Defeating a DUI - Kansas DUI & Missouri DWI Journal

The following information is posted by Kansas DUI lawyer Jay Norton. Please return to this page periodically for new information regarding DUI & DWI laws in Kansas and Missouri.  This page displays all of Mr. Norton's submissions concerning defeating a DUI charge.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Drive, Walk or Take a Cab?

Let's face it, people are going to go out and drink alcohol. If one does, at least in this area of the country, your transportation choices primarily are limited to driving, walking or maybe taking a cab. There is nothing illegal, whatsoever, about drinking and then driving. It is only illegal to drive if you have been rendered incapable of safely doing so by alcohol, or your breath alcohol content is over .08. However, recent news stories have reinforced the notion that some people have that it is better to "chance it" and drive when you are actually drunk, than to opt for walking or calling for a cab.

The New York Times has an editorial from the Freakonomics people about all of the response that they have received to the section in their recent book, SuperFreakonomics, regarding drunk driving. According to Freakonomics, it may be more dangerous to walk drunk than to drive drunk. By their statistics, there is one fatality for every 1.6 million miles driven drunk in America. The numbers for miles walked is higher. The article also crunches the numbers to demonstrate that it may be a toss up between driving drunk and taking a cab, as far as the costs go. Don't shoot the messenger. The authors are the highly respected, best-selling economists and journalists, not me. But, it does make you think.

Of course, these days, driving your vehicle after drinking could get you caught up in a checklane like this one, where drivers were strapped to chairs on the side of the road and had their blood taken from them. These photos are very creepy if you ask me, and every American should consider them. One lesson to take away is if you don't want to be subjected to medical procedures while trying to get home, you are back to taking a cab or walking, notwithstanding the statistical warnings of Freakonomics.

Taking a cab would certainly seem like the most sensible option to avoid driving drunk (assuming you can get a cab - I don't think there are any such services in most parts of Kansas, including Johnson County). However, consider this story from Houston of a world gone mad: A father and daughter (22 year old wife and mother) went out on Thanksgiving weekend for some holiday cheer and to watch a game at a sports bar. Because they knew they would be drinking and wanted to be responsible, they took a cab there. When it came time to go home, they went outside to wait for their cab to arrive. While waiting in the parking lot for a ride, both father and daughter were arrested for public intoxication. They were doing no more than standing outside of the establishment waiting for their safe and sober ride home.

Believe it or not, most cities in Johnson County, Kansas, have ordinances against walking while intoxicated (called "Pedestrian Under the Influence) or public intoxication. So, the father and daughter mentioned above couldn't have driven, walked or taken a cab in our state. Enforcement of such laws against people who are walking home from drinking or waiting for a cab only encourages people to go ahead and take their chances behind the wheel. A ticket for public intoxication is certainly better than a DUI, but it is unfortunate that anyone would get arrested when they are making a far more responsible choice than to drive.

There is another choice: designate a driver and hope that person sticks to the plan of not drinking. It is not failsafe, but it looks like it is better than driving, walking or even calling a cab. Norton Hare certainly encourages everyone to be safe and designate a driver over this holiday season. Don't become a statistic or involuntary blood donor.

Monday, May 11, 2009
Hiring the Best DUI Lawyer

In the past I have blogged about how to beat a Kansas DUI and how to hire the best Kansas DUI lawyer (also here, here and here) that you possibly can. A California Lawyer Magazine has an interesting article about the legal insdustry as it relates to the DUI business. As the article points out, the law keeps getting harsher and the DUI arrest numbers keep going up. This has created a feeding frenzy among lawyers for DUI business. The article points out the difference between attorneys who have taken the time to actually learn and apply the science involved in DUI cases, and those that are running a "fee mill", doing a high volume of cases, charging low fees and basically providing no service to their clients. These lawyers are referred to in the article as "dump trucks" or as "escort services" for reasons you will read below.

The article is important for several reasons. It highlights the fact that there is a wide diversity of talent in the DUI attorney arena. You have to do your research. Anyone that managed to get out of law school can call themselves a Kansas DUI attorney, but that doesn't mean that they actually have invested the time and money necessary to do the job the right way.

From the article:

At one end of the spectrum are the specialists who've spent much of their professional lives mastering arcane technical issues such as blood and breath partition ratios, microbial contamination in urinalysis, and the perils of retrograde extrapolation in roadside chemical tests. These attorneys typically charge anywhere from $3,500 to $10,000 to defend a first offender, not including the expert witness fees or lab tests that may be required...

At the other end of the spectrum are cut-rate practitioners with no particular expertise, who charge as little as $1,000 per case. These include "dump truck" lawyers, who sign up as many clients as possible and then dump them all on the guilty-plea docket; and "escort" lawyers, who escort clients up to the judge like a high-paid call girl, plead them guilty, and then disappear with the money.

