Reader’s Question:

We always go out on Saturdays and have some fun drinking the night out here in Washington, DC. It pays to be careful so not to be charged with DWI. Question is, can the pace of how the person drinks affect the blood alcohol content? And is it true that gender can also affect the blood alcohol in the body?

Chris

Washington, DC

Saturday night in Washington, DC is the best time of the week and it will never be complete without a night out and a drink. But there are certain things that you need to know about to get you out of trouble of being charged with DWI. To answer your question, yes, how fast a person drink could greatly affect the blood alcohol content (BAC) in a person’s body. The quicker the person drinks, the higher the peak BAC would be. The liver actually gets rid of the alcohol at the average rate of one drink per hour (five oz wine, 12 oz beer, one shot of distilled liquor). The remainder would circulate in the blood stream until the liver can get rid of it if a person drinks faster than this.

It could also affect the BAC in a person’s body if you are a male or a female. A woman reaches higher BAC’s faster because they have more adipose tissue (fat) and less water in their bodies, which is not easily penetrated by alcohol. This means that a man and a woman, with all other factors being equal, both drinking the same amount of alcohol, would have different BAC levels; a woman’s BAC would be higher. The menstrual cycle of a woman would also affect her rate of absorption and they experience their highest BAC’s pre-menstrually. In addition to this, there is also evidence that a woman who takes birth control pills would absorb alcohol faster, resulting in higher BAC levels.

Tags: blood alcohol test, DWI, DWI lawyer

Reader’s Question:

If I will be stopped because of a DWI suspicion in Washington, DC, what shall I do if I will be asked to take the field sobriety tests?

Franco

Washington, DC

I know that you could pass the field sobriety tests if you will be requested to perform them during a DWI investigation at Washington, DC. Taking into consideration all the circumstances surrounding the test, I would strongly suggest attempting them. The officer should let you go if you pass the tests. It becomes a very difficult decision if you have never attempted any of these tests before because you are probably nervous and scared about being stopped and asked to step out of your car. You wouldn’t know if you can pass these tests especially if the officer wouldn’t tell you what they are looking for.

If you are not sure of what to do, you can tell the officer that you would like to contact a lawyer before you decide whether or not to take field sobriety tests. The officer would most likely not give you the opportunity. So then you can ask if you are required to perform these field sobriety tests and the honest answer is no. If the officer has any other answer, it would leave a jury with the impression that the officer is deceptive. You may also ask if these tests are 100% accurate and again, the honest answer is no.

Tags: DWI, DWI lawyer, field sobriety tests

Reader’s Question:

How must I select a lawyer? What must I anticipate to pay for a first-class Washington DC attorney?

Marina

Washington, DC

Selecting a lawyer in Washington DC entails your own choice. For your most excellent argument you ought to find a person with particular information and skill in DWI defense. I suggest that you personally meet with any legal representative you talk to for employment. During the actual meeting, it can give you a great deal of viewpoint on the type of expert that you are dealing with. After some time, you must hire somebody you think is accusing you a just price and approving to do a definite quantity of work for you.

Regarding your second question, that will depend on a lot of things. Most importantly it depends on the credentials preferred in your DWI defense attorney. Your payment should also depend on the particulars of your case and the work concerned by the attorney or firm defending you. Inexpensive lawyers do not work hard; they work quickly and do a lot of cases. Costly lawyers have time to work harder. It is vital that you comprehend precisely what services an attorney is contributing to carry out for the fee being quoted. If you do not inquire what will be done, the attorney may not tell you. It is my view that you are at liberty to know precisely what the firm will do for you and accurately what your charges will be.

Reader Question

I was wondering since Washington is the state where the White House is, does it mean the police are stricter on Auto Insurance and is there any way that they can check whether I am bringing a valid Auto Insurance?

