UNLAWFUL DETENTIONS
Reasonable Suspicion To Detain
The United States Constitution provides us with the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. This means law enforcement may not detain you or prevent you from walking or driving away unless they have a reasonable suspicion that a crime has occurred or is currently happening. For most DUI arrests a CHP officer or police officer pulls over a car because they first observe a traffic violation. If an officer pulled you over without a valid or lawful reason an experienced and serious DUI attorney will try to get your case dismissed.
Officer Did Not Observe You Drive
If you were arrested but you were not driving you may also be able to challenge the officer’s conclusion to arrest you for a DUI. For example, if you were involved in a collision or if you pulling over your car to “sleep it off” you may have drawn the attention of a CHP or police officer to contact you. These situations should be reviewed by a DUI lawyer to determine if you were lawfully arrested. A successful challenge to an unlawful arrest may also prohibit a prosecutor from using any other portions of the DUI investigation that resulted from the officer’s initial contact. In other words your case could have illegal evidence obtained by the government that can not be used against you! This would include the suppression of the Officer’s conclusions about your sobriety derived from your participation in field sobriety tests and any breath or blood test results.
Unlawful Detentions Can Be Challenged
At the Law Office of Barry T. Simons, our experienced staff and attorneys can obtain any video tapes of your detention and investigation and review your case to determine if you were unlawfully detained. Every Vehicle Code violation has very specific elements that must be proven to justify a vehicle stop. Our attorneys have successfully challenged these cases at the DMV and in court. The results of these successful challenges have overturned DMV driving suspensions, reduced DUI charges to lesser offenses, and in some cases the prosecutor has dismissed the charges altogether. In order to determine if your case could lead to a dismissal or avoid DMV suspension call the Law office of Barry T. Simons.
COMMON TRAFFIC CODE VIOLATIONS FOR DUI INVESTIGATION:
CVC 24250 DRIVING WITHOUT HEADLIGHTS ON
CVC22409(a) HIGH BEAM VIOLATION
CVC 22350 UNSAFE SPEED
CVC22499(a) DRIVING TOO SLOW
CVC 22349 SPEEDING ON A HIGHWAY
CVC 22450 FAILURE TO STOP AT A STOP SIGN
CVC21950 FAILURE TO YIELD TO PEDESTRIAN
CVC 21453 VIOLATING A TRAFFIC LIGHT
CVC 21658 WEAVING/LANE STRADDLING
CVC 22107 UNSAFE LANE CHANGE
CVC 22103 IMPROPER TURN
CVC 21651(B) DRIVING IN OPPOSING LANES
CVC 21461 VIOLATING TRAFFIC SIGN
CVC 21703 FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY
CVC 5200(a) MISSING FRONT LICENSE PLATE
CVC4000(a)(1) EXPIRED REGISTRATION
CVC24600 DEFECTIVE TAILLAMPS
CVC26708 TINTED WINDOWS
CVC26708(a)(2) OBSTRUCTED VIEW
CVC26710 CRACKED WINDOW
CVC27315 SEAT BELT VIOLATION
Tipsters and 911 Calls
Everyone has cell phones and many people use them to call 911 to report what they believe to be erratic drivers. More often than not, these calls relate to cell phone use but, often lead to DUI investigation. It seems reasonable for a police officer to respond to such a call and focus their attention on a vehicle that has been reported by a citizen. But is it reasonable if an officer follows a reported erratic driver and doesn’t observe anything unusual about the driving? This can be a troubling issue since the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Navarette v. California. If you were pulled over because of an anonymous tipster you need a qualified DUI lawyer to evaluate the totality of the circumstances surrounding your detention.
CALL THE LAW OFFICE OF BARRY T. SIMONS AT 949-497-1729 FOR AN ATTORNEY TO REVIEW YOUR CASE
