Prosecutors and Evidence in Richmond DUI Cases

DUI cases in the city of Richmond are prosecuted very vigorously. Officers are constantly monitoring and enforcing these DUI standards. It is important to seek legal counsel if you have been charged with a DUI in Richmond.

The prosecutors are very active in seeking convictions. In addition, they’re reluctant to reduce or plea down DUI cases without strong arguments or legal defenses from the attorneys. In most cases the judges will impose jail even on the standard first offense DUI.

However, with the help of a Richmond DUI lawyer, you can work to defend yourself from the efforts of the prosecution and the potential sentences imposed by the judge and/or jury. The first step in doing so is understanding how the prosecution tends to operate in Richmond DUI cases.  Below, we discuss some of the most important things to know about prosecutors and evidence in Richmond DUI cases.

In Richmond DUI cases, the prosecutor has to prove:

1. That you were operating the vehicle in the city
2. That you were obviously operating the vehicle while under the influence
3. That you were operating and at what level was your blood alcohol what was the level of intoxication.

The key to any prosecutor’s DUI case is usually the result from the blood alcohol machine and/or a drug test that is done. If these results indicate that your blood alcohol content (BAC) was .08 or higher, there’s a legal presumption that you were, in fact, intoxicated.

In a DUI case is the officer will testify to the probable cause of the stop, in other words: why did they stop you?

The officer will testify as to why they suspected drugs or alcohol, such as:

• Whether your behavior indicated impairment
• Whether your speech was slurred
• Whether you smelled of alcohol
• Whether it was some other type of driving or personal behavior that led them to believe that alcohol was involved

The officer will then testify as to how you performed on any roadside field sobriety tests or field breath tests that were administered. Finally, the officer will testify as to the administering of the BAC test and then the prosecutor will move to submit that certificate of analysis for your breath test into evidence.

The most common constitutional issues that come up in DUI cases are probable cause issues.

However, if your DUI lawyer can show that there was constitutional violation, it can result in your charge being either reduced or dismissed.

Richmond DUI cases are unique just because of how vigorously they are prosecuted in the city. The judges in the city of Richmond will actually impose a day in jail even on a standard first offense without elevated blood alcohol level, in other words they will ask you to spend the afternoon in jail even on the most basic .08 DUI.

In addition to that, the prosecutors are reluctant to reduce DUI without very strong legal arguments or extreme mitigating factors. So, their position is almost zero tolerance, and they will try and get a firm conviction on every DUI that’s presented.

In order to fight DUI charges, call an experienced local DUI attorney who is familiar with the judges and prosecutors in Richmond and how they typically operate during DUI proceedings. Call our law offices today and speak with a member of our friendly legal staff to learn more.