Archive for the ‘Florida BUI’ Category

Administrative License Suspension in Florida

Friday, November 25th, 2011

Florida drivers pulled over for suspected DUI are faced with a Catch-22. You may be asked to perform field sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test at the scene, which you may refuse.  However, you will be taken to the station or a medical center and given a second test.  While you can again choose to refuse (except for narrow circumstances involving accidents with injury), Florida’s implied consent law means that your refusal will have significant adverse consequences.  The state will summarily suspend your license for a year the first time you refuse and for 18 months for each refusal after the first. These suspensions are in place even if you are found innocent of any DUI charges.  If you do consent and have a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of .08 or greater, however, you will have your license suspended for a minimum of 180 days.  Our experienced Florida criminal defense lawyers have helped people just like you protect their driver’s license and stay out of jail.

The Florida Uniform Traffic Citation, the yellow ticket you were given at the time of your DUI arrest, counts as a temporary license.  Your Florida driver’s license will be taken at the time of a DUI arrest, but the ticket will function as a temporary license for 10 days.  This permit allows you to drive for employment or business.  Generally, it is permissible to drive to work, your attorney’s office, the store, court or the like, but discretionary trips, which are merely for leisure purposes, are not permitted.  During this narrow 10 day window, it is imperative that you file an application for a Formal Review Hearing with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV).

This administrative hearing permits you to challenge your license suspension’s legality and seek reinstatement of your driving privileges.  Unless you have other legal or administrative issues with your license besides the DUI suspension, the DHSMV will extend your work-only license an additional 42 days and schedule a hearing for some time in the coming 30 days.  If you do not file for a hearing, you will be unable to drive for at least the first 30 days of the administrative suspension.  You may enroll in an approved alcohol abuse education program and apply for another temporary work license.  A refusal to submit to a formal chemical test means that you must wait 90 days before applying for a work-only license.  Subsequent refusals make you ineligible for a temporary work license.

Before the administrative hearing, you (or your attorney, ideally) should prepare a statement and subpoena any witnesses you need, including the police officer.  The administrative hearing can be used to challenge whether the officer had probable cause to stop you and whether or not you were over the legal limit unless you refused the test.  If you refused, the main issue will be whether the police officer informed you of the consequences of a refusal on your driving privileges.  It is virtually impossible to prevail at the administrative hearing without an experienced Florida DUI defense attorney.  An experienced DUI defense lawyer will carefully investigate the circumstances of your case so that he or she can protect your license.  The attorney will also use the hearing to begin developing a defense strategy to your DUI case.

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Boating While Under The Influence In Florida

Tuesday, November 8th, 2011

Florida is a great place to own a boat with its hot weather, calm waters and abundant sea life. Taking a boat out with your friends is a great way to enjoy life.

There are many people, however, who forget that a boat is a motor vehicle, and that they are subject to the same strict laws on drinking and driving as any other motorist. This means that if you are out partying with your friends on a boat and drinking that you are putting yourself at serious risk for a BUI arrest and conviction.

Being under the influence of alcohol or of a drug while operating a boat is no less dangerous to other boaters on the waterway.  In a recent incident in Okaloosa County, Florida, a man was found guilty of three counts of Boating Under the Influence (BUI) in a boating accident that killed three people.  While still facing five additional misdemeanor counts, the boat operator faces up to 45 years in prison.

Florida treats BUI offenses in the same manner as DUI violations.  The blood alcohol limitations are the same for either offense.  If your blood alcohol level is 0.08 or higher, you are in violation of the law and you will be arrested. You need not have the keys in the ignition, but if you are seen sitting in the driver’s seat, you are considered to be in actual physical control of your vessel and are subject to arrest.

A first DUI offense will earn you a fine of up to $500 and six months in jail, along with probation and community service duties.  A second BUI carries a fine up to $1,000 and nine months in jail.  A third BUI offense within 10 years becomes a felony, subjecting you to at least one year in prison.  All subsequent BUI offenses are felonies regardless of the time frame.

Like a DUI, a law enforcement officer can arrest you for being under the influence even if you refuse a breath test, which will result in loss of your boating license, but not your driver’s license. Your boat will also be impounded.

Do not drink while operating a boat. To maximize your safety on the water, and to minimize the chances of your being noticed by law enforcement and boarded, there are some simple guidelines:

Maintain a clean and attractive boat to show that you are a responsible boat owner and ensure that everyone aboard is always wearing a life jacket. There is no need to be aggressive, to speed or to make fast turns.  You should also be aware of the state equipment guidelines and the posted speed limitations in the area where you are boating.

If you will be drinking, you should have at least one designated operator who has not been drinking. Otherwise, wait a few hours before boarding your boat and be sure you are no longer feeling the effects of the alcohol. On board, you should have plenty of food available and limit your trip to a reasonable time to avoid fatigue.  If you are arrested for boating under the influence (BUI), you should contact an experienced BUI attorney who will advise you of your legal rights and potential BUI defense strategies.

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Driving While Under the Influence: Florida’s Boating Law

Monday, August 1st, 2011

State in section 327.35 of the Florida stature, boating or driving any vessel in a body of water applies to being a designated driver. When driving a boat, the same rules apply similarly to those that driver’s and citizens must obey while on the roadways. Like driving, those who have a blood alcohol content (BAC) level higher than .08 or equal to that of, you can expect a possible conviction of driving while under the influence of alcohol, or even other substances if applicable. Just like a normal DUI stop, police will investigate the imparities of such a driver.

In other words, a field sobriety exam could possibly be administered on a boat of and administered by a law enforcement entity even in the water. The difference between the roads versus the water is the number of pedestrians at risk. Florida’s tourism board uses not only the manufactured tourist attractions such as those in Orlando, but also the state’s natural beauty. The beaches as well as other areas such as the Everglades, all bring in thousands upon thousands of tourists not yearly, but monthly. To continue the revenue that the tourism brings, it is extremely important that Florida government entities as well as private citizens display proper, safe boating rules when in the waters of Florida.

If an individual is “boating while under the influence” of alcohol or drugs, a fine and a possible jail sentence can be expected. Those receiving their first conviction will pay a fine between the amounts of $250 to $500. However, if it is a repeated conviction you will be expected to pay a fine between $500 to $1000. The jail time an individual faces if convicted of the crime can be up to six months for those receiving a conviction of this crime for the first time, or up to nine months for a second. When operating a boat or any motor vehicle for that matter it is just like baseball “3 strikes your out!” except it is 3 strikes, felony charge.

In addition to the numerous fines and jail time the individual will face, the possibility of a substance abuse or rehabilitation services will sometimes not only be suggested, but required by the Florida court of law. Inevitably, the safety of not only Florida citizens, but others visiting the fair state, are not only the responsibility of the Florida law enforcement, but also the citizens of Florida to ensure a future, thriving state.

Call 1 800-687-2252 to Speak With a Florida DUI lawyer In Your Area.

Hiring a Florida DUI attorney to aggressively defend you can help you obtain the best possible result in your case.  Call our toll-free, Florida DUI Advice Helpline at 1 (800) 687-2252 for a Florida DUI law firm near you (by appointment only).

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