What you need to know NOW

If you are reading this within an hour or so of your arrest/release, call us – we will answer – 425 883-3366.
Call us – 24/7.

Received a DUI? – What you need to know NOW.

Go to a Hospital and request a blood test.
Do not drive yourself!  If you can get a ride, go to the Emergency Room and ask for a blood test for alcohol and/or drugs.  Do not sign a release for anyone else to see these results and do not tell the arresting Officer that you are getting a blood test.  We can use this later to compare to your breath test results in order to assure accuracy.

It may not feel like it now, but you will survive this experience.
We are here to make sure that you do.

You only have 30 days to request an administrative hearing from the Department of Licensing.
You should have been given a form telling you this, but even if you did not, you will be held to this deadline.  If you miss this deadline, the administrative suspension from DOL will go into effect 60 days after your arrest and you will have lost your ability to fight this action.  If you hire our firm, we will make sure this is mailed in on time.  Do not wait until you receive notice of your criminal charges.  Your criminal case and this administrative action are separate and waiting for one may hurt your ability to challenge the other.

Do not talk to anyone about the facts which resulted in you being arrested for DUI.
We understand that you will talk to your family and friends about the fact that you have received a DUI, but try to avoid telling people about the specific facts that constitute your case.

Your DUI arrest has not eliminated your ability to drive.
Although your license probably has a hole in it right now, you can drive.  (This assumes that you had a valid license at the time of your arrest)  However, you should have received a slip of paper from the Officer and you need to carry this with your license for it to be valid.  Additionally, your license will be suspended/revoked 60 days after your arrest if you do not request a hearing.  You should get a letter from DOL telling you this.  It is a good idea to make sure DOL has an updated address for you.  Technically, if your license has been “punched” by the Officer, you have a temporary license.  While this license has a date it will no longer be valid, it has no restrictions on when and where you can drive.

Get an evaluation to determine if you have a problem with alcohol and/or drugs ASAP.
You must obtain this evaluation from a State certified agency.  Not all agencies are created equal.  While you want to move quickly on getting an evaluation, you also want to talk to an attorney and get a referral to a good agency.  Some agencies may recommend more treatment than you need simply because you have a DUI arrest and you want an agency that conducts an evaluation specific to you and makes a recommendation that truly fits your needs.  This can be anything from an 8 hours class called, Alcohol and Drug Information School (ADIS) to 2 years of treatment (which may or may not included in-patient treatment).

You want to attend a Victim’s Impact Panel (VIP).
Doing the evaluation and attending ADIS and the VIP will help us negotiate your case.  Getting these done is proactive and shows that you are taking this situation seriously. It is rare for us to suggest that a client plead guilty to a DUI.  Obviously, we can’t beat every DUI, but we manage to get rid of most of them.  Obviously, getting a DUI is serious, but it is not the end of the situation.  Your arrest was the government taking their best shot at building a case against you.  Now it is our turn to tear that case apart.  We can’t give you a guaranty as to results but we can promise you experience, skill, tenacity, effort and compassion.  We tell you this, to help you sleep at night and not to lay awake worried about how this is going to affect your life.

Find time to sit down and write out everything and anything you can remember about your arrest and investigation.
The Officer has written a report that he/she can use to refresh his/her memory down the line and you should do the same.  Include every detail you can recall even if you are unsure whether or not it is an important detail.

Consider talking to an attorney soon.
You have a few deadlines coming soon and there may be evidence that an attorney can preserve for later use.  For example, some of the police departments have video recordings that are destroyed after 72 hours if not requested right away.

Call us.
You will feel the difference during our first conversation.