The article also talks about these websites that sell "exclusive" listings to lawyers to be named as the attorney for Kansas or another state. The marketing of some of these sites to lawyers is enough to turn your stomach. One website out of California markets their listings to lawyers by telling them how easy it is to get hired on a DUI case and then plead it out to make quick, easy money. Unsuspecting people who have been charged with a DUI call the toll free number and the call gets routed to the attorney from the area code of the caller, or emails to the site get referred out to the lawyer. These websites will claim to have the "Best DUI Lawyers in America" or something equally as impressive, but the lawyers really are just the first people to buy the advertising space. The website are professional marketers, so the sites come up high in the rankings on search engines. The attorney may or may not have a clue about DUI defense.

The article also points out something else that is true: the best DUI attorneys in Kansas, like California, are going to be the most expensive. In the Kansas DUI defense world, you get what you pay for. Unfortunately, you cannot hire someone for a few hundred dollars and expect to receive a high level of service and skill in the defense of your case. You have to decide if you want to beat your Kansas DUI case or not. If you want to have a chance to win, you have to get the best Kansas DUI lawyer you can find in your area. That may cost more money, but if it helps you keep your driver's license, keep your job, and avoid jail, fines, court costs and higher insurance rates, it will be worth it.

The article is also interesting in that it discusses how skewed the law is against DUI cases, but how skilled, innovative and industrious DUI lawyers can find ways to win these cases. The science is not airtight. It is based on some fallacious assumptions in the first case, but it is also administered by human beings who will pretty regularly make mistakes or, worse, intentionally fudge the science. Having the right lawyer can make a big difference.

The bottom line is that Kansas DUI is big business. It is big business for the courts that make money from these cases. It is big business for the police departments who get grant money and equipment given to them by government agencies and MADD. It is big business for tow companies, bondsmen, the ignition interlock providers and other peripheral service providers. It is also big business for lawyers. There are a lot of pretenders out there. If you want the best Kansas DUI lawyer you need to do more than look at the Yellow Pages or go to the first website that you see. Please re-read my previous posts on How to Hire the Best Kansas DUI Attorney. If there is a way to beat your Kansas DUI, you will need someone with knowledge, skills and experience - not the cheapest guy you can find.

Monday, December 15, 2008
How to Tell If You Are Over the Limit

The local news channel in Lawrence, Kansas did a little story on ways to determine whether you have consumed enough alcohol to be over the legal limit. You can see the video here. It discusses the personal breath alcohol testing devices that people can buy, the machines in bars that are supposed to tell you your BAC, and it shows the van that the Lawrence Police Department has which houses a mobile Intoxilyzer 8000 for DUI breath testing out in the field.

One of the problems with Kansas DUI laws is that no one can accurately estimate when they have had enough alcohol to be over the legal limit. That is why it is better to not drink anything before you drive a car. The police machines are not accurate, but some gizmo you buy off of the internet, or pay a couple of quarters for in a bar is not likely to be accurate either. The websites you can visit that will tell you how much a person can drink, given a specific weight, are helpful guides but you cannot depend on them to keep you out of legal trouble. Your level of impairment depends on your metabolism, what you have eaten recently, the amount of sleep you've had and a host of other biological factors. The machine that the police use for court in Kansas DUI cases is based on averages and cannot factor in the biological differences in human beings like body temperature, breath temperature, partition ratio, hematocrit levels, and the presence of compounds which may be mistaken for alcohol in the breath. So, who knows what anyone will blow when the police demand that you do so? People who are not impaired will blow over the limit and people who are impaired may blow under it.

The legal limit for DUI in Kansas is .08 grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. Think about that for a minute. One little M&M candy weighs about a gram. Picture 210 one-liter soda pop bottles, or a 55 gallon drum. Now, if less than a gram out of 55 gallons of your breath is alcohol, you are busted. One-thousanth of a gram, think about how little that is, can make an enormous difference as to whether you are DUI or lose your driving privileges for a long time. If you blow .149 on your first Kansas DUI, you lose your license for 30 days. If you blow one-thousanth of a gram more, .150, you lose it for a full year followed by one year of blowing into an ignition interlock device. That is a big difference based on a microscopic amount of alcohol.

Your freedom, your job and a whole lot of your money are on the line every time you subject yourself to this crapshoot. The best way to minimize your exposure to getting charged with a DUI in Kansas or Missouri, whether you are in fact guilty or innocent, is to not drink, at all, before you drive. Designate a driver, get a taxi or other ride TO the bar so no one will be tempted to drive when it is time to leave, and otherwise take precautions. You cannot know what your blood alcohol content is, you cannot really trust the websites or personal BAC machines, and you have no idea what the police device is going to say. Your BAC is always a moving target and the most microscopic amount of alcohol can make a big difference in the quality of your life. You don't want to trust your life or freedom to any of these machines.

