

IF STOPPED, ARRESTED, OR ACCUSED OF A CRIME:

You do not have to say anything, except... you must, however, provide your true name and a true form of identification.

You do not have to consent to anything: If asked, you may tell the officer s/he may NOT search you, your car or your belongings.

If you are an adult suspected of DWI

Texas law says that people who have a Texas licenses have already implicitly consented, after their arrest, to provide a breath and/or blood test if requested to do so by an police officer. This implied consents arises only when driving in a public place. Examples of public places are public roads, highways, beaches, parking garages and other places where the public or a substantial part of the public may gain access.

Texas law provides that where the implied consent law is applicable, a person arrested for DWI may refuse to take the requested test. Such a refusal, however, may result in the following penalties:

a). Suspension of your driving privileges for 90 days for the first arrest for DWI.
b). A 180 day suspension for a subsequent arrest if, in the first arrest you refused to submit to testing or had an alcohol concentration of .08 or greater,
c). a one year license suspension if you have a prior conviction for DWI; and,
d). the admission into evidence of your refusal to take the breath test in the subsequent DWI criminal trial. The purpose of this admission, from the prosecution's viewpoint, is to imply to the judge or jury, that the refusal was premised on the belief that the driver thought he was too intoxicated to pass the test.

Driving privilege may be suspended if a person refuses a breath test requested by an investigating officer. However, the suspension can be avoided. A driver has the right to contest any suspension at an administrative hearing. The a driver’s license cannot suspend unless the Department of Public Safety proves by a preponderance of the evidence that a police officer had reasonable suspicion to stop the driver, probable cause of intoxication, and proof that all necessary warnings had been given prior to the breath test request

For a free consultation to discuss your options after a DWI arrest, and ways to avoid your license suspension, email Johnathan Ball or call 956.501.6565.