DUI Attorney Near Me St. Charles County, MO

DUI Attorney Near Me St. Charles County, MO. Being arrested for driving under the influence in St. Charles County, MO is a serious matter. Whatever the details of your situation, when you are criminally charged for driving while intoxicated by drugs or alcohol, find an attorney you can trust to fight on your behalf and protect your future.

You deserve a talented defense attorney who has a track record of winning in St. Charles County and Missouri. Depending on the details of your case, a sharp St. Charles County, MO DUI attorney near you will make the best of your situation. They may be able to get the prosecutor to drop the charges, reduce the charges to lesser offenses, lead your case to trial to fight the conviction or negotiate a lesser punishment through a plea bargain. Their principle responsibility is to navigate the law and the entire legal process for your St. Charles County, MO DUI case. For dedicated, aggressive defense against injustice after being arrested of driving under the influence, speak to Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP.

What is a DUI in St. Charles County, MO?

Though many people refer to it as a DUI (which stands for driving under the influence, the official nomenclature used in Missouri legislation is a DWI (driving while intoxicated). Missouri Revised Statute §577.010 and §577.012 outline the definition of the crime of driving while intoxicated and defines the rules Missouri courts must follow to sentence and punish those convicted of a DWI, with the latter specific to driving with a BAC, or blood alcohol content, over the legal limit. After your Missouri DWI arrest, you deserve a DUI attorney near St. Charles County, MO to fight for your freedom and help you navigate what can be an intimidating Missouri court process.

You could be arrested for a DWI in Missouri for a long list of reasons. The law prohibits driving while intoxicated — not explicitly for driving under the influence of alcohol. Though DWI arrests are often accusations of driving drunk, you can also be arrested for a DWI on suspicion of driving a vehicle while impaired by some kind of psychoactive drug.

The DWI law in Missouri criminalizes not only drinking and driving, but also driving while impared by psychoactive substances or substances that impair your consciousness or motor skills. That means that a police officer can arrest you if they suspect that you are impaired, including due to ingesting marijuana or even narcotics or pharmaceuticals like opiates.

If you or a family member have been arrested for driving under the influence in Missouri, speak to a DUI attorney near you right away. Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is a skilled St. Charles County-based DUI attorney near you. When you need a DUI attorney near you whom you can trust, call (314) 900-HELP.

Getting Stopped or Arrested for a DUI in St. Charles County, MO

You owe it to yourself to know your rights lest you are stopped for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Call Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP immediately to speak to a leading St. Charles County, MO DUI attorney near you and understand your rights and what steps to take if you are ever stopped when driving in Missouri. And if you have already gone through being pulled over and arrested for driving drunk or high, our outstanding St. Charles County, MO defense lawyers will shield you from injustice in court.

Become familiar with the rules and procedure for Missouri traffic stops, sobriety tests and sobriety checkpoints.

DUI Traffic Stops in St. Charles County, MO

In order to pull someone over, a St. Charles County, MO or any Missouri police officer must have reasonable suspicion. For a DWI, reasonable suspicion could be things like drifting out of lane, driving on a road going in the wrong direction and any other behaviors such as inconsistencies in speed, swerving or alternating between braking and accelerating.

A police officer is not permitted to conduct a traffic stop unless there is reasonable suspicion that you are breaking the law by driving while intoxicated meet the higher burden of probable cause before they can place you under arrest for a DWI.

If you suspect that you were wrongly stopped or arrested for your St. Charles County, MO DWI, reach out to a DUI attorney near you at your earliest opportunity. If an officer stopped you without any reasonable suspicion, even if they have proof that you were driving intoxicated, a DUI attorney near St. Charles County, MO will help get the prosecutor to dismiss your case so you can put this behind you and be free.

Sobriety Tests for DUIs in St. Charles County, MO

If a law officer stops you under suspicion of drunk or drugged driving, they will likely try to get you to do a test to prove that you are under the influence. There are two types of tests St. Charles County, MO police officers typically use in traffic stops for driving under the influence: field sobriety tests and chemical tests.

