Pulled Over For DUI in Arizona

Dedicated Phoenix DUI lawyer discusses what to do if you were pulled over for DUI in Arizona.  Read Our FREE DUI Guide We get presented with hypothetical questions from potential clients. What should they do if they’re pulled over by the police for suspicion of driving under the influence? My answer to that is a blanket answer. Always cooperate with all the lawful orders and requests of police officers. A lot of times, you have people out there that want to become street lawyers and want to debate things with cops that are on the streets doing their job, and remember that all police officers’ number one priority is officer safety. I was a police officer for a long time, and officer safety is a great priority for police officers. They want to get back home to their families. However, police officers do have a body of laws that they must follow as it relates to search and seizure, use of force, and questions they can lawfully ask. In the process of being pulled over specifically for suspicion of driving under the influence, you need to cooperate with the officer’s lawful commands. There could be a series of things that the officer asks you to do, such as take a field sobriety test, a breathalyzer test, and you have to know your rights under those laws. The officer will ask you for permission to do something. Oftentimes, it’s maybe that they don’t have any other lawful way to get the information from you outside of their consent. If the traffic stop specifically was for suspicion of driving under the influence, the officer would need to detail in his report and explain to you, to some degree, the reason why he pulled you over and how he established reasonable suspicion that you could possibly be driving under the influence. Were you speeding, driving too slowly, or swerving outside of the lines? He would need to explain to you, within reason, why he stopped you, and what you did that caused him to believe that you were driving under the influence.

At that point, you’re under no obligation to give any information that would be used against you in an adverse manner or that could be used against you to prove your guilt. You can plead the fifth, as they say, but cooperating with his reasonable commands is something that would be expected of you. If you’re in doubt, you can always plead the fifth. Don’t resist the officer. Don’t go back and forth with them. Contact a lawyer and make sure that you discuss it with someone who is experienced in dealing with DUI cases, because sometimes cases aren’t filed immediately. Sometimes they’re filed down the road, and so you’d want to talk to a lawyer and make sure that none of your rights have been violated.

Were you pulled over for DUI in Arizona and have questions about what to do next? Contact our skilled Phoenix DUI lawyers for a free confidential consultation. Let us fight to protect your rights. Out of Town Legal Resources We mainly represent people in Arizona but we often hear from people who need help elsewhere in the country. Recently we got a call from someone in Buffalo. We aren’t able to help with their DWI case, we we guided them towards this Buffalo DWI lawyer to check out their educational resources.