What should I do if I get stopped for DUI in Georgia?

Anytime you drive after drinking alcohol or using any type of drugs (legally prescribed or otherwise), the most obvious and biggest risks are of injuring or killing your passengers, other drivers or yourself.   When in doubt, PLEASE do not drive, but rather, designate a sober driver, call a cab, call a friend or take advantage of a service like Uber.  

In addition to these huge and irreversible risks, when you drink and drive, you run the risk of being stopped for DUI, regardless of how well you handle yourself or how little you drink/use drugs.   

Here are 4 basic rules to remember if you do get pulled over.

1.    BE POLITE- The officer is just doing his or her job.

2.    DO NOT volunteer any more information than what you are asked.  If the officer asks if you have been drinking, give a one word answer – yes or no (be honest!).   Don’t volunteer how much or what you’ve been drinking.  If they ask how much, tell them the number of drinks, but NOT what you’ve been drinking.

3.    Remember the Field Sobriety Tests are VOLUNTARY

4.    The Breath/Blood/Urine Test is VOLUNTARY

From the point you are stopped to the point you are put in jail (and yes, you’ll likely go to jail if there’s an odor of alcohol on your breath), the police officer is gathering evidence against you.  He or she is paying attention to what you say, how you behave, and your performance on field tests or the breath/blood/urine tests. The State is required to convict you based on evidence, so the less evidence you provide, the more they will have to infer.  The less they have to work with, the harder it’ll be for them to convict you. 

The risk of losing your license for refusing the breath/blood/urine test may be the difference between a DUI conviction and a “not guilty.”  A good DUI Defense Attorney can show a judge or jury that there is not enough evidence to convict you, especially if you don’t give more evidence to the police at the time you are stopped.

To schedule a FREE CONSULTATION with the Law Offices of Brandon Rosenbloom, call us at 678-609-8724 or contact us online today.