DUI Attorney Near Me St. Charles, MO

DUI Attorney Near Me St. Charles, MO. No one enjoys being arrested, but it is important to understand that driving under the influence in St. Charles is treated as a serious offense in Missouri court. Whatever the details of your situation, when you are facing a conviction for driving drunk or high, a you need the best legal representation available to protect your rights and your future.

You deserve quality legal representation from an attorney who has successfully defended against DUI convictions in St. Charles and Missouri. Depending on your unique situation, an astute DUI attorney near St. Charles, MO will make the best of your situation. They may be able to get the prosecutor to drop the charges, have the charges reduced to lesser offenses, lead your case to trial to fight the conviction or work with the prosecutor to negotiate a plea bargain. Their principle responsibility is to use the law to your benefit and guide you through all legal proceedings for your St. Charles, MO DUI case. For dedicated, aggressive defense against injustice after you have been arrested of driving under the influence, call Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP.

What is a DUI in St. Charles, MO?

Commonly referred to 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 lay forth what constitutes the crime of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and defines the law Missouri courts must follow to sentence and punish those convicted of a DWI for operating a vehicle with a BAC (blood alcohol content) over the legal limit or while otherwise intoxicated. If you have been arrested in Missouri for a DWI, you may need a DUI attorney near St. Charles, MO to fight for your freedom and help you navigate what can be an intimidating Missouri court process.

A person can be arrested for a DWI in Missouri for a number of reasons. The law prohibits driving while intoxicated — not explicitly for driving under the influence of alcohol. While DWI arrests are often drunk driving allegations, you can also be arrested for a DWI due to allegedly driving a vehicle while impaired by another mind-altering drug.

The DWI law in Missouri criminalizes not only drinking and driving, but also driving while impared by drugs or substances that impair skills necessary to driving including motor skills, reaction time and decision making. 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 were arrested for a DWI in Missouri, reach out to a DUI attorney near you right away. Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is a reuptable and capable St. Charles-based DUI attorney near you. For a trustworthy DUI attorney near you, call (314) 900-HELP.

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

You owe it to yourself to know your rights in the event that you are pulled over for driving intoxicated. Reach out to Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP immediately to speak to a leading St. Charles, MO DUI attorney near you and learn about your rights and what steps to take if an officer ever stops you while you are driving in Missouri. And if you have already gone through a traffic stop and were arrested for driving drunk or high, our unstoppable St. Charles, MO defense law firm will shield you from injustice in court.

Find out about the rules and procedure for Missouri traffic stops, sobriety tests and checkpoints.

DUI Traffic Stops in St. Charles, MO

A Missouri officer of the law must have reasonable suspicion that you are driving drunk in order to pull an individual over in St. Charles, MO. For a DWI, reasonable suspicion would be represented by behaviors like like drifting out of lane, driving the wrong way down a road and any other behaviors such as inconsistencies in speed, swerving or braking.

A police officer is not permitted to conduct a traffic stop unless they can identify reasonable suspicion that you are breaking the law by driving while intoxicated meet the more stringent burden of probable cause in order to actually arrest you for a DWI.

If you believe that you were unlawfully stopped for or accused of your St. Charles, MO DWI, reach out to a DUI attorney near you as soon as possible. If you were stopped by an officer without giving them reasonable suspicion, even if they then obtained evidence that you were driving drunk, a DUI attorney near St. Charles, MO can fight to get your case dismissed and put to rest so you can move on with your life.

Sobriety Tests for DUIs in St. Charles, MO

If a law officer stops you due to suspected drunk or drugged driving, they will want to obtain proof to show that you are under the influence. There are two types of tests St. Charles, 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, MO stops for drunk driving or driving under the influence, chemical tests are often used as evidence to prove that the driver had ingested drugs or alcohol. There are a few different types of chemical tests using bodily samples from blood to breath to saliva to urine that are meant to identify the presence of and/or measure the concentration of substances like alcohol.

Each state has its own laws and many, including Missouri have what is known as an implied consent law, pursuant to which, as a St. Charles, MO driver or driver anywhere in Missouri, you automatically consent to participate in chemical sobriety tests simply by operating a vehicle. A smart DUI attorney near you will counsel you to know that you can refuse to submit to a breathalyzer or other chemical test, but refusal can carry a criminal charge in itself. Still, the police cannot physically force you to take the test.

If you already did a breathalyzer test, speak to an exemplary St. Charles, MO DUI attorney near you to discuss your defense and how they can help you. As your DUI attorney near St. Charles, MO, Combs Waterkotte will investigate and scrutinize the details of your test to conclude if the breathalyzer or other test was performed as according to law 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 designed 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 that police officers can use to test drivers in St. Charles, MO and throughout 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
As a Missouri driver, you have the right to refuse to perform a field test. If you are stopped and asked to perform field sobriety tests, call a DUI attorney near you in St. Charles, MO as soon as you can. If you have already agreed to and performed a field test and have been arrested for a DUI in Missouri, your St. Charles, MO DUI attorney will build an insurmountable defense to your case or ensure that evidence that does not meet Missouri’s rules of evidence such as improperly obtained sobriety tests are not used against you in Missouri court.

Traffic Checkpoints in St. Charles, MO

A checkpoint is a roadblock temporarily set up on a roadway as a way to randomly check drivers for behaviors like 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 debated banning sobriety checkpoints, but curent Missouri law still allows police to use them.

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

The police must be able to justify the use and location for a sobriety checkpoint by showing that the decisions are directly related to roadway safety. A lawful DUI checkpoint is:

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
clearly associated with law enforcement

Perhaps most importantly, there must be a legitimate reason for carrying out the checkpoint related to public safety, .

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

Through Combs Waterkotte, you have access to some of the best criminal defense services in the St. Charles, MO area. A Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you will protect you against the court and defend you when you have been accused of driving under the influence in St. Charles or anywhere in Missouri. In addition, our top St. Charles, MO defense lawyers can help you with a wide range of other kinds of cases, including:

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

Work with a Top DUI Attorney Near Me in St. Charles, MO | Combs Waterkotte

There is no time to waste. If you were stopped or arrested for driving under the influence near St. Charles, MO, find a DUI attorney near you whom you can trust. Being arrested and convicted of a DWI or similar charge in Missouri is a serious matter that can carry significant consequences. Your future and freedom are on the line, and a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you in St. Charles, MO can defend you. Contact our St. Charles, MO defense law firm now to consult a lawyer about your rights, your case and your future.

St. Charles, MO