Police Procedure – DWI Checkpoint
A young father was on the way home from work when he encountered a Westchester County Police DWI Checkpoint. The police arrested him after searching his car for marijuana based on an alleged odor and charged him with DWI. After reviewing the police paperwork, our defense focused on the police officer’s failure to adequately document DWI Checkpoint procedures, which must be conducted in an impartial, specific sequence or pattern to stop motorists to determine if they are Driving While Intoxicated by Drugs or Alcohol.
Additionally, the police DWI drug recognition expert report failed to establish evidence of our client’s intoxication. After our aggressive DWI Defense Attorneys raised these issues with the prosecutor, they voluntarily agreed to dismiss all criminal charges against our client.
Accidents
A client of ours, who was an off-duty NYC policeman himself, crashed into a police car that had stopped another vehicle on the side of the road, injuring that investigating police officer. Our client was arrested for DWI when the arresting officer smelled alcohol on his breath. He was also suspended from his job for carrying his service firearm. Our DWI defense Attorneys won a complete dismissal of all the criminal charges against him after demonstrating that his medical condition (a degenerative back issue that caused muscle spasms in his legs) was the cause of the accident and not alcohol impairment/intoxication.
A White Plains man was driving his girlfriend home from the local bars around 3:00 am when he crashed into a large, well-lit, flashing mobile police sign directly in front of and in full view of a traffic cop. The girlfriend’s face smashed into the dashboard on impact, causing her severe injuries. When the Officer instructed the client to stop the vehicle, he put his petal to the metal and led police on a high-speed car chase. Finally, the client stopped and exited the vehicle, stumbled and fell. He refused to take a DWI breath test.
He was acquitted of all criminal charges based on the jurors’ recognition that the obvious visual evidence of the client’s intoxication described by the officer at trial; dizziness, a pale and flushed face, slurred speech, loss of balance and coordination, were equally as likely to be the result of the serious car crash as the consumption of alcohol.
Trial Evidence
A client with a prior DWI conviction was again charged with Driving While Intoxicated in Westchester County after hitting a curb in front of a police officer on his way home from the bars late at night. At trial, Portale Randazzo LLP partner Richard Portale introduced a defense investigator’s video and accompanying testimony to establish that the curb in question protruded so far into the roadway that it was nearly impossible to avoid, even during the day. Mr. Portale also used the police officer’s own body camera footage to demonstrate to the judge that the police officer’s testimony was not credible. The court rendered a verdict dismissing all criminal charges against our client.
New York State Police began following a DWI suspect southbound on I87 at the foot of the Tappan Zee Bridge based on an anonymous tip that he was intoxicated. Once across the bridge, Police stopped the client in Tarrytown in Westchester County, removed him from the vehicle and began interrogating him.
Police testified that he was intoxicated based on their observations of an odor of alcoholic beverage on his breath, poor balance and coordination, having failed the standardized field sobriety test, and having used the car door to keep from falling down, Our DWI attorneys demonstrated to jurors that the client’s ability to traverse the entire span of the Tappan Zee bridge without committing a single traffic violation, despite being followed closely by a police car the entire way, trumped the officers’ alleged observations and the jury acquitted on all charges.
Suppression of Evidence
Oftentimes, police obtain incriminating evidence against people in violation of their constitutional Fourth Amendment rights. DWI arrests are not immune to this sadly immutable condition. For example, One of our unlucky clients left Purdy’s Farmer and the Fish in northern Westchester County after a Sunday Funday and wrapped his motorcycle around a tree. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital (he suffered no severe injuries thank God), where police coerced him to provide a blood sample.
The analysis of his blood revealed a .19 BAC and cocaine. He was prosecuted for aggravated DWI and DWAI drugs. After conducting pre-trial suppression hearings and extensive motion practice and oral arguments, the police misconduct was exposed and the blood results were suppressed. All criminal charges were later dismissed as a direct result.
To defend a DWI or any criminal case, you have to be creative. If you or one of your loved ones have recently learned the hard way that deciding to drive home after a couple of drinks is a big deal after all, call our top-ranked DWI attorneys. We will analyze your case from the moment you made that life-changing choice to drive, to the moment you walked out of the police station charged with DWI to determine exactly how we can best defend your unique case and utilize all available mechanisms under the law to help you avoid suspension of your driving privileges while we beat the DWI charges against you.