Friday, July 18, 2008
Watch Your Myspace and Facebook Pages

More and more I have seen prosecutors in Kansas DUI cases, and other criminal cases, going to a person's Myspace or Facebook profiles to get dirt on them. Many young people have these pages which include pictures of them drinking (often underage), advertising alcohol, or otherwise bragging about his or her ability to drink or use drugs. Believe me, the cops aren't kidding, "anything you say can and will be used against you." Take this recent DUI case, featured here, in which a young man got a prison sentence instead of probation because his facebook showed him partying in a jail costume at a Halloween party two weeks after a crash in which he seriously hurt another person. The prosecutor created a powerpoint slideshow of these photos and successfully questioned whether the kid was remorseful. Remember the young lady who Elliot Spitzer was caught with, and how her Myspace page was splashed all over the news the next day? If you are involved in a serious criminal case, or even a run of the mill Kansas DUI case, you should give some serious thought to taking down such pages. As I have mentioned before, getting charged with a DUI is a good time to do some reflecting on your life, whether or not you are actually guilty. Giving a judge or prosecutor more reasons to doubt your sobriety, and remorse could come back to haunt you later.

Monday, July 7, 2008
Should You Drink With Your Kids?

Time magazine has a great article about teen drinking and how to best teach kids to be responsible with alcohol. The article seems to conclude that it is better for teenagers to get some exposure to alcohol in a supervised setting before they are 21 years old. The recent hysteria over teen drinking has driven kids to drink in clandestine locations where they are less likely to get help if they get into trouble with alcohol. More and more are ending up in the emergency room because they have no experience with alcohol and no experienced person there to guide them.

Kansas MIP laws allow children 17 years of age to consume alcohol at home with his or her parent or legal guardian. This law is not well known. Given the "all or nothing" approach to alcohol that has been the trend in the last ten years, including a strong emphasis on making teen drinking a legal problem as opposed to a personal or family problem, most parents are mortified that they will be arrested or otherwise reported to the authorities for child abuse or something if they allow their child to drink, at all. Yet, as the article points out, you may be teaching your child some great lessons in responsibility by allowing limited alcohol use with the family. Alcohol is less likely to be seen as a means to rebel, or as some magic potion that will make you more mature, and kids that drink with their family generally tend to have less problems with alcohol. It certainly bears thinking about.

Here are some excerpts from the article:

So the data indicate there are fewer young drinkers, but a greater proportion of them are hard-core drinkers. Parents have helped create this paradox. Many parents seem torn between two competing impulses: officially, most say in surveys that they oppose any drinking by those under 21. But unofficially many also seem to think kids will be kids...
***
But there is a better way. At first it sounds a little nutty, but you might consider drinking with your kids. Incongruously, the way to produce fewer problem drinkers is to create more drinkers overall--that is, to begin to create a culture in which alcohol is not an alluring risk but part of quotidian family life. Of course, that's a mostly European approach to alcohol, but there's reason to think it could work here. And it may be the best way to solve the binge-drinking problem.
***
In a way, the new strategy worked: fewer kids drink now because it's harder for them to obtain alcohol. But as psychologist Stanton Peele writes in his 2007 book Addiction-Proof Your Child (one of his 10 books on addiction), "When alcohol is presented as impossibly dangerous, it becomes alluring as a 'forbidden fruit' ... The choice between abstinence and excess is not a good one to force on children."
***
there's evidence that drinking with your kids--not buying them alcohol for a party but actually drinking with them at home--is a good way to teach responsible drinking behavior.
***
But another result was surprising: if kids actually drank with their parents, they were about half as likely to say they had drunk alcohol in the past month and about one-third as likely to say they had had five or more drinks in a row in the previous two weeks. As Foley and her colleagues wrote in a 2004 Journal of Adolescent Health paper, "Drinking with parents appears to have a protective effect on general drinking trends."
***
You give them sips as smaller kids, and you don't make a big deal about it," says Peele, 62. "Around 16, give them a glass of wine. A second glass probably doesn't make sense, but making hard-and-fast rules creates the sense that alcohol is some magical potion."
***
In other words, the social-host law appears to have broken up big house parties into many smaller ones. Possibly because fewer adults are present, the parties are less supervised, and more kids are getting so drunk they end up in the ER.
***
Because alcohol is harder to obtain now than in the '70s and '80s, more kids are delaying their first drink. But most people will drink before 21, and it's a reasonable goal for parents to be there when it happens. "What if a kid has never had alcohol and drinks for the first time at 21?" asks Peele, the author of Addiction-Proof Your Child. "If they haven't developed a capacity to regulate themselves with alcohol at all, you can be headed for trouble."

