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Do I have any chance of keeping my license?

I got pulled over and blew a .023. The officer took me in thinking I was on drugs. Another officer did tests and concluded he thought I habitually smoke pot. They then took me to the hospital and had my blood drawn. No drugs showed up in my sample but my BAC was now .11. My blood was not drawn until 3.5 hours after my arrest and I was stopped only for stopping too closely behind the vehicle in front of me. Is there a chance of me winning my dol hearing or not and if so how do I go about it?

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Attorney answers (2)

Reputation Level 9
You certainly have a chance of of prevailing at your DOL hearing but in all likelihood you'll need an attorney to assist you. There are a number of issues based on your brief recitation of the what occurred. Whether the arrest was proper after a .023 PBT is one. Was the stop lawful is another. Certainly the timing of the blood draw in relation to the stop is something that needs to be investigated. But to fully have your case analyzed you'll need to sit down with an attorney so he or she can review the entire police report. If the DOL has already scheduled your hearing and you don't have counsel, the report should have been provided to you by now.

If you are planning on proceeding pro se, you'll need to focus on the four issues that are the subject of the DOL's ruling. Were you under lawful arrest? Were there reasonable grounds to believe that you had been driving under the influence at the time you were arrested? Had you been provided with your implied consent warnings? Was there a valid BAC of over .08? But proceeding pro se in this arena is very difficult and rarely successful.

Reputation Level 10
This is a unique set of facts, which usually works in favor of the defense. You'll need an experienced DUI attorney to file motions to suppress and dismiss your case - through the DOL process, and (separately) through the courts. I encourage you to hire counsel soon if you can afford it. The public defender's office will assist you with the criminal charge, but you will need to hire counsel (or represent yourself) at the DOL hearing. Make sure you request a hearing immediately - there are strict deadlines. If you have limited funds, it's advisable to hire counsel to represent you with DOL, then apply for assistance through the public defender for court proceedings.

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