New York DWI Lawyers You Can Trust
An arrest for DWI or DUI doesn’t have to define you. Our Westchester County DWI attorneys will guide you down the path as painlessly as possible. We have a very granular understanding of the DWI laws and over a century of trial experience to ensure that what began as a nightmare ends well for you.
Why Is Portale Randazzo LLP the Right Choice for Your Case?
- 100+ years of combined experience as both prosecution and defense
- Our DWI defense lawyers have an incredibly high trial success rate, the highest in the County.
- Our team includes several former Westchester County and Bronx County Assistant District Attorneys.
- Our counselors offer thorough initial case evaluations.
Types of Drug and Alcohol-Related Charges Our DWI Attorneys Typically Defend
New York has several laws concerning drug- and alcohol-related driving offenses. A driver is considered impaired when their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is over .05 and legally intoxicated at .08. A person charged with any one of these offenses faces severe penalties, depending on their BAC, if drugs were involved, if there was an accident that involved personal injury to another and/or if they are a repeat offender. Regardless of whether it’s your first offense, you should seek the legal counsel of our experienced New York DWI attorneys to prevent an unnecessary criminal conviction from following you for the rest of your life.
Our team of New York DWI lawyers will defend you against:
Driving While Ability Impaired (“DWAI”)
A person is guilty of DWAI if they operate a vehicle while their ability to do so is impaired to any extent by the consumption of alcohol. DWAI is a traffic infraction.
DWAI can be proven one of two ways, based on whether the motorist exhibits “indicia” of impairment related to alcohol consumption (i.e. an odor of alcohol and their breath, slurred speech, impaired motor function, etc.); or if an admissible chemical test of their breath, blood, or urine shows a blood alcohol concentration (commonly called “BAC”) of .06 or .07.
If you are convicted of DWAI as a first offense, you face the following consequences:
- A fine of between $300 and $500, up to 15 days in jail, or both;
- A surcharge of $255 to $260 (if the case is in either a Town or a Village Court);
- A driver responsibility assessment of $250 a year for 3 years payable to the DMV;
- A requirement that you attend the DMV’s Impaired Driver’s Program and MADD Victim Impact Panel; and
- A license suspension of up to ninety (90) days (during which you may be eligible for a conditional driver’s license).
These penalties increase if this is one’s second offense within the past five years from the date of their conviction, allowing for increased jail time (up to 30 days), a revocation of your driver’s license for six months; ineligibility for a conditional license; and possible revocation of your vehicle’s registration for up to six months. Additionally, prior to being able to restore your driving privileges after the six-month revocation, you will need to submit proof of alcohol treatment/rehabilitation to the DMV.
Similarly, if this is a third offense (or more), the penalties increase even further.
Driving While Intoxicated (“DWI” or “DUI”)
A person is guilty of DWI if they operate a vehicle on a public roadway while they are intoxicated by alcohol and/or drugs. DWI as a first offense is a misdemeanor, which is a crime in New York. Certain criteria or second/third offense DWI offenses are felonies.
DWI can be proven one of two ways, based on whether the motorist exhibits “indicia” of intoxication related to alcohol consumption; or if they have a BAC between .08 to .17.
If you are convicted of DWI as a first offense, you face the following consequences:
- A fine of between $500 and $1,000;
- A surcharge of $395 to $400 (if the case is in either a Town or a Village Court);
- Probation supervision for up to three years;
- Up to one year in jail;
- A driver responsibility assessment of $250 a year for 3 years payable to the DMV;
- A requirement that you attend the DMV’s Impaired Driver’s Program and MADD Victim Impact Panel;
- A license revocation for six months (during which you may be eligible for a conditional driver’s license);
- Discretionary revocation of your vehicle’s registration for up to one year; and
- Installation of an ignition interlock device (“IID”) for up to twelve months.
If you are convicted of a second misdemeanor DWI within five years after the first conviction, you are subject to the following additional mandatory penalties:
- 5 days in jail or 30 days of community service; and
- A potentially longer period of IID installation requirement (for at least until the license revocation is terminated, if the Court determines an additional period is warranted.
Aggravated DWI/DUI
A person is guilty of Aggravated DWI if they operate a vehicle if they have a BAC of .18 or more.