Monday, July 30, 2007
Top 10 Ways To Prove You Are Not DUI

Generally, in Kansas, a DUI can be proven either of 2 ways: (1) by showing that a driver submitted a blood, breath or urine test of .08 or greater within 2 hours of driving a vehicle, or (2) that a driver was so under the influence of alcohol or drugs that he or she was unable to safely operate a motor vehicle. If there is a breath test in a DUI case, that alone can be enough for a conviction, but breath tests can be attacked many ways. If there is no breath or blood test because a driver refused to take one, or an attorney has been successful at getting it thrown out, the prosecutor must try to get a conviction by proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the driver was too intoxicated to safely drive. This is usually done by putting on evidence that the driver was not driving safely, failed field sobriety tests, had bloodshot eyes, the odor of alcohol on his breath and had slurred speech. Other factors that can aid a prosecution for a traditional type DUI are open containers in the car, admissions to drinking by a driver or other statements against the driver's interests. A lot of people put strong emphasis on the so-called field sobriety tests. However, as I have blogged about before, these can be dismantled fairly easily. It is not unusual for people to show poor balance duing the field tests, since they are designed to make people off balance. The police report will be skewed against the driver to note all of the information that might be considered incriminatein. It is important for a DUI defense attorney to point out all of things about his client that were normal and consistent with sobriety. In addition to attacking the field tests, the following are some of the top ten ways to show that a driver was not too intoxicated to be driving a vehicle, in no particular order:

1. Safe Driving: The best way to show that a person was not unsafe to drive is to show that he or she was driving safely. A lot of traffic stops after midnight in the suburbs are for equipment violations or speeding. If a vehicle has a tag light, taillight or headlight out, that has nothing to do with whether they are safe to drive a vehicle or not. There is no evidence of "bad driving" in those situations. Similarly, speeding may be considered a traffic infraction, but speeding is not considered by the National Highway Transportation Administration to be indicative of impaired driving. NHTSA lists about 20 driving behaviors that may indicate a person is under the influence of alcohol. Speeding is not one of them. So, how a person was actually driving a car is the first and best way to show that they were capable of driving safely.

2. Not Confused or Disoriented: When an officer approaches a driver he has pulled over, he is trained to make observations about the driver's appearance. A person who is intoxicated may appear to be confused and disoriented as to what is going on, where he is, what direction he is headed, etc. If the driver did not argue with the officer about the stop, and did not appear confused or disoriented, this would be consistent with sobriety.

3. Production of Driver's License/Insurance: Officers are trained to observe the way a person produces his or her driver's license and insurance. Do they have trouble locating it, extracting it, or handing it over? Do they fumble for it or drop it? Officers are trained to try to cause these issues by, first, requesting the documentation, and then asking questions to divert the person from the task. They will ask what year the car is, where the driver is coming from, where they are going or some fairly innocuous question that may make the driver stop to answer and forget what he or she is doing, or otherwise get distracted. Of course, most people are scared, nervous and anxious when stopped by police officers so fumbling with a license may be explainable. However, if a driver can find and produce requested documentation without difficulty this is proof of small muscle control, finger dexterity, presence of mind and overall sobriety.

4. Answering Questions Appropriately: Again, officers like to ask a lot of questions while the driver is still in the car because, generally, the Miranda Warning requirements do not apply at that time. They will ask where the driver is coming from, where he or she is going, how much the driver has had to drink, when and where they drank, and other general questions. How a driver answers these questions may demonstrate clear thinking and sobriety. Being slow to answer, asking the officer to repeat questions, getting confused, and changing answers will all be used against a driver in a Kansas DUI case.

5. Being Polite: Intoxicated persons may be belligerent, antagonistic, combative and profane. Whether intoxicated or not, it always pays to be polite with police officers. This does not mean that a driver has to answer questions, take field tests or otherwise do anything that is not required by law, but such invitations to give evidence against oneself can still be declined in a polite and respectful way. Saying "I would like to speak to an attorney first, please", or "I am not going to be uncooperative with you, but I will not take the balance tests", are polite ways of invoking your rights and standing up for yourself without being rude or antagonistic. No matter what the attitude of an arresting officer, a driver that remains calm and polite will be far better off when a case goes to court, both in terms of demonstrating sobriety and in terms of treatment by the court.

