Articles Posted in Tempe DUI Defense

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In a recent Arizona DUI decision, a defendant appealed his conviction for aggravated driving under the influence. The case arose just after midnight when the police arrested him for driving under the influence and performed an inventory search of his car. Inside his car, they found a pill bottle that contained Oxycodone. They took him to the police station, and he consented to a blood draw.

His blood alcohol level was .037, and he had 29 nanograms per milliliters of Oxycodone in his blood. At his time of arrest, his driving privileges were suspended. He was indicted for a count of aggravated DUI while impaired to the slightest degree, as well as aggravated DUI while Oxycodone or its metabolite was in his body and possession of Oxycodone. The last count was dismissed before trial.

At trial, the defendant presented evidence that he’d filled a prescription for immediate release Oxycodone shortly before, and the amount found in his blood fell within the therapeutic range. He also asked for an affirmative defense jury instruction based on A.R.S. § 28-1381(D). This law provided that someone using a drug as prescribed by a licensed medical practitioner wouldn’t be guilty of driving while drugged.

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Plus 3 Safety Tips for Drivers to Begin Your Year-End Holiday Festivities  

This holiday season we wish to remind Arizona drivers that the new ban on Texting and Driving in Tempe AZ is in effect.

Tempe joined Phoenix, AZ, and several other cities to ban texting and driving with what is being called the toughest law in the State.

Police will be on the lookout for drivers with cell phones in their hands.

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Extreme & Aggravated DUI on Priority Arrest List; but all Impaired Drivers at Risk

The Arizona Department of Public Safety announced today that it expects heavy travel traffic in the state this week.  Officers will be looking out for motorists driving impaired due to drugs or alcohol, distracted, drowsy, and impatient driving. History reveals that these factors result in arrests, and have proven to cause serious injury and deadly crashes.

During the winter months, the state of Arizona draws many visitors for its warm sunny weather, to visit family and friends, and to enjoy the many outdoor activities and attractions our sunny state has to offer. This is particularly true around the holidays.

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Causes and Consequences of Extreme DUI and Super Extreme DUI Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) The Wednesday evening, before Thanksgiving, is sometimes referred to in pop culture as “Blackout Wednesday”. It earned this nickname, due to the popularity of binge drinking that night.

Though the term is used loosely, binge drinking and its consequences are very serious matters. According to the National Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Binge drinking can lead to loss of consciousness, coma, and death when alcohol is consumed rapidly in large amounts.

The CDC reports that excessive drinking was responsible for 88,000 deaths in 2013.   Binge drinking leads to extraordinarily high levels of Blood-Alcohol Content (BAC) at or above .08 percent BAC during a short period of time. It is defined by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism as drinking 4 or 5 alcoholic beverages within about 2 hours.

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Arizona DUI Arrest Statistics

In looking back over the last six years of DUI arrest statistics released by the Arizona Governor’s Office on Highway Safety (AGOHS), we see an alarming trend in DUI arrests with Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) at the “Extreme” levels, which is 0.15 percent or higher. In 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 the average Blood Alcohol Content has been over 0.152 percent. Initial reports released for the first quarter of 2014 are showing relentlessness in this trend. Drinking in excess of the extreme impaired driving laws has evidently become the norm, rather than the exception.

The legal limit for driving under the influence of alcohol in Arizona is 0.08 percent. However, a motorist may still be arrested if they are driving under the influence with a BAC lower than 0.08 percent if they are found to be driving or in actual physical control of a vehicle while “impaired to the slightest degree”.Extreme DUI BAC in Arizona is .015 percent; and Super Extreme BAC is .020 percent or greater.

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Misconduct with Weapons and DUI enforcement top police priority list.

The Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (AGOHS) is working closely with law enforcement agencies to conduct DUI task forces in Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert AZ, this July 4, 2013 weekend.

According to the recent statistics reported by the National Centers for Disease Control (NCDC) nearly one third of all fatal auto accident were the result of impaired driving; and according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), one in every three people will be involved in an impaired driving motor vehicle accident. According to MADD, the average drunk driver gets behind the wheel to drive at least 80 times before they are arrested for their first DUI.

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“All gave some; some gave all”.

1. Observance of Memorial Day began after the Civil War, in remembrance of those 620,000 who lost their lives in the deadliest war ever to occur on U.S. soil.

2. Out of the total number of deaths in the Civil War, a majority of the deaths, 400,000, resulted from disease. Combat resulted in 220,000 deaths.

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Arizona Public Records Release Law

Under Arizona’s Freedom of Information Laws pursuant to A.R.S. § 39 – 121 is entitled to request their DUI police incident report. Your report is required to be released to you  when it is available and upon receipt of the required fee by the police department

How to request a copy of your DUI incident report

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Tempe DUI Arrest 

If your arrest was based on DUI breath test results, you should contact a Tempe DUI lawyer as soon as possible. Defenses may exist surrounding your breath test evidence. The prosecution will not seek out deficiencies in the breath test evidence, on your behalf. You will need to hire an experienced DUI lawyer who defends DUI charges in Tempe frequently. They will be your advocate and examine all aspects surrounding your breath test results to make certain they are accurate and valid. If not, the evidence may not be admitted in court to use against you, which may ultimately lead to a dismissal of the Tempe DUI charges.

Challenging DUI breath test evidence for DUI defense

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How to Protect Your Rights after a Tempe DUI Arrest

If you were arrested for DUI charges in Tempe AZ, you must to everything you can to protect your rights. By preserving your rights, your Tempe DUI lawyer can use them in your defense. Here are 5 important tips that will help you preserve your rights:

1) Never resist arrest – Once the police have decided to arrest you, they rarely change their mind.  To become argumentative, or to resist arrest, you will only make your situation worse. The police will add additional and more serious charges (such as resisting arrest, or assault to a police officer). Resisting arrest may also lead to physical harm to you as a result of the police using force to make the arrest.

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Contact Information
Law Office of James Novak, PLLC
4500 S Lakeshore Dr #352
Tempe, AZ 85282
Phone: (480) 413-1499Text: (602) 908-8123

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