If you are convicted of Aggravated DWI as a first offense, you face the following consequences:
- A fine of between $1,000 and $2,500;
- A surcharge of $395 to $400 (if the case is in either a Town or a Village Court);
- Probation supervision for up to three years;
- Up to one year in jail;
- A driver responsibility assessment of $250 a year for 3 years payable to the DMV;
- A requirement that you attend the DMV’s Impaired Driver’s Program and MADD Victim Impact Panel;
- A license revocation for one year (during which you may be eligible for a conditional driver’s license);
- Discretionary revocation of your vehicle’s registration for up to one year; and
- Installation of an ignition interlock device (“IID”) for up to twelve months.
If you are convicted of a second misdemeanor Aggravated DWI within five years after the first conviction, you are subject to the following additional mandatory penalties:
- 5 days in jail or 30 days of community service;
- An eighteen-month revocation of your driving privileges;
- Discretionary revocation of your vehicle’s registration for up to eighteen months; and
- A potential longer period of IID installation requirement (for at least until the license revocation is terminated, if the Court determines an additional period is warranted.
Felony DWI Offenses
If you are charged with a DWI offense after having been convicted of one of misdemeanor DWI, Vehicular Assault, or Vehicular Manslaughter within the past 10 years, you can be charged with a Class “E” Felony Offense, and, if convicted, face the following consequences:
- A fine of between $1,000 and $5,000;
- A surcharge of $520;
- Probation supervision for up to five years;
- Up to four years in state prison;
- A driver responsibility assessment of $250 a year for 3 years payable to the DMV;
- A requirement that you attend the DMV’s Impaired Driver’s Program and MADD Victim Impact Panel;
- A license revocation for at least one year (however, the Court can increase this to your entire 5 year probation supervision period);
- Discretionary revocation of your vehicle’s registration for at least one year; and
- Installation of an ignition interlock device (“IID”) for at least six months, but up to your entire five-year probation supervision period.
Additionally, if you are convicted of Felony DWI as a Class “E” Felony within five years after the first conviction, you are subject to the following additional mandatory penalties:
- 5 days in jail or 30 days of community service; and
- Ineligibility for a conditional driver’s license.
Further, if you are charged with a second felony DWI offense after having been convicted of one of misdemeanor/felony DWI, Vehicular Assault, or Vehicular Manslaughter twice within the past 10 years, you can be charged with a Class “D” Felony Offense, and if convicted, face the following consequences:
- A fine of between $2,000 and $10,000;
- A surcharge of $520;
- Probation supervision for up to five years;
- Up to seven years in state prison;
- A driver responsibility assessment of $250 a year for 3 years payable to the DMV;
- A requirement that you attend the DMV’s Impaired Driver’s Program and MADD Victim Impact Panel;
- A license revocation for at least eighteen months and will require proof of alcohol rehabilitation for the DMV to consider granting relicensure;
- Discretionary revocation of your vehicle’s registration for at least one year; and
- Installation of an ignition interlock device (“IID”) for at least six months, but up to your entire five-year probation supervision period.
Additionally, if you are convicted of Felony DWI as a Class “D” Felony within five years after the first conviction, you are subject to the following additional mandatory penalties:
- 10 days in jail or 60 days of community service;
- A potential period of IID installation beyond the five (5) year probationary period as determined by the Court; and
- Ineligibility for a conditional driver’s license.
Additionally, there are a number of ways a charge can increase to felony level DWI (for example: if you have a child in your vehicle, which is known as “Leandra’s Law DWI”; if you are involved in an accident that causes someone else serious physical injuries or the death of another person, known as “Vehicular Assault” and “Vehicular Manslaughter.”
Further, if you are under twenty-one and charged with a DWI or have a Commercial Driver’s License (“CDL”) you can be charged with the above crimes for BACs below the stand thresholds. Additionally, you face more severe license suspensions and re-licensure requirements.
Contact Our Westchester County DWI Attorneys Today
Given the severe consequences of a DWI charge, it is critical to hire an attorney who knows how to best defend you. Routinely, we meet clients who are charged with their second DWI offense and, during our consultation, learn that their attorneys let them plead guilty to a misdemeanor DWI offense rather than grinding out a better, non-criminal result.
As a result, they face more severe charges and enhanced penalties that they wouldn’t have if their previous attorney had simply worked harder or been more creative. This is why if you or a loved one is charged with first-offense DWI in Westchester County or the surrounding areas, you should call the experienced DWI attorneys at Portale Randazzo LLP immediately.