6. Exit Sequence: Officers are also trained to observe the way a person gets out of his or her vehicle once commanded to do so. Does the driver have difficulty using the vehicle controls, finding the door latch or opening the door? Does the driver "crawl" out of the car, lean on the door or vehicle for support, or stumble when getting out? Does the person lean against the car or use the car for support while walking where directed by the officer? If the person gets out of the car without any difficulties or balance problems, this is evidence of possession of normal faculties and sobriety.

7. Walking Around at the Scene: An officer will generally have the driver exit his or her vehicle and walk to the back of his or her car. This will be in front of the officer's car so his dashboard videocamera can capture the field tests. Sometimes the officer and driver will walk over to a sidewalk or some other appropriate surface for field testing. I like to point out that, while a person may have had trouble with the extraordinary balancing tests, he or she had no trouble with the ordinary walking around. If the driver can walk, talk and produce documentation like a normal, sober person, he or she can drive a vehicle like a normal, sober person.

8. Ability to Communicate: The "Big Three" clues you will see noted by officers in almost every single DUI case are (1) odor of alcohol about person or on breath, (2) bloodshot eyes (this has recently become "bloodshot and watery eyes"), and (3) slurred speech. At the time of being stopped and investigated, drivers are in no position to preserve any evidence regarding these three ubiquitous DUI characteristics. It is almost impossible to prove conclusively that a driver did not have the odor of alcohol or bloodshot eyes as these are subjective conclusions and usually one person's word against the other's. There are ways of dealing with both, however, but that is another topic. On the other hand, slurred speech should be apparent on a video or audio recording of the event, both of which are common in Kansas DUI cases. Often, the video will depict a driver whose speech is not slurred and who is able to communicate appropriately. This means that the driver can understand and answer the officer's questions and that the officer is able to understand the driver. If so, one of the "Big Three" may be disproven and communication skills consistent with sobriety may be demonstrated.

9. Answering Biographical Questions: Whether or not a driver decides to invoke his or her right to remain silent and not answer the officer's questions on the scene or later at the station after arrest, an arrested person is generally required to answer biographical questions about him or herself which may be necessary for an arrest report. These questions are usually about the person's address and phone numbers, where he or she works and the address and phone number of their employer, what state he of she was born in and whether the person has any scars, marks or tattoos. An intoxicated person may have trouble with all of that. A sober person generally would not. The ability to correctly and efficiently provide this biographical information is consistent with sobriety.

10. Using the Telephone: This is often overlooked, but usually an arresting officer will allow a detained person to call someone to bail him out or to arrange for a ride home. Officers in some jurisdictions are specifically trained to observe how a person uses the telephone. This includes whether the person is able to get a line out of the building, remember phone numbers, dial the phone (takes finger dexterity), and speak appropriately. The person will often have to tell their friend or family member where they are and give directions or the address to the police station. The ability to do these things may be used as proof that the person was also able to do the things necessary to operate a motor vehicle.

By showing that a driver was able to do all of the things that a person normally needs to be able to do to drive a car, and that he or she generally possessed the mental and physical abilities of a normal person, DUI cases can be successfully defended. If it was only when the driver was asked to do the unusual and extraordinary, like stand on one leg or walk a line heel to toe, that there was any difficulty, this should be no real surprise. No one has to stand on one leg or walk a line to get a driver's license.

Monday, December 11, 2006
You Can Drive a Moped if You are Suspended

As of a few years ago, the suspension periods in the State of Kansas got a lot longer, especially for people who invoke their right to refuse to take a breath test. Since most places in Kansas (and Missouri, for that matter) don't have taxicabs, much less buses or subways, this makes it nearly impossible to get around legally while suspended. I frequently get asked what a person is supposed to do if he or she gets suspended for a long period of time. Drivers ask, "How does the State expect me to get to work" during a one, two or three year suspension. Well, the short answer is that they don't care. If you lose your job and have to go live under a bridge, that won't be their problem.

But there is one alternative. In the State of Kansas, a person who is suspended for a DUI can usually get a Class C driver's license which will permit them to operate a "motorized bicycle", also known as a moped or scooter. This is authorized by a statute, KSA 8-235. This may not be a very attractive option for many people, however, it may beat walking. A motorized bicycle is defined as a device with 2 or 3 wheels which has a motor which produces not more that 3.5 brake horsepower, has a cylinder capacity of 130 cc or less, and is capable of a maimum design speed of not more than 30 miles per hour. KSA 8-126. This license is available to those who have been suspended for a conviction or administrative suspension for DUI. It is not available to persons revoked as a habitual violator.

I had a client who was a motorcyle mechanic. He had lost his license to drive before he ever came to me. So, even though I ultimately got a "not guilty" verdict for him at trial, he had lost his license for one year. He took a moped frame and built a vehicle at looked almost exactly like a slightly smaller version of a Harley Davidson. It was pretty cool actually. He got the Class C license. He was stopped by a police officer for some reason who verified that the motor was the correct size and that my client was properly licensed. No problem.

