Definition of DUI Entrapment Laws
Once in a while, criminal lawyers focusing on DUI cases tend to come across drunken driving charges where the arresting officer compelled an impaired driver to enter into his or her car only for them to arrest the impaired driver later for driving under the influence. For example, the police officer may have also convinced you to move the car because it is hindering traffic. If you were arrested for DUI under these circumstances, then your DUI attorney can apply an entrapment defense with an aim of having the charges against you dismissed. It is for this reason that you need to hire a DWI lawyer following a DUI offense.
What Is DUI Entrapment Laws – Reasons for Hiring DUI Lawyers
1. Assessment of Your Case
An experienced DUI attorney will assess the circumstances leading to your arrest and determine if the rule of entrapment law applys to your case. If it is determined that the arresting police officer engaged in activities which suggest entrapment, then the judge will be obliged to throw out the case. Aspects of DUI entrapment are also clearly described in jury instructions, thereby ensuring that the jury will be able to determine if you were entrapped into driving while drunk.
2. Understand When Entrapment Laws Apply to Your Case
Unfortunately, unless you are an experienced criminal defense attorney, you may not be able to understand what constitutes DUI entrapment. Note that, in order to apply DUI entrapment laws in your driving while intoxicated defense, you need to show that:
- The police officer was the one who convinced you into getting into your car thus committing a DUI offense.
- In the event that your DUI case meets the threshold of DUI entrapment, you need to prove to the court of law that you were predisposed to committing the offense.
3. Build a Strong Defense
In the event that you are able to convince the court to apply DUI entrapment laws, thereby dismissing the charges against you, the state will be required to prove beyond reasonable doubt that you were predisposed to driving under the influence prior to the involvement of the arresting officer. Since burden of proof mostly lies on you, it is imperative that you hire the services of an experienced DUI attorney to represent you in a court of law.
In addition to convincing the judge that you were entrapped into driving while inebriated, the DUI attorney will also insist that entrapment instructions be explained and submitted to the presiding jury. Without the help of an experienced DUI lawyer, you will not be able to convince the judge that your DUI case merits entitlement to entrapment laws.
A court of law can allow your criminal defense law attorney to submit an entrapment defense if it can be proven that the arresting officer knew that you were intoxicated, but nonetheless directed you to drive, thus breaching the drunken driving laws used in your state. Therefore, if the a police officer allows you to continue on your way home after passing a sobriety test, only to be pulled over and arrested for breaching the DUI laws in your state by a different police officer a few minutes later, you need to consider hiring an experienced DUI lawyer to help you prove to a presiding judge that your case warrants entitlement to DUI entrapment laws.
About Guest California Criminal Defense Lawyer & Author:
If located in Orange County California and you need a DUI attorney for your case, contact The Law Offices of Christopher J McCann for a free case consultation. You can also follow Chris McCann’s tweets on twitter at @CJM_Law_Firm for related drunk driving law rants or pick up a print copy of my published author DUI book.
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