John, Bellevue

Hey there John,

Like any other state, in Washington, you must bring with you, your proof of insurance when driving. However, motorcycles are exempt. Even if the President of the US resides in Washington, it does not mean that technology is more advanced compared to other states when checking on the validity of the auto insurance. There is only one way for an officer to verify whether your auto insurance is valid or not, it is through contacting the listed company on the proof of insurance that you presented when asked and then, the policy status will be checked.

Insurance can become a secondary violation, when stopped due to collision or a primary violation. A piece of advice, always bring valid auto insurance whenever you are driving. You may not know, one day an officer will ask for it and you can’t present any. It is better to be prepared than be sorry later.

The fee agreement is something you will be given by your Washington DC DWI attorney at your first consulting with them, and it deserves some further explanation. Following, I will give you the details about this important document, which you should be given in printed form. Remember that every agreement you come to should be given in writing as well, or you can’t rely on it.

The agreement will explain what your Washington DC DWI attorney can do for you, and what the cost will be for that. It will include many pieces of information, from a list of duties, to the total price, and the smaller charges which make it up, as well as a part on what you are responsible for on your end of the case. Don’t forget to ask questions about details.

• How much will it cost for me to hire you, and how will you charge that cost?
• Are there different payment plans? Can you describe them? Which do you suggest?
• Do I need to put down a down payment?
• Will these charges change?
• Can I save money on this?

The hiring of a Washington DC DUI attorney will always be expensive, which is why for some people who have tight budgets it could be a better idea to simply take another route and request a publicly appointed lawyer. This isn’t such a bad thing as you may think, because all though the media and rumours may say that lawyers that work for the government aren’t very good ones, many of these legal workers have years and years of experience in law and have also been on the other side of the door in court.

One problem that you may face is that a lawyer that works for the government may not have solely expertise in DUI law, but usually there is a way that you can try to get someone who does, and many publiuc lawyers deal with these cases a lot. It’s also true that most public lawyers have experience being a private Washington DC DUI attorny, as well as public.

How do you know if you’re able to get a public lawyer? Well, you are entitled to be represented in a court of law, and may even request a jury if you so please. If you have a felony charge or in cerrtain circumstances a misdemeanor charge, you may be able to get one.

Take out your pen and start sketching a plan for how your consultation with your prospective Washington DC DUI lawyer will go. You will need to ask the right questions and make sure that you direct the meeting so that you get the most honest, and detailed, responses to your inquries. When you go to the consultation you need to take charge, and not just make it about being a bragging or teaching session for the lawyer as they may try to make it be. Ask some of the following questions, as well as a few more of your own:

• What do you have to do with my case? Consult only with the person who will be handling your representation.
• What will you charge me? Will the price of representing me change according to events? What events can effect that change? Assuming the worst, what is the highest price I can expect? The lowest?
• What have you been doing with your cases–DUI mostly, or just a few, or none at all? How long have you been practicing law? Do you have any experience working as prosecution rather than defense? Do you often succeed on your DUI cases? Have you handled one like mine before? How did it go?

You don’t just listen while your lawyer tells you the cost of Washington DC DUI attorney representation; instead, you get a fee agreement and then take it and compare it with other lawyers to see which one is the best (considering other factors as well, of course). As you do that, pay special attention to small fees which have the likelihood as rising because they aren’t quite as set as the charge for your representation. Some examples below.

• Among other fees, labor charges are often included in your cost of Washington DC DUI attorney agreement. These labor charges are applied for the time spent by employees performing duties related to your case, moreso for overtime but sometimes even for regular hours.
• Running an office isn’t free, and a lot of lawyers will pass these costs on to the customer by charging fees for the use of paper, stamps, envelopes, etc. Since they don’t tend to count each sheet of paper used on your case, this rarely varies if it’s there at all.
• Your lawyer may need to hire a taxi or waste a sifgnificant amount of gas traveling to the courthouse in order to speak for you. You may see this come out in your fee agreement.
• Lawyers may pay your court fees, but that only means that you will be billed for them. Some things, like filing fees, are unavoidable, but think twice about asking for a jury trial.