So, there is this alternative to not driving a car or breaking the law by driving while suspended. At least you can get to and from the grocery store, even if you have to keep your helmet on in the store so no one recognizes you.

Friday, May 12, 2006
How To Hire The Best DUI DWI Attorney In Kansas Part IV
WHAT YOU SHOULD EXPECT FROM YOUR KANSAS DUI ATTORNEY

1. Answers to your questions when asked.

2. Prompt return of all telephone calls and emails.

3. That a copy of all police reports, videotapes, photographs and other evidence will be obtained by the attorney and copies sent to you.

4. A willingness to meet in person to discuss your case.

5. Correspondence concerning all activity in your case, including any upcoming court dates or driver's license hearings.

6. A thorough review of all of the facts and law applicable to your case.

7. An honest assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your case.8. A desire to talk to witnesses, review medical records and come up with other defenses in your case,

9. Good advice about strategy, evidence collection, and how to resolve your case.

10. Knowledge, experience, skill, confidence and total honesty.

If you are willing to invest the time and resources necessary to find the lawyer who can best represent your interests in your case, you are likely to have far less anxiety during the pendency of your case and have a far better chance at achieving a satisfactory result and minimizing the immediate and long-term impact of this charge on your life.

Friday, May 12, 2006
How To Hire The Best DUI DWI Attorney In Kansas Part III
HOW TO DO IT RIGHT

1. Word of mouth: This is the most effective form of advertising and should be one effective way to determine which lawyer can best represent you. Almost everybody knows someone who has been cited for DUI, and some of your acquaintances themselves may have been in this situation. Ask those people who it was that represented them, whether they were satisfied that their lawyer did everything he or she could for them, and whether they would hire that person again. You should be able to get the names of 2 or 3 competent attorneys this way, as well as the names of people to avoid.

2. Do your own research: You should get familiar with Kansas DUI laws and be prepared with questions for the attorneys you intend to talk to. You should also try to research the attorneys themselves and get to know something about their experience with DUI cases. Go to the attorneys' websites and see what you can learn about them. Are they maintaining their own website and providing information to the public, or are they just on pay sites? Does the person's name come up often in sites concerning DUI cases in Kansas? What organizations do they belong to? Attorneys that belong to organizations dedicated to the defense of persons charged with DUI, or criminal defense in general, are more likely to be dedicated themselves to effective representation of those charged with a DUI in Kansas.

3. Meet with the attorney: You need someone that you are comfortable with, in whom you have confidence, and who has your best interests in mind. You should be able to gauge to some extent whether this attorney intends to work for you and fight for you, or sell you out the first chance he or she gets.

4. Make your decision based on who it is that you believe can best represent you: Try to block out considerations of money, allegiance to friends or family, or anything other than in whose hands do you feel most comfortable with your life being held. That person is probably the attorney for you and you must find a way to secure his or her representation.

Friday, May 12, 2006
How To Hire The Best DUI DWI Attorney In Kansas Part II
COMMON MISTAKES IN SELECTING A KANSAS DUI ATTORNEY

1. Hiring your friend, friend's dad, or your real estate attorney to represent you for a Kansas DUI charge. Not just anybody with a law license can give you effective representation in a DUI case. It is a particular area of the law. The guy that did your divorce, wrote your will or helped you sue someone may not be the guy for your DUI. In fact, even an attorney that practices general criminal defense may not have expertise in the area of DUI defense. A Kansas DUI is a whole lot different than a speeding ticket, domestic violence charge or a theft case. Also your friend or a friend's family member may be trying to help you out, but unless he or she handles a lot of Kansas DUI's he may hurt you more than help you.

2. Hiring the first person you get ahold of from the yellow pages. If you have not opened the yellow pages and looked under the category "attorneys", you should. You will be amazed at the enormous number of attorneys marketing themselves in the Kansas City area, and you will have some sense of the competition for clients in this market. Anyone can buy a yellow pages ad. No one checks the accuracy of the claims made in the advertisements. You can also see from the ads that many attorneys are attempting to "do it all", including bankruptcy, divorce, immigration, or other disparate areas of the law in addition to doing some DUI's on the side. Some attorneys that rely on advertising and yellow pages ads may be running "fee mills" in which they count on the high volume of random people finding them in the yellow pages. They have low fees, but their aim may be to resolve cases quickly and in large numbers in order to make a living.

