Find a DWI DUI Drunk Driving Lawyer in your state.

Cleveland DUI Lawyers

• Summers & Vargas: Criminal Law The defense of persons accused of committing Federal and State statutes and Municipal ordinances, both as to guilt or innocence and as to ensuring reasonable and fair sentencing if conviction occurs.
• Joseph Bolek: Defense of DUI, OVI, Traffic and other Criminal, Felony and Misdemeanor Offenses Regarding Driving under the Influence (DUI and OVI) did you know that it is not against the law in Ohio to drink and drive? It is only against the law to drink and drive while having a blood alcohol count of .08% or higher. Did you know that you do not have to submit to a Field Sobriety Test (FST) upon request of the law enforcement officer at the scene of the detention or afterward? There is only a penalty (loss of driving privileges) for refusing to submit to a breath, urine or blood test for alcohol. These types of cases as well as other criminal charges (misdemeanor or felony) can be effectively defended by use of aggressive pretrial discovery and in some cases, depending on the facts, pre trial motions such a Motion to Suppress Evidence so that the state cannot use certain types of evidence against you at trial.
• Joel Nash: What is DUI, OVI and DUS? DUI is short for Driving Under the Influence of
       drugs or alcohol. DUI was replaced by OVI in Ohio January 1, 2004. OVI
       is short for Operating a Vehicle Under the Influence of drugs or alcohol.
       DUS is Driving Under Suspension. Being arrested for DUI / OVI can
       seriously impact your life. Jail time, court fines, higher insurance
       premiums, loss of license and driving privileges can often result from
       a DUI / OVI. DUS is also a serious charge which can result in
       many of the same penalties as a DUI / OVI. The best way to handle a
       DUI / OVI or DUS charge is to retain a knowledgeable and experienced
       lawyer.
• Howard Skolnick: A criminal conviction can have a devastating impact on you and your family for years to come ...
• Jonathan Bartel: Criminal law involves the prosecution of a person by the government. Most crimes in the United States have been established by local, state and the federal laws. Crimes can be defined as acts or omissions of acts in violation of a public law that either forbids or commands it. For example, murder is a forbidden act, making it a crime of commission. Conversely, one is required to pay one's income tax, making the failure to do so a crime of omission. Felonies are serious crimes with serious penalties including fines, imprisonment for more than one year, or, in some cases, both. In certain states, some crimes are punishable by death.
• Robey & Robey:

  DUI CRIMES

  FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

  1. QUESTION: WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I AM STOPPED FOR A DUI OFFENSE?

  Answer: Try to remain calm. Provide your driver's license to the police officer. Respectfully decline to answer any questions by the officer other than identifying yourself. Respectfully decline to perform any roadside field sobriety tests. Respectfully decline to take any portable breathalyzer test. Respectfully decline to take any breathalyzer, blood, or urine tests. Immediately contact a qualified criminal defense attorney.

  2. QUESTION: DO I HAVE THE RIGHT TO DECLINE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS BY THE POLICE?

  Answer: Yes. All citizens are guaranteed the protection against self-incrimination.

  3. QUESTION: DO I HAVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE TO PERFORM FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS?

  Answer: Yes.

  4. QUESTION: DO I HAVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE A BREATHALZER, BLOOD OR URINE TEST?

  Answer: Yes. However, such a refusal may result in a suspension of your driver's license.

  5. QUESTION: WHAT SHOULD I DO WHEN I AM RELEASED FROM THE POLICE STATION?

  Answer: Immediately contact a qualified criminal defense attorney.

• David Grant: You have the right to be arraigned without unnecessary delay after being arrested. You will appear before a judge who will tell you officially of the charges against you at your first arraignment. At the arraignment, an attorney may be appointed for you if you cannot afford one, and bail can be raised or lowered. You also can ask to be released on personal recognizance, even if bail was previously set. If you are charged with a misdemeanor, you can plead guilty or not guilty at the arraignment. Or, if the court approves, you can plead nolo contendere, meaning that you do not admit guilt but you admit the truth of the facts alleged in the complaint or indictment. Legally, this is the same as a guilty plea, but it cannot be used against you in a subsequent civil case.
• Michael Hennenberg: Many states have enacted statutes that grant non-law enforcement citizens the right to detain others if the citizen knows that the detained individual is engaged in the commission of a crime.  This detainment is frequently referred to as a "citizen's arrest."
• Eric Allen: If you have been charged with a crime, be sure to hire the attorney who will ensure that you receive the protection of the bill of rights.
• John Spellacy: A conviction on DUI/DWI charges may result in fines, the revocation or suspension of your driver's license, and possible jail time. In addition, your insurance company may increase your rates to an unmanageable level. In defending against an impaired driving charge, you have many rights as a criminal defendant, including the right to cross-examine the witnesses against you, even if they are police officers. An experienced criminal defense attorney can make all the difference in such a difficult case.
• Gardner & Kucharski Years ago, a drunk driving charge meant someone was "drunk" in the way all of us commonly understand the word - intoxicated. But today, due to the extensive and often misguided lobbying pressures put on legislatures by groups such as MADD, SADD, and others, intoxication as we know it is not required for a person to be found guilty of drunk driving. Today's drunk driving laws mean that you can be convicted of drunk driving with considerably less alcohol in your system than what we customarily recognize as being enough to make a person drunk. And if you are convicted, you will suffer some very harsh penalties.
• David Hildebrandt: Drunk Driving Defense - the "right to drive" is a privilege which is governed by the individual states. Traffic violations are a mix of regulatory and penal (criminal) offenses based on violations of state statutes and city ordinances relating to the operation of vehicles, specifically driving under the influence of alcohol or other substances which impair the ability to drive.
• Michael O'Shea: Since most people already know that "first offender" DUI defendants are suppose to get three days in jail, and since most DUI cases are hard to beat at trial, some might think that a lawyer is useless once one has been arrested and charged with a DUI offense. However, this is very untrue. Attorneys who handle DUI cases are aware of the DUI issues and, generally, how to handle these issues for their clients.
• Avery Fromet: Ohio's DUI law has become one of the toughest in the nation. Beside the possible incarceration and financial burdens involved, the new automatic license suspension provisions can have a devastating effect on your right to drive for an extensive period of time. In addition to the new license suspension provisions, recent amendments to the law exact greatly enhanced and mandated jail sentences for offenders including the possibility of a felony record.
• Zuckerman, Diaker & Lear If you are stopped for drunk driving and you refuse to take the sobriety test, or if your test results exceed the legal limit of .10% Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC), the officer can take your driver's license on the spot, and the suspension begins immediately.