Resources
My attempt here is to give you resources on the Internet that can accomplish several things:
First, know what’s happening with law enforcement; where they’re putting their resources so you know what to avoid and when not to be in those places where saturation patrols are swarming the neighborhoods or where checkpoints are being conducted. I put this information here because so many of my clients are initially detained for reasons that are not legal and secondly I want everybody to pay attention to what they drink and when not to drive. A taxi or friend driving you around this holiday season is way cheaper than hiring a Santa Rosa DUI lawyer like me.
Second, we believe that the best defense comes with an educated client so we want you to take the time to understand your own circumstances so that even the smallest stone doesn’t go unturned in crafting a solution that fits you best;
Third, we know that most people who are arrested for the first time on a DUI/DWI charge will never get arrested again, but, we also know that most of you will also not totally abstain from having some drinks and operating a motor vehicle. So, we want you to understand how not to get caught over the legal limit again; and
Fourth, we know that a great deal of guilt or remorse can accompany a criminal charge and we believe that you will be better able to deal with this if you can see all sides to the issue. Why the laws were enacted the way they were and why they are or aren’t fair can go a long way to understanding what happened to you.
Important Resources
Legal Jargon Demystified
Try the Nolo “Shark Talk” dictionary, your life raft in the sea of legal jargon. Do you need to know the meaning of some puzzling legal term? Look it up here. The Nolo dictionary contains plain-English definitions for over a thousand legal terms, from the common to the bizarre. And, in case you’ve got some other problems, this is a great site for self-help when that’s all you need!
www.nolo.com/lawcenter/dictionary/
Court Directory
This site has been developed to provide access to websites maintained by courts nationwide. The directory listings at Courts.net are organized in sections, covering courts in all states, the Federal system, Guam, D.C., Canada, and Australia
Bar Associations and other Legal Associations
The Washburn University School of Law provides a tremendous resource for locating local Bar Associations throughout the U.S. Most all of these associations have referral programs and while we don’t believe that they are your best source for finding the “best” attorney, we want you to have access to as many resources as possible in directing and managing your situation.
United States Department of Transportation DOT
Here you’ll find information on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the NHTSA. These are the folks who devised the Field Sobriety Tests and provide the training material for local or state police.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving MADD
Since this is the single source for political pressure that has made criminals out of otherwise law-abiding citizens, we thought you ought to get a chance to find out what they do and why they do it. Since being founded in 1980 by a small group of mothers, MADD has grown to one of the largest crime victims’ organizations in the world.
Not MADD
OK, and now for something completely different. Try the site published by the Citizens Against Wrongful Arrests (CAWA). CAWA is currently an association made up of citizens who are extremely concerned and embarrassed, by the fact that the United States of America has a higher percentage of its population incarcerated or on parole than any other nation on the planet. Their purpose is limited to educating the public about DUI-related issues and providing information and support for otherwise law-abiding citizens who have been criminalized by unnecessary, draconian, Low BAC drinking driver laws.
Not Alcohol
We also recognize that many DUI/DWI arrests and stops uncover either the use of or possession of drugs such as marijuana. So, to round out the resource links we thought we’d give these two to you in case you fall into the “caught with the goods” category.
www.norml.org
www.hightimes.com
Public Defenders – Alternate Defenders
I’m proud of our Public Defenders in Sonoma County and I have high regard for those public defender attorneys I’ve met in other countries that I’ve practiced in. Many people like to joke about them, but it is a very demanding job and these men and women are understaffed, to say the least. You can always start out using their services and if you truly aren’t satisfied then just borrow from a friend or relative and hire a Santa Rosa Attorney who specialized in DUI’s to take your case over. But, remember, if that private attorney doesn’t concentrate his business in the area of DUI’s then you just might find yourself with another attorney too busy to do what you need to be done.