Driving under the influence (DUI) charges are one of the most common criminal infractions in Kentucky. Police officers arrest people all the time for intoxicated driving, but sometimes they make mistakes.
Officers may confuse innocent behaviors as a sign of impairment. They may jump to conclusions because they have training to specifically watch for signs of intoxication. Although it may seem like it is your word against the police officer’s or that the chemical evidence gathered for a DUI charge is impossible to fight, people do successfully defend against DUI charges all the time.
Chemical evidence is not infallible
The first thing you need to do is let go of the idea that chemical tests are the perfect evidence for the state to use against you. People put so much faith in chemical breath tests that they may even question their own memory.
When someone fails a chemical breath test, they may start to question whether they had more to drink than they thought, without realizing that these tests often fail. You may be able to challenge the accuracy of the specific testing unit or even the science behind the test.
Police officers suffer from confirmation bias at work
When someone has received special training to see the world a certain way, they may jump to inaccurate conclusions. Police officers have to constantly search for signs of misconduct, so they may see inappropriate behavior when there actually is none.
Your behavior could be the result of anxiety or an unrelated medical condition, but an officer may assume the worst because of their experience and training. You may need to gather documentation to create a plausible alternative explanation for the information that the officer collected during the traffic stop.
There are multiple ways to defend against a DUI charge. You can challenge the state’s evidence and present your own. Perhaps you want to raise a question about the accuracy of the breath test results. Maybe you believe that the police officer pulled you over illegally, so you would like to challenge the entire stop. There are numerous strategies that can help those accused of DUI offenses.
Reviewing the evidence against you can be a good starting point if you want to fight pending DUI charges.