Expunged DUI Records

According to the summary prepared by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles ?

“Under Florida law, DUI is one offense, proved by impairment of normal faculties or unlawful blood alcohol or breath alcohol level of .08 or above. The penalties upon conviction are the same, regardless of the manner in which the offense is proven.”

This law is followed throughout the country in every region and every city. Miami, being one of the best known cities of Florida, strictly abide by this DUI law. DUI in Miami is considered as a criminal offense and impose serious punishment and fine upon the convicted. According to Miami Dui attorneys, people should take the issue of DUI offense very seriously and do whatever is required to get them out of the situation without being harassed.

Not only the drivers, but every DUI defense lawyers too need to understand the seriousness of the offense and consider all the minute issues and act accordingly. Every DUI defend attorney in the city should have very clear idea about DUI laws and its way-outs. Miami DUI lawyers, Miami drunk driving lawyers and Miami DWI lawyers, who specialize in DUI cases across the city should be aware of the “Ten Day” Rule. When a person is arrested for Miami DUI, generally two separate cases are triggered ? firstly the court case, where the offender’s liberty is at stake and secondly, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles case, where the offender’s driver’s license is threatened.

In Florida, if you are arrested for DUI but refuse to take a breath, blood or urine test, or if your test result is 0.08% or higher ? you get a 10 days time to appeal for a special hearing with the FDHSMV in order to save your driver’s license. In case you fail to do so, you will be charged with a penalty of minimum 6 month suspension of all your Miami and Florida driving privileges.

According to Florida DUI attorneys, DUI offenses can be proven in one of two ways ?

Drunk driving can be proved by impairment of normal faculties.
Illegal blood alcohol or breath alcohol level of 0.08% or above.

Regardless of the manner in which the DUI offense has been proven, Florida or Miami DUI penalties for the offenders are always the same. Florida DUI arrest penalties and consequences are quiet serious and have far-reaching consequences, which includes heavy fines, imprisonment and license suspensions by court orders. Suspension of license can also be imposed upon the DUI offender by FDHSMV apart from those imposed upon by the court.

However, if you or someone you know is charged with a Miami DUI offense, the best and the first thing to do would be contacting a qualified and experienced Miami DUI attorney and hire him to fight your case. Remember, DUI is a serious offense and cannot be taken lightly. There are different level of pitfalls and complexities that only expert DUI attorneys are capable of understanding and managing. In order to get yourself out clean, you must appoint the best Miami DUI attorney to defend you.

Originally published here.

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Steven Brown

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Court cases
This article has been read 0 times. Numerous people recently appeared in Washington County Court on criminal charges. Todd Turner, 29, of 427 Thompson Ave., Donora; defrauding creditor; charged for damaging a truck that was in the midst of being repossessed; sentence – 18 months of probation.

Published Feb 24, 2011.
Read more: Observer-Reporter

It sometimes happens that a person seeking to expunge a criminal record in Florida has open charges pending in another related case. Imagine, for example, that you are pulled over by a police officer for speeding. During the traffic stop, the officer discovers that your license is suspended and smells alcohol on your breath. You fail an administration of the breath test and are placed under arrest for driving under the influence (DUI). Your car is impounded and during an inventory search, a small amount of cocaine is discovered in your glove compartment. Charges are filed against you: possession of cocaine (a felony charge), plus DUI and driving with a suspended license (filed in misdemeanor traffic court).

You decide to hire a lawyer to handle your felony case and your lawyer works out a good deal with the State. Since this is your first criminal offense, you are offered a no contest plea with adjudication withheld. You accept, since your lawyer explained that having adjudication withheld means that you would be eligible to clear your criminal record. Now, you would like to begin the Florida expungement process with respect to the cocaine possession charge. However, the other charges from your arrest are still pending (recall the DUI and suspended license charge filed in misdemeanor court). Can you do it?

In Florida, the answer is no. First, you can only expunge a criminal record in Florida if charges against you have been dropped or dismissed by the prosecutor or court. When you receive a withholding of adjudication, you only may be eligible to seal your record. The main difference between record sealing and expungement is that a sealed record still exists (but the public is prevented from knowing its contents), while an expunged record is physically destroyed. However, under these circumstances you wouldn’t even be able to seal the record yet.

In a well-known case (to us Florida expungement attorneys, anyway), the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), which is the agency responsible for determining whether you are eligible to seal or expunge a criminal record in Florida, denied the request of a juvenile seeking to seal a drug possession charge from his record under similar circumstances to the example given above. The juvenile appealed the FDLE’s decision to the courts. Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal held that the criterion set forth in Florida Statute Section 943.059(2)(d) specifically provides that an applicant is not eligible to seal or expunge a criminal record unless the applicant was not adjudicated guilty of committing any of the acts stemming from the arrest.

In layman’s terms, you cannot have any charges pending against you relating to the original arrest if you want to seal or expunge your record. All charges must be resolved before you can determine if you meet the statutory eligibility requirements. So although in our example above you received a withholding of adjudication on the cocaine possession charge, the DUI and driving with a suspended license charge remained pending, meaning you could ultimately be adjudicated guilty of either of these two charges and therefore be ineligible to seal any part of the record.

This reasoning extends to open charges in an unrelated case as well. The Florida statutes state that in order to be eligible to seal orexpunge a criminal record, you must never have been convicted of any crime, anywhere. If you have open charges, there is a chance you could be convicted on these charges and therefore would not be able to move forward with record sealing or expungement until all charges against you have been resolved.

 

Originally published here.

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Karen Kilpatrick

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