Just by sheer numbers, most DUI cases are resolved before a bench trial or a jury trial. However, if you are looking for someone with trial experience, DUI defense attorney Don MacNeil is here to help. We provide our clients with aggressive advocacy, especially when a trial is the best option. Call us today at 708-218-0947 for a free consultation and to work with an attorney who will provide the support you deserve.
Before we make a decision on the best option, I go through an analysis of facts and the relevant law on every DUI case I handle. After I have thoroughly investigated the situation, then I have a separate meeting with my client in which I explain all the evidence and give all the options to my clients. I also give them the pros and cons of each of those options and offer my insight on each one.
Together my client and I will decide whether to take the case to trial or choose another option. Since I have vast experience in this field, my clients typically trust my advice on how to proceed. However, my client is the boss. If we have a difference in opinion on how to proceed, as long as my client understands why I feel the way I do and why I disagree with their approach, I will defer to my client’s wishes, although that is a rare occurrence.
Do Most DUI attorneys Avoid Going to Trial?
There are some attorneys who will avoid going to trial and almost always plead their clients guilty. These are also usually the same lawyers that quote shockingly low legal fees. I consider myself to be a skilled trial attorney, yet I see a large number of my peers that appear to be afraid of going to trial. I really do not have an explanation why this occurs. I can only speculate that perhaps they do not have the experience, training, or persistence that it takes to be a successful trial attorney.
Any individual who is charged with a DUI and consults with a potential lawyer should ask that attorney how many DUI bench or jury trials have they done in the last few years they have been practicing law. As a DUI defense attorney Don MacNeil believes taking a case to trial is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding parts of my job, because it is the culmination of all my studying, training, and experience. Not every DUI should go to trial, but I investigate, research, and prepare every case as if we are going to trial.
There are one or two reasons why I take my cases to trial. Most of the time, the reason we take a case to trial is because, based on my review of the facts and law, I think I can produce a not guilty verdict in the case. The second reason is if we run out of options and our backs are against the wall, which is a pretty rare occurrence, but it does happen from time to time.
If I evaluate a case and notice the facts and laws are on our side, I will recommend going to trial to my client and in the long run it is usually favorable. The decision to go to trial is sometimes difficult because the evidence is not as cut and dry or black and white as you would think. But, I make every effort and spend as much time as needed to help my clients make the right decision.
Plea Deals
Not everyone should take every plea deal that is offered. The first plea agreement offered by the prosecutor is usually not the last or best offer that we can get from them. In other words, if I have a meeting with my client and we determine that going to trial is not the best option for that client, then I have to work on negotiating for their behalf.
If the first deal that is presented to my client is not acceptable for one reason or the other, I will go back to the negotiating table and work to achieve an agreement that is favorable for my client. Most of the time if my clients and I have determined that trial is not appropriate for them, I can obtain a plea agreement that not just meets, but usually exceeds my client’s goals and expectations. DUI defense attorney Don MacNeil will work to make sure you have the best deal possible.
I am able to have most DUI cases dismissed for a number of different reasons. Sometimes there is a legal defect in the case, or what somebody might call a technicality. Other times it might be a constitutional basis. A case could be dismissed if it was determined that there was no probable cause to make that traffic stop. A case can be dismissed if there was no probable cause to arrest them for a DUI.
I have had situations where there is a roadblock or a roadside sobriety checkpoint, and I was able to have it determined by a judge that the entire checkpoint system was performed in an unconstitutional manner. Sometimes, they are forced to dismiss a case if I am able to exclude or suppress certain evidence. It may be the only evidence that I do exclude, which is the only information they had against my client to begin with.
Contact DUI defense attorney Don MacNeil today for a free consultation
If you are looking for an attorney with experience and passion, DUI defense attorney Don MacNeil is here for you. Nothing is more rewarding to us than securing a Courtroom Victory for our clients. Whether you are a first offender or have multiple arrests, our criminal defense attorneys and DUI defense lawyers take a personal interest in each case, and our commitment to you and your case is unmatched. Contact us today for a free consultation.
