DWI Attorney in Kansas City MO

DWI Attorney in Kansas City, MO

Why You Need A DWI Defense Attorney

It doesn’t matter what lingo the local legislature uses – driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs is against the law. Driving while intoxicated is not only illegal, it’s also quite dangerous.

You put your life and the lives of others around you at risk when you drive while intoxicated. Thus, police officers will test you for your BAC (blood alcohol content) if he or she has any reason to suspect you’re intoxicated.

You can refuse these tests, but there are certain administrative penalties for doing so. Once you get caught driving while intoxicated, you will face some harsh penalties. This is especially true on both sides of State Line in the Kansas City metro area.

The State of Missouri defines crime of driving while intoxicated in the following way:

577.010. Driving while intoxicated

  1. A person commits the crime of “driving while intoxicated” if he operates a motor vehicle while in an intoxicated or drugged condition.
  2. Driving while intoxicated is for the first offense, a class B misdemeanor. No person convicted of or pleading guilty to the offense of driving while intoxicated shall be granted a suspended imposition of sentence for such offense, unless such person shall be placed on probation for a minimum of two years.

Missouri defines the crime of Excessive BAC as:

577.012. Driving with excessive blood alcohol content

  1. A person commits the crime of “driving with excessive blood alcohol content” if such person operates a motor vehicle in this state with eight-hundredths of one percent or more by weight of alcohol in such person’s blood.
  2. As used in this section, percent by weight of alcohol in the blood shall be based upon grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood or two hundred ten liters of breath and may be shown by chemical analysis of the person’s blood, breath, saliva or urine. For the purposes of determining the alcoholic content of a person’s blood under this section, the test shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of sections 577.020 to 577.041.
  3. For the first offense, driving with excessive blood alcohol content is a class B misdemeanor.

So what does this mean to you?

In the State of Missouri, the prosecutor is required to prove all the elements of these crimes beyond a reasonable doubt in order for you to be found guilty of these crimes. The burden is not on you to prove your innocence but on the prosecutor to prove your guilt.

How to find a good DWI attorney:

Ask Around

Talk with friends, family and acquaintances who have worked with a DWI lawyer in the past. If you know someone who got off “easy” after a DWI then reach out and see whom they used.

Experience

Choose a lawyer who is a DWI attorney. Do not choose an attorney who specializes in a different area of law to represent you. You’ll want a DWI lawyer at a criminal DWI hearing.

Talk Money

Make sure you ask about lawyer fees up front. Then get all terms and conditions in writing. You’ll pay a lump sum up front, but if you don’t pay attention you may end up paying a number of additional costs.

DWI Law is extremely complex and a good Missouri DWI attorney must know the nuance in the law in order to provide you the best defense possible. Your DWI attorney should be an accomplished trial attorney and have access to the right experts in the field to provide you with the best defense possible. Our law firm can provide our clients with those resources.

For more information on Missouri DWI laws please visit www.missouridwihelp.com