Chemical Tests (ie. a breathalizer)
In St. Charles County, MO stops for driving while intoxicated, they often turn to chemical tests to prove that the driver was intoxicated at the time of the stop. Chemical tests include tests of the bodily samples from blood to breath to saliva to urine that are meant to identify the presence of and/or measure the concentration of various substances including alcohol.

Like most US states, Missouri has what is known as an implied consent law, via which, as a St. Charles County, MO driver or driver anywhere in Missouri, you automatically consent to participate in chemical sobriety tests just by driving a vehicle. A good DUI attorney near you will tell you that you can refuse to a chemical test like a breathalyzer, but refusal can carry a criminal charge in itself. You cannot be physically forced to take the test.

If you already did a breathalyzer test, speak to an exemplary St. Charles County, MO DUI attorney near you to figure out your options and get the best quality defense in your case. As your St. Charles County, MO DUI attorney near you, Combs Waterkotte will investigate and scrutinize the details of your test to conclude if the breathalyzer or other test was performed lawfully and whether it should or should not be admissible in court.
Field Sobriety Tests
Field tests during a DWI traffic stop are subjective tests that are meant to determine whether you are intoxicated through a series of demonstrative tasks. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has spelled out three standardized field tests police officers subject drivers to in St. Charles County, MO and all over the United States.
1. Walk and turn – walk heel to toe in a straight line for nine steps, turn around and repeat in the opposite direction
2. One leg stand – lift one leg six inches above the ground and stand on the other leg for a period of time without losing balance
3. Gaze tests – the officer holds an object and asks the driver to follow the object with their gaze as the officer moves the object
It is your right in Missouri to refuse to perform a field test. If a police officer stops you and asks you to perform field sobriety tests, call a DUI attorney near you in St. Charles County, MO immediately. If you already performed a field test and were then arrested for a DUI in Missouri, your St. Charles County, MO DUI attorney will design an impenetrable defense to your case or may even be able to suppress the field test evidence if they do not meet the rules of evidence in Missouri court.

Traffic Checkpoints in St. Charles County, MO

A checkpoint is a roadblock temporarily set up on a roadway as a way to randomly check drivers for driving under the influence. There are federal laws that regulate the carriage of DUI checkpoints, but each state has its own rules and some prohibit the use of checkpoints. Lawmakers in Missouri have entertained banning sobriety checkpoints, but they are currently still allowed by Missouri law.

Police departments in St. Charles County and around Missouri do not use checkpoints as heavily as they did in the past, but it is still prudent to educate yourself on your rights and the rules checkpoints must follow. When it doubt, turn to a DUI attorney near you at (314) 900-HELP.

A lawful sobriety checkpoint is justified when the police can show it is directly related to public safety. DUI checkpoints should be:

advertised to the public in advance
organized by supervising law enforcement officers
carried out in a way that is neutral to all drivers (i.e. randomly selected drivers)
limited in time
visibly associated with law enforcement

Perhaps most importantly, there must be a legitimate reason for carrying out the checkpoint related to public safety, such as an area where a higher-than-average rate of drunk driving-related accidents has occurred.

If you find yourself at a checkpoint in St. Charles County, MO, call (314) 900-HELP to talk to a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you immediately. Our experienced St. Charles County, MO attorneys will ferociously defend you and protect your rights in the court of law. Contact us online to review your situation with a compassionate and cunning DUI attorney near you today.

Get the best quality criminal defense available in St. Charles County, MO through Combs Waterkotte. A Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you will fight for your rights and defend you when you have been accused of driving under the influence in St. Charles County or anywhere in Missouri. Our team of St. Charles County, MO attorneys have expertise in a wide range of other case types, including:

Learn more about the different DUI charges in Missouri and how Combs Waterkotte’s DUI attorneys in St. Charles County, MO can defend you.

Hire a DUI Attorney Near Me in St. Charles County, MO | Combs Waterkotte

Do not waste any time. If you were stopped or arrested for driving under the influence near St. Charles County, MO, find a trustworthy DUI attorney near you. A Missouri DWI and similar charges are serious accusations that can carry significant consequences. When your freedom and future are at risk a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you in St. Charles County, MO will protect you. Contact our St. Charles County, MO defense law firm now to discuss your rights, your case and your future.

St. Charles County, MO