3. Hiring someone based on online advertising. Just like with the yellow pages and all forms of advertising, anyone can put up a webpage and declare themselves a DUI attorney. It does not necessarily make it so. One thing to watch out for is the national "pay to play" websites. There are a lot of them. These sites claim to have a stable of the best DUI attorneys in the country - all you have to do is type in the name of your state or click on a map. In reality, these sites make money by selling their web advertising space to the first attorney that comes up with the money. Many sites will offer an exclusive listing for a certain state or area of a state to lawyers in exchange for dollars. There is no vetting done to determine whether these people are competent or have any experience in litigating DUI cases - the first one to come up with the money gets a webpage and the referral of every potential client that comes to the site. Take a look at the pages of lawyers that the site offers from other states. Usually, all of the different lawyers' pages look the same because they are just forms that the attorney advertiser fills out. They will even have the same slogans and graphics. Some of these attorneys may actually emphasize DUI cases in their practice, and be good at what they do, but some others are running a fee mill and may not be willing to actually try your DUI case. An attorney that has taken the time to invest a lot effort in a website that he or she hosts and maintains him or herself, and which provides a lot of information, is more likely to be someone dedicated to the defense of people charged with a DUI in Kansas.

4. Hiring someone based on a newspaper or magazine article. You can look at the back page of many local papers or magazines and see the ads of attorneys touting their services for one thing or another, usually DUI, bankruptcy and divorce. Often, when an attorney is just starting out, advertising this way is a good way to introduce one's name into the marketplace and to get some clients from which to build a practice. There comes a time, though, when an attorney's reputation in the community and the word of mouth of former clients should be able to sustain him or her. Making a decision about an attorney based solely on what you see in an advertisement may not be the best way to find a skilled attorney who will fight for you. Would you feel comfortable leaving a life-threatening illness to a doctor you found on the back of a free paper?

5. Hiring an attorney based on price. Another cliché that became a cliché because it was so true is, "You get what you pay for". Nothing could be more accurate when it comes to lawyers. Another saying you might not have heard is "There's nothing more expensive than a cheap lawyer". Making the decision about who to hire based on the fee may be a very costly mistake. If you've had a DUI before and only paid your attorney a few hundred dollars, you recall how that worked out. A DUI charge can have serious long term financial ramifications, from fines, fees and court costs, to higher insurance, the loss of employment, driver's license reinstatement fees, the costs of court-ordered drug and alcohol treatment programs, ignition interlock devices, "color-code" bodily fluids tests etc. Making an upfront investment in effective representation, and at least someone who knows how to navigate the system well, may save you thousands over the long term and greatly diminish the impact of this situation on your life. An attorney that is charging a high fee should be doing so based on his or her knowledge, skill and reputation in the community, as well as the amount of work that he or she intends to put into defending you. Going the cheapest route possible may get you the opposite and cost you financially and otherwise for a long time to come.

Friday, May 12, 2006
How To Hire The Best DUI DWI Attorney In Kansas Part I

Because I have been kind of neglecting the blog lately, I thought I would post some information about how to hire an attorney to represent you in a Kansas DUI case. This information comes from a page on our website www.nortonhare.com. The internet is a good place to get information about DUI lawyers. Remember, though, when reviewing the multitude of sites listing so-called "DUI Lawyers", that most of them are "pay to play". In other words, the first guy to open up his checkbook got listed on the site as the "DUI Specialist" whether that person knows what he or she is doing or not. Some of these lawyers may actually be "Dump Trucks", i.e. lawyers that just plead clients out without ever trying to win the case. Here is Part I:

If you have been charged with a DUI you are scared, anxious, worried and confused. You may feel depressed, ashamed or even victimized. All of these emotions take a heavy toll on you and will creep into, if not overwhelm, your work, relationships and personal life. Because you only have ten days in which to make a written request for a driver's license hearing, and to get it done right, you have to move fast and make a decision about an attorney in a short period of time. The crisis in your life caused by a DUI arrest, and all of the anxiety and emotions that flow from it, can lead you to make a mistake in hiring an attorney. You may be tempted to hire the first one you talk to just to get the decision over with. You may allow someone to capitalize on your fears without giving you accurate information and without taking time to make the right decision. Or you may base your decision purely on who is the cheapest because you are so concerned about the financial impact that a DUI conviction or driver's license suspension will have on you. Please review the following informationregarding the things to think about when trying to find the best DUI attorney to assist you.

DO YOU EVEN NEED AN ATTORNEY? Some people think that they don't need an attorney to represent them, especially if it is a first offense. In fact, a lot of police officers will tell first time Kansas DUI offenders that they don't need an attorney. A DUI, especially given the ever-tightening DUI laws in Kansas, is like a disease on your life. A DUI charge can result in a loss of driving privileges, loss of a job, jail time, upheaval of personal relationships, enormous expense and inconvenience, as well as a criminal record for life, higher insurance rates and a long-list of other social and legal problems. If you had a disease you would go see a doctor. If you needed surgery you would not perform surgery on yourself. This is an important, potentially life-altering, situation and you not only need a lawyer, but you need someone with a lot of experience and skill in the area of DUI defense.

