Lafayette County, MO

DUI Attorney Near Me Lafayette County, MO

DUI attorney near me in Lafayette County, MO. Being arrested for driving under the influence in Lafayette County, MO is a serious matter. Whatever the circumstances, when you are arrested for driving drunk or high, a you need the best legal representation available to protect your rights and your future.

You deserve quality legal representation from an attorney who has a track record of winning in Lafayette County and Missouri. Depending on the circumstances, a savvy DUI attorney near Lafayette County, MO may be able to get the prosecutor to drop the charges, have the charges reduced to lesser offenses, fight the conviction in a trial or work with the prosecutor to negotiate a plea bargain. Their principle responsibility is to navigate the law and all legal proceedings for your Lafayette County, MO DUI case. For razor-sharp representation when you have been accused of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, speak to Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP.

What is a DUI in Lafayette County, MO?

Commonly referred to as a DUI (which stands for driving under the influence, the official nomenclature used in Missouri courts is a DWI (driving while intoxicated). Missouri Revised Statute §577.010 and §577.012 lay forth the definition of the crime of driving while intoxicated and specifies the rules Missouri courts must follow to sentence and punish DWI offenders, with the latter specific to driving with a BAC, or blood alcohol content, over the legal limit. If you have been arrested in Missouri for a DWI, focus on finding a DUI attorney near Lafayette County, MO to fight for your freedom and help you navigate what can be an intimidating Missouri court process.

A person can be arrested for a DWI in Missouri for a number of reasons. Under Missouri law, it is illegal to drive while intoxicated, including but not limited to driving under the influence of alcohol. Though DWI arrests are often accusations of driving drunk, you can also be arrested for a DWI due to allegedly driving a vehicle while impaired by another intoxicating substance.

The DWI law in Missouri criminalizes not only drinking and driving, but also driving while intoxicated by drugs that impair skills necessary to driving including motor skills, reaction time and decision making. That means that you can be subject to arrest if a police officer believes that you are impaired, including due to ingesting marijuana or even narcotics or pharmaceuticals like opiates.

If you or a family member have been arrested for driving while intoxicated in Missouri, speak to a DUI attorney near you as soon as possible. Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is a skilled Lafayette County-based DUI attorney near you, Chris Combs of Combs Waterkotte is dedicated, experienced and skilled. For a trustworthy DUI attorney near you, call (314) 900-HELP.

Getting Stopped or Arrested for a DUI in Lafayette County, MO

You owe it to yourself to know your rights lest you are pulled over for operating a vehicle while under the influence. Call Combs Waterkotte at (314) 900-HELP immediately to speak to a leading Lafayette County, MO DUI attorney near you and learn about your rights and what you should do if an officer ever stops you while you are operating a vehicle in Missouri. And if you have already gone through a traffic stop and were arrested for driving drunk or high, our unstoppable Lafayette County, MO defense attorneys will protect your rights and freedoms.

Find out about the rules and what to expect for regular traffic stops, sobriety tests and sobriety checkpoints.

DUI Traffic Stops in Lafayette County, MO

In order to pull someone over, a Lafayette County, MO or any Missouri police officer must have reasonable suspicion. In the case of a DWI, reasonable suspicion would be things like drifting out of lane, driving the wrong way down a road and any other behaviors such as inconsistencies in speed, swerving or braking.

A police officer is not allowed to stop you unless there is reasonable suspicion that you are committing the crime of driving while intoxicated satisfy the more stringent burden of probable cause in order to actually place you under arrest for a DWI.

If you suspect that you were wrongly stopped or arrested for your Lafayette County, MO DWI, reach out to a DUI attorney near you as soon as possible. If an officer stopped you without any reasonable suspicion, even if they then obtained evidence that you were driving drunk, a DUI attorney near Lafayette County, MO will help get the prosecutor to dismiss your case so you can put this behind you and be free.

Sobriety Tests for DUIs in Lafayette County, MO

If a law officer stops you under suspicion of intoxicated driving, they will likely try to get you to do a test to prove that you are intoxicated. There are two types of tests Lafayette County, MO police officers typically use in traffic stops for driving under the influence: field sobriety tests and chemical tests.

1. Chemical Tests (ie. a breathalizer)

   In Lafayette County, MO stops for drunk driving or driving under the influence, they often turn to chemical tests to collect evidence that the driver was intoxicated at the time of the stop. Chemical tests include tests of the bodily samples from blood to breath to saliva to urine that are meant to identify the presence of and/or measure the concentration of various substances including alcohol.

