What to Do During a Traffic Stop For DUI Suspicion

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Being pulled over on suspicion for DUI can be a scary thing. Whether you think you're guilty or not, there are a few things that you can do during a traffic stop that will help you in the event that you are arrested or charged with DUI.

Do not volunteer any information to the police officer. You are required to provide your identification and proof of insurance, but you do not need to answer when the officer asks you how much you've had to drink. Do not answer any of the police officer's questions without your DUI lawyer present. In fact, it is perfectly acceptable to politely state that you will not answer any questions before you speak with a DUI attorney.

Decline to take any field sobriety tests, but do it politely. Field sobriety tests are not required by the law, and will rarely help you in court. Be aware that these tests are not necessary for the officer to arrest you on suspicion of DUI. If you are asked to perform field sobriety tests, the officer has probably already made up his mind to arrest you. The purpose of the test is only to give the police evidence against you that they would not otherwise have.

Be polite to the officer who has stopped you; your conduct during the stop and arrest can have an effect on the outcome of your case. Be calm and collected at all times. Though being polite will not likely get you off the hook, being confrontational will only make your situation worse. Never lie to the officer. If you tell the officer you have only had one drink, but your blood tests shows that you have clearly had several, you will not look like a credible defendant in court. If you feel that you must answer the officer's questions, be truthful.

If the officer believes that you have been driving while intoxicated, you will likely be arrested. If this is the case, is usually in your best interest to take any breath or blood tests asked of you. If you refuse, your driver's license will be suspended. As soon as possible following a traffic stop for DUI suspicion, contact an experienced DUI lawyer. An attorney can advise you of your rights, prepare your defense, and help you contest your license suspension with the DMV, which must generally be done within a week or two following your arrest.

Unfortunately, many people seal their fate through their actions during a traffic stop for DUI suspicion. If you are pulled over on suspicion of driving while under the influence, be polite, but do not divulge any information that may be used against you in court. Following this course of action may not prevent you being arrested on suspicion of DUI, but it will give the state as little evidence as possible against you, making it easier for your DUI attorney to fight for your acquittal.

The Busiest Traffic Courts

Monday, September 20, 2010

Let's get right to it. The busiest traffic courts on town-court.com are:

1. Nassau County District Court - 1st District

This is really the general criminal court for the western half of Long Island. We include criminal courts in our directory because they also handle DWI offenses. The Nassau County Traffic Court is not far down the list. The page was viewed 3184 times in the first quarter of 2009.

2. Jersey City Municipal Court

The Jersey City court is a perennial leader on our site. There must be a ton of speeders coming out of downtown Manhattan through the Holland Tunnel. The tunnel feeds into US-1/US-9 and to I-78 going south. Over 3000 views. This court was the #1 court on our site in 2008.

3. Alhambra Superior Court

With just under 2900 views, the Alhambra court is obviously a happening place. I-10 runs along the southern edge of the area, coming east out of downtown Los Angeles. That's our best guess as to the major source of cases here.

4. Moreno Valley Superior Court

Moreno Valley is a newcomer to our top courts, and it's a bit surprising. This California court is only a little behind Alhambra with over 2700 views. It's just east of Riverside with I-215 and the Moreno Valley Freeway. These highways must be carrying a lot of speeders.

5. Nassau County Traffic Court

Over 2500 views for this one, discussed above in #1. Formal title for the Court is Nassau County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency.

6. Amherst Town Court

Amherst is a suburb northeast of Buffalo on the I-290. The volume is probably driven by a combination of US-Canada travel, Niagara Falls tourism, and activity from the SUNY Buffalo campus. Also over 2500 views for the first three months of 2009.

7. Albany City Court - Traffic Part

The city of Albany is the capital of New York State and the home of our website. The Albany traffic court was one of the first in the directory. Unlike some of the courts above, this court hears only traffic cases. I-87 and I-90 meet on the edge of the city and both highways send a lot of speeders here. Other major highways include US-20, US-9, and a great speed trap as the Washington Avenue drops from 45 to 30.

8. Philadelphia Traffic Court

The police in Philly made over 350,000 traffic stops in 2008. All of them go to this one court. Amazing! The judges have gotten quite a bit of scrutiny. One was reprimanded. In a recent campaign several candidates had unpaid parking tickets and one judge had his car registered outside the city. At least they got rid of Terrell Owens. The city may be falling off though, as this court used to be #1 on our site and was #3 for 2008.

9. White Plains City Court

I-287 (The Cross Westchester Expressway) runs along the north edge of the city, while the Hutchinson River Parkway runs along the east side. That's probably why this page had over 2400 views. Down from #5 in 2008.

10. Victorville Superior Court

Just short of 2300 views, the Victorville Court climbed into our top 10 list. I-15 runs through here on its way to Barstow and Las Vegas going northeast out of the LA area.

Falling out of our top 10 list from 2008 were Paterson Municipal Court in New Jersey, Syracuse City Court and the Queens North Traffic Court in New York City. New York City divides its traffic cases across seven or eight "Traffic Violations Bureau" facilities, which helps explain why none of them are in the top 10.