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DUI Defense
What Cops Look For
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10 Things to Know and Do
DUI Arrest Evaluation
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Penalties
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E-Mail
Offices
by Appointment
10480 Little Patuxent Parkway
Suite 400
Columbia, Maryland 21044
Mailing
Address
Post Office Box 694
Columbia, MD 21045 Telephone
443-324-5289 Facsimile
410-740-8704
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DUI Defense
10 Things to Know and
Do Within 10 Days of your DUI Arrest
1. If you need to save your driver's license or
driving privileges, you must request a Motor Vehicle Administration
Hearing within 10 days of the
Issue Date of the Officer's Certification and Order of Suspension, if you want a hearing before your license is
suspended!
2. All requests for Motor Vehicle Administration
(MVA) Hearings must be made within 30 days of the arrest (request will be
INVALID if check for $125.00 included) You can
get a copy of the Hearing Request form
Here. If time
is running out, or if the 10 days have already passed, contact the
Scott Athen
immediately at
443-324-5289.
3. The Officer's Certification and Order of
Suspension is the white Maryland MVA paper with
red lettering
(called the DR-15A in the upper right hand
corner).
This paper is your drivers license until your MVA hearing - carry it with
you and care for it as if it is your regular driver's license!
4. Even if you did not receive this MVA
paper, the Maryland MVA will probably take action against your driving
privileges.
5. Even if you have a license from another state,
and even if the officer did not take your license,
that state may also take action against your driving privileges.
6. The Officer's Certification and Order
of Suspension is valid for only 45 days from the Issue date.
7. Do not confuse the request
for a MVA hearing with your court date! The MVA and court proceedings are
separate
and independent. The outcome of one almost
never affects the other. Sometimes the officer or the MVA confuses or
misleads you to believe that the Officer's Certification and Order of
Suspension is good "until the court date". If there are
approximately 45 days from your arrest date to your court date, this may
be a dangerous coincidence. There are usually months before your trial
takes place.
8. There are 3 issues at a
hearing if you took a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) test. The issues
are (1.) Whether the officer had reasonable grounds to believe that the
person had been driving under the influence; (2.) The person either
refused to take the BAC test, or the person submitted to the test which
indicated a BAC of 0.08 or more at the time of testing; and (3.) The
person was fully advised of the MVA sanctions that shall be imposed.
9. The MVA has the burden of
proof, and must prevail on
all three issues. If the MVA meets
the burden of proof on 2 issues, you win!.
10. If
Scott Athen knocks out 1 MVA Hearing issue -
you avoid loosing your license to suspension or revocation! (which may last as long as 3
years!)
Complete the
FREE DUI Arrest Evaluation,
and Mr. Athen will contact you within one business day to discuss your
case.
While some law firms substitute attorneys,
(imagine walking into court to see someone that you have never
met there to represent you!) when you hire
Scott Athen to represent you in court, you get Scott Athen!
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