Accidents More Likely Because of Ignition Interlocks?
May 17th, 2009
Installation of an ignition interlock device (IID) in a driver’s car is the intended result of Washington State DUI laws. The ignition interlock device is required to be installed if a driver’s license is suspended due to a DUI arrest or convicti…
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Why Aren't All DUI Arrests Videotaped?
May 16th, 2009
In past years it was common procedure for Washington State DUI arrests to be recorded on police video. Jurors have come to expect this, based upon TV shows such as “Cops.” Video recording a DUI arrest is good public policy because the video const…
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Categories: DUI Arrests
Did You Pass the DUI "Eye Test?"
May 2nd, 2009
Most people are familiar with the “usual” balancing and coordination field sobriety tests that are given to a driver who has been detained on suspicion of DUI. These tests include “walking the line,” balancing on one leg, and sometimes the fi…
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Debunking the DUI "Eye" Test
November 29th, 2008
In February of this year, the long anticipated decision in State v. Baity, 140 Wn.2d 1 (2000) was published and the battle over the admissibility of Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) was thrust to the forefront. HGN is the side to side jerking of the e…
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Washington State DUI Law Awaiting High Court Ruling
November 29th, 2008
A constitutional battle now in the hands of the Washington Supreme Court erupted across the state in the courts of limited jurisdiction over the use of breath-test results in DUI trials. In 2004, the Legislature directed the courts to assume the trut…
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A Slight Omission Leads to Injustice
November 29th, 2008
There are those who call it nitpicking when DUI defense attorneys ask judges to throw a breath test out of court for what looks like a trivial error in approved scientific protocol and procedure. Preventing injustice is not nitpicking. When scientifi…
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Washington State Blood Tests Are Subject To Challenge
November 29th, 2008
It seems that drug based DUI cases are on the rise and every year I see more and more of these types of cases. In a drug based DUI, Vehicular Assault or Vehicular Homicide case the blood test is critical evidence, yet it is subject to a motion to sup…
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Categories: DUI Arrests
Is the .08 Law a Half Truth?
November 29th, 2008
Washington State has done a good job of publicizing that if you drive at .08 or higher, you will be prosecuted. What the average driver does not know is that Washington has in fact abandoned the concept of a “legal limit” in favor of prosecuting…
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Categories: DUI Arrests
"Drugged Driving" Defense and Prosecution: DRE Explained
November 29th, 2008
I. DRE BACKGROUND: Separate from the “per se” prong, RCW 46.61.502 also criminalizes driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug, or under the combined influence of alcohol and a drug. [1]. Although Washington law…
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Tags: Cannabis, Depressants, DRE, Drug DUI, Drug Recognition Expert, Drugs, DUI, Hallucinogens, Inhalants, Narcotics, Stimulants
Canada Bound, Eh? Not with a DUI Conviction
November 26th, 2008
Are you planning on going to Canada with a DUI or other criminal conviction? Not so fast! How many times has the question arisen, “Does this conviction mean that I cannot go to Canada?” The pre-9/11 answer was easy, but, post 9/11, the sharing of…
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Categories: DUI Arrests