   Each state has its own laws and many, including Missouri have in place an implied consent law, via whichLafayette County, MO and other Missouri drivers automatically consent to submit to chemical sobriety tests just by getting behind the wheel. A smart DUI attorney near you will tell you that you can refuse to submit to a chemical test like a breathalyzer, but refusal can carry a criminal charge in itself. Still, the police cannot physically force you to produce a sample.

   If you do take a breathalyzer test, speak to an exemplary Lafayette County, MO DUI attorney near you to discuss your defense and how they can help you. As your DUI attorney near Lafayette County, MO, Combs Waterkotte will investigate and scrutinize the details of your test to determine whether the breathalyzer or other test was performed lawfully and whether it should or should not be admissible in court.

2. Field Sobriety Tests

   Field tests during a DWI traffic stop are subjective tests that attempt to determine whether you are impaired by asking the driver to perform motor tasks. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has defined three standardized field tests that police officers can use to test drivers in Lafayette County, MO and all over the United States.

   1. Walk and turn – walk heel to toe in a straight line for nine steps, turn around and repeat in the opposite direction
   2. One leg stand – lift one leg six inches above the ground and stand on the other leg for a period of time without losing balance
   3. Gaze tests – the officer holds an object and asks the driver to follow the object with their gaze as the officer moves the object

   It is your right in Missouri to refuse to perform a field test. If a police officer stops you and asks you to perform field sobriety tests, contact a DUI attorney near you in Lafayette County, MO immediately. If you already performed a field test and were then arrested for a DUI in Missouri, your DUI attorney in Lafayette County, MO will design a defense to your case or ensure that evidence that does not meet Missouri’s rules of evidence such as improperly obtained sobriety tests are not used against you in Missouri court.

Traffic Checkpoints in Lafayette County, MO

A checkpoint is a roadblock temporarily set up on a roadway as a way to randomly check drivers for driving under the influence. There are federal laws that regulate the carriage of DUI checkpoints, but each state has its own rules and some prohibit the use of checkpoints. Lawmakers in Missouri have entertained banning sobriety checkpoints, but curent Missouri law still allows their use.

Police departments in Lafayette County and around Missouri do not use checkpoints as heavily as they used to, but it is still prudent to educate yourself on your rights and the rules checkpoints must follow. When it doubt, speak to a DUI attorney near you at (314) 900-HELP.

A lawful sobriety checkpoint is justified when the police can show it is directly related to roadway safety. DUI checkpoints should be:

• announced to the public in advance
• sanctioned or planned by supervising law enforcement officers
• carried out in a way that is neutral to all drivers (i.e. randomly selected drivers)
• limited in time
• clearly associated with law enforcement

Perhaps most importantly, there must be a legitimate reason for carrying out the checkpoint related to public safety, usually because the area has an abnormally high rate of drunk driving accidents.

If you approach a checkpoint in Lafayette County, MO, speak to a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you at (314) 900-HELP. Our skilled Lafayette County, MO attorneys will ferociously defend you and protect your rights in the court of law. Contact us online to review your situation with a kind and cunning DUI attorney near you today.

Through Combs Waterkotte, you have access to some of the best criminal defense services in the Lafayette County, MO area. At Combs Waterkotte, a DUI attorney near you will fight for your rights and navigate the legal process when you have been accused of driving under the influence in Lafayette County or anywhere in Missouri. Our team of Lafayette County, MO attorneys have expertise in a number of other case types, including:

• Child Abuse & Neglect Lawyer
• Homicide Lawyer
• Assault Lawyer
• Rape Defense Lawyer
• Sex Offense Lawyers
• DWI Attorney
• Crime Defense Lawyers
• Domestic Violence Defense Attorneys
• Child Pornography Defense Lawyer
• Criminal Lawyer

Learn more about different kinds of DUI cases in Missouri and what the DUI attorneys near you with Combs Waterkotte near Lafayette County, MO can do to help you.

• DWI/DUI Lawyer in St. Louis
• CDL DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• DWI Accident Lawyer in St. Louis
• First Offense DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• Marijuana DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• Second Offense DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• DWI with Drugs Lawyer in St. Louis
• Felony DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• Hit and Run DWI Lawyer in St. Louis
• Other Criminal Defense Cases

Work with a Top DUI Attorney Near Me in Lafayette County, MO | Combs Waterkotte

Do yourself a favor and act now. If you have been stopped or arrested for driving under the influence near Lafayette County, MO, you need to hire a DUI attorney near you whom you can trust. Being arrested and convicted of a DWI or similar charge in Missouri is a serious matter that can carry significant consequences. When your freedom and future are at risk a Combs Waterkotte DUI attorney near you in Lafayette County, MO can protect you. Contact our Lafayette County, MO defense law firm now to consult a lawyer about your rights, your case and your future.