DUI Attorney Near Me Ste. Genevieve, MO

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

You deserve a talented defense attorney who knows their way around DUI cases in Ste. Genevieve and Missouri. Depending on the circumstances, a savvy DUI attorney near Ste. Genevieve, MO will make the best of your situation. They may be able to get the charges dropped, reduce the charges to lesser offenses, fight the conviction in a trial or negotiate a lesser punishment through a plea bargain. Most importantly, they will navigate the law and all legal proceedings for your Ste. Genevieve, MO DUI case. For razor-sharp representation when you have been accused of driving under the influence, call Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP.

What is a DUI in Ste. Genevieve, MO?

Though many people refer to it as a DUI (which stands for driving under the influence, Missouri law actually calls the offense a DWI (driving while intoxicated). Missouri Revised Statute §577.010 and §577.012 outline the definition of the crime of driving while intoxicated and specifies 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 Ste. Genevieve, MO to fight for your freedom and protect you from unfair treatment by Missouri courts.

A person can be arrested for a DWI in Missouri for a number of reasons. Under Missouri law, it is illegal to drive while intoxicated, including but not limited to driving under the influence of alcohol. While many DWI arrests in Missouri are done based on drunk driving allegations, you can also be arrested for a DWI due to allegedly driving a vehicle while impaired by another psychoactive drug.

The DWI law in Missouri criminalizes not only drinking and driving, but also driving while impared by intoxicating 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 or a family member have been arrested for a DWI in Missouri, speak to a DUI attorney near you as soon as possible. Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is a skilled Ste. Genevieve-based DUI attorney near you, Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is dedicated, experienced and sharp. When you need a DUI attorney near you whom you can trust, call (314) 900-HELP.

DUI Stops and Arrests in Ste. Genevieve, MO

You owe it to yourself to know your rights lest you are stopped for operating a vehicle while under the influence. Speak to an experienced Ste. Genevieve, MO DUI attorney near you with Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP to learn about your rights and what to do if you are ever stopped when operating a vehicle in Missouri. And if you have already gone through a traffic stop and were arrested for driving drunk or high, our unstoppable Ste. Genevieve, MO defense lawyers will shield you from injustice in court.

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

DUI Traffic Stops in Ste. Genevieve, MO

A Missouri officer of the law must have reasonable suspicion that you are driving drunk in order to pull an individual over in Ste. Genevieve, MO. For a DWI, reasonable suspicion would be represented by behaviors like like splitting the lane, traveling the wrong way down a road and other erratic driving behaviors such as inconsistencies in speed, swerving or stopping and going.

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

If you suspect that you were wrongly stopped or arrested for your Ste. Genevieve, 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 have proof that you were driving intoxicated, turn to a DUI attorney near you in Ste. Genevieve, MO who can fight to get the prosecutor to dismiss your case so you can move forward in your life.

Sobriety Tests for DUIs in Ste. Genevieve, MO

If a law officer stops you due to suspected intoxicated driving, they will likely try to get you to do a test to prove that you are intoxicated. There are two types of tests Ste. Genevieve, 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 Ste. Genevieve, MO stops for DUIs, chemical tests are often used as evidence to prove that the driver was under the influence at the time of the stop. There are a few different types of chemical tests using bodily samples from blood to breath to saliva to urine that check for the presence and concentration of various substances including alcohol.

Like most US states, Missouri has in place an implied consent law, pursuant to which, as a Ste. Genevieve, MO driver or driver anywhere in Missouri, you automatically agree to participate in chemical sobriety tests simply by driving a vehicle. A smart DUI attorney near you will tell you that you can refuse to a breathalyzer, but refusal can carry a criminal charge in itself. Still, you cannot be physically forced to take the test.

If you do take a breathalyzer test, consult an experienced Ste. Genevieve, MO DUI attorney near you to discuss your defense and how they can help you. As your DUI attorney near Ste. Genevieve, MO, Combs Waterkotte will obtain discovery documents and comb through them to examine whether the breathalyzer or other test was administered lawfully and whether it is or is not admissible in court.
Field Sobriety Tests
Field tests during a DWI traffic stop are subjective tests that are meant to determine whether you are impaired by asking the driver to perform motor tasks. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has spelled out three standardized field tests that police officers can use to test drivers in Ste. Genevieve, 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 a police officer stops you and asks you to perform field sobriety tests, call a DUI attorney near you in Ste. Genevieve, MO as soon as possible. If you have already performed a field test and have been arrested for a DUI in Missouri, your Ste. Genevieve, MO DUI attorney will design 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 Ste. Genevieve, MO

A checkpoint is a temporary roadblock used to randomly check drivers for behaviors like driving under the influence. Federal law allows the use of DUI checkpoints by police departments, but they must meet certain standards. Missouri legislators have debated banning sobriety checkpoints, but they are currently still allowed by Missouri law.

Police departments in Ste. Genevieve and around Missouri do not use checkpoints as heavily as they did in the past, but you should still educate yourself on your rights and the rules regulating checkpoints. If you are not sure, speak to 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 public safety. A lawful DUI checkpoint is:

advertised to the public in advance
sanctioned or planned 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 logical 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 Ste. Genevieve, MO, call (314) 900-HELP to talk to a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you immediately. Our experienced Ste. Genevieve, MO attorneys will ferociously defend you and protect your rights in the court of law. Reach out to us online to review your situation with a compassionate and cunning DUI attorney near you today.

Get the best quality criminal defense available in Ste. Genevieve, MO through Combs Waterkotte. A Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you will protect you against the court and provide you with an infallible defense when you have been accused of driving under the influence in Ste. Genevieve or anywhere in Missouri. Our team of Ste. Genevieve, MO attorneys have expertise in a number of other kinds of cases, including:

Click below to learn more about the different DUI cases in Missouri and how Combs Waterkotte’s DUI attorneys in Ste. Genevieve, MO can defend you.

Hire a DUI Attorney Near Me in Ste. Genevieve, MO | Combs Waterkotte

Do yourself a favor and act now. If you have been stopped or arrested for driving under the influence near Ste. Genevieve, MO, find a trustworthy DUI attorney near you. Being arrested and convicted of a DWI or similar charge in Missouri is a serious matter that can carry significant consequences. When your freedom and future are at risk a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you in Ste. Genevieve, MO can defend you. Contact our Ste. Genevieve, MO defense law firm right away to consult a lawyer about your rights, your case and your future.

Ste. Genevieve, MO