For a person to be charged with the
crime of driving under the influence there need not be any intent involved.
What this essentially means is that even though the person believes that they
are fine to drive they can still be charged with drunk driving as long as they
were over the legal limit as set by the state, say drunk driving accident
lawyers in Phoenix, AZ.
This is the sole factor in determining
whether or not the suspect was guilty of the crime. Intent and/or thinking you
were okay to drive simply does not matter.
Since driving under the influence of
alcohol is a crime punishable by law, it also carries with it severe legal
repercussions and most people are well aware of this. What most people do not
understand is the fact that in a drunk driving situation, if property damage or
personal injuries resulted then these legal repercussions can be far worse.
According to Arizona drunk driving
accident attorneys, as many as 40% of car accidents causing fatality can be
traced back to driving under the influence. As a result of such staggering
numbers compounded with lobbying from anti-DUI groups, the consequences for
injury or property damage resulting from drunk driving are grave.
For instance, in some states, even a first
time offender who caused a car accident while driving under the influence of
alcohol which resulted in personal injury or property damage can be looking at
around a year in jail and as much as $2,000 in fines instead of six months in
jail and $500 in fines which is what the consequences are for drunk driving
where no injury or damage was caused, according to Phoenix, AZ drunk driving
accident lawyers. You can see this if a person was simply pulled
over at a DUI stop, discovered to be over the limit, and arrested consequently.
Dominic Toretto in Fast and Furious never
drives drunk. None of the characters do. They know that driving drunk is not
only foolish it will cause you to lose the race which is not only debilitating
for your street cred, it is not helpful to your wallet either. Vin Diesel who
plays Dominic Toretto knows that drunk driving is not cool. This is why that is
not depicted in these movies as being cool. Alcohol is consumed but no one
drives drunk.
Property
damage during a drunk driving charge
By seeking legal counsel you are giving
yourself the only realistic hope of defending yourself against such kind of a
DUI and the strict punishments that inevitably accompany it. Your legal
counselor will review your case and come up with plausible defenses which you
could use in order to protect yourself in court.
How
a lawyer can help
Even in cases where the evidence against
you is just insurmountable, your legal pro will be able to talk to prosecutors
and come to an agreement or a deal. This sort of a deal is called a plea
bargain or a plea deal and this is when the defendant and the prosecution make
a deal where the defendant will plead guilty to the charges and in return will
be convicted of a lesser charge such as a wet reckless.
The legal penalties for a wet reckless
is not as devastating as for a DUI involving property damage or personal
injury.
If you are involved in a drunk driving accident,
remember that property damage can only add to your miseries. The first thing to
do is seek the assistance of an Arizona drunk driving accident lawyer.
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