From the “you can’t make this up” file comes a story out of Colorado about a man stopped for erratic driving. According to police, he was going 20 miles per hour over the posted limit when police spotted him and pulled him over at 11:30 pm.
It must have been a long night because the driver apparently tried to switch places with his dog, who was currently riding shotgun. The officer was amused as he stood and watched the man swap seats with his canine friend. Bizarrely, the man proceeded to get out of the vehicle from the passenger’s side and tell the officer that he wasn’t driving the vehicle! The dog was!
In addition to telling a tall tale, the driver (not the dog) showed other signs of intoxication, which increased the officer’s suspicions. When he asked the driver if he had been drinking, the man ran away. Eventually, police caught the suspect and took him into custody, where we hope he slept off his bender before thinking of how to make things right with his dog.
Other Mistakes to Avoid
In all seriousness, there are other mistakes you should avoid following a stop for suspected DWI. If you can avoid these mistakes, we think you will improve your chances of beating the rap:
- Don’t admit you were drinking. You don’t even need to tell the police where you were coming from. Simply say, “I’d rather not talk” and let the officer figure out what to do next.
- Hand over your license, registration, and insurance information. You have to hand this over and you don’t want to escalate the situation.
- Avoid posting about your DWI on social media. You don’t need to tell people about the arrest. And if you do want to let your family know, you can tell them face-to-face.
- Don’t skip court hearings or otherwise refuse to take the charges seriously. You can be arrested on a bench warrant if you don’t go to court.
- Don’t try to represent yourself in your case. You don’t know how to defend against a DWI charge, and there’s no reason to assume the prosecutor will take things easy on you.
- Avoid immediately pleading guilty. You should give yourself time to fully review your options with a lawyer, including whether you can fight the charges. Some cases are weaker than others.
- Don’t get picked up for another crime, especially another DWI arrest. You want to keep a clean record, which might give you a chance to seek a deferred prosecution agreement for your DWI.
Facing Criminal Charges for Drunk Driving?
Talk with an Attorney Today!
DWI defendants deserve a vigorous defense. You can immediately improve the chances of beating the charges by hiring an experienced Houston DWI attorney and refusing to hand over evidence to the police to use against you.
If you need help, call Tad Nelson & Associates today to schedule a free consultation with Tad or one of our other highly decorated defense attorneys. We’ve helped hundreds of men and women facing DWI charges and we know how to defend these cases the right way.
To get started, give us a call today at 281-502-2122.