You can represent yourself if you want. The saying that "the lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client" did not become a cliché without good reason. You will likely lose your driver's license in the administrative proceeding and have the criminal case navigated for you by a prosecutor. That is the lawyer who is against you! He or she may seem helpful, but his or her job is to get convictions and collect money for the State or City, not help you. Even if you elect to accept diversion, the quality of your life while on that diversion will be dictated by the terms of the diversion agreement and you need a lawyer's advice about that document. DUI diversions are counted as convictions if you ever get charged with another DUI in Kansas any time in your entire life. A driver's license suspension will be on your driving record and used to enhance the penalties on a future driver's license suspension for the rest of your entire life. This is no time for amateur hour.

Our law firm has seen many clients come to us just before accepting a diversion or conviction only to achieve through our representation acquittals, dismissals, return of their driver's license or significantly reduced impact on their personal and professional lives. We have also had to help people deal with the aftermath of poor legal representation in DUI cases and it has not been pretty in many instances.

WHO IS THE RIGHT KANSAS DUI ATTORNEY? The representation of persons charged with DUI in Kansas has become an extremely complex and Byzantine maze that few lawyers have really invested the time and energy to understand. The laws concerning administrative driver's license ramifications and criminal case penalties change nearly every legislative session. Because decisions by the Appellate and Supreme Courts are issued every few weeks, the Kansas DUI laws actually change on an almost monthly basis. It takes serious dedication and focus to stay on top of the law and to be able to provide accurate, reliable advice in a DUI case.
You have to be careful about relying on advertising and sloganeering. Anybody who graduates from law school can call themselves a DUI attorney. Anyone with a checkbook can place an ad in the back of a newspaper or on a billboard touting themselves as a DUI lawyer. You need an attorney who does not just call themselves a DUI lawyer, but that actually has a reputation and track record as a DUI lawyer.

Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Another Good Article

Here is another good article about how a DUI specialist can make the difference between a good outcome and a bad one. Lawyers all over the country are attacking the shaky science and fallacious assumptions that have formerly landed people in jail who didn't neccessarily belong there.

http://www.newtimesbpb.com/issues/2005-09-08/news/feature_1.html

Sunday, August 07, 2005
Buy the Best and Only Cry Once
I read an interesting article written by a journalist who served as a juror in a DUI case in Michigan recently. You can find the article at http://www.detnews.com/2005/metro/0508/07/A01-271986.htm . The author, like most people, went into the case with a "tough on DUI" stance, having faith in law enforcement "field sobriety tests", and trusting the breath testing machine. Yet, a defense attorney who had taken the time to educate himself on the fallacies behind field and breath testing, and who had the knowledge and skill to apply his training to his client's personal characteristics and the unique facts of his case was able to convince six skeptical jurors that the government had not proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

The guy charged with the DUI was facing some severe consequences had he been convicted. He could have gone cheap and found any old attorney out of the phonebook to represent him for a small amount of money. He likely would have never seen his case fought, and certainly not with the kind of prowess that his attorney displayed at his trial. Instead, he spent $10,000.00 on an attorney whose practice was primarily litigating DUI cases - someone who handled almost nothing but DUI cases and who cared enough to get specialized training in how to try DUI's. He went to trial with the best and he got the result he deserved - not guilty. The journalist juror was shown that the field sobriety tests are designed for failure and that the breath test machine was not perfect. She quickly realized that her civic duty was to enforce the presumption of innocence and hold the government to its burden of proof.

With the wrong attorney, the defendant would have likely pled guilty to the DUI or lost his case at trial. When you consider the fines, fees, court costs, treatment, taxis, increased insurance costs, urine tests and time off of work, it would have been more expensive to hire a cheap lawyer. When the quality of your life is on the line, and your freedom, you cannot afford to hire less than the best. When the presumptions that prop up most DUI cases are exposed to the cold light of truth, jurors will follow the law.

Please fill out our electronic form and submit it to Norton Hare L.L.C. for a free evaluation from one of our attorneys regarding your defense in a Kansas DUI or a Missouri DWI case.

If you have scheduled a consultation with Norton Hare, LLC, please download our client questionnaire and take a moment to fill it out as completely as you can. By completing the questionnaire prior to the meeting and bringing it with you to our offices, you will spend less time in our waiting room and more time in consultation with one of our attorneys.

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