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Law Office of Mark Stevens
5 Manor Parkway Salem, NH 03079 Telephone: (603) 893-0074 Fax: (603) 893-5022 info@byebyedwi.com |
Admitted in all state and federal courts in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Representing clients in criminal defense matters, including narcotics charges, drunk driving charges, Driving While Intoxicated (DWI), Operating Under the Influence (OUI), and Driving Under the Influence (DUI). Representation of clients at Department of Motor Vehicles (NH) and Registry of Motor Vehicles (MA) hearings and appeals. |
DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED CASE EXAMPLE
CASE VICTORY JUNE
8, 2010
DWI ALS CASE EXAMPLE: TWO YEAR SUSPENSION OF RIGHT TO DRIVE BASED ON AN ALLEGED
REFUSAL OF A BLOOD TEST-DISMISSED AFTER ADMINISTRATIVE LICENSE SUSPENSION
HEARING AT THE DMV
Please note-this is an example
of the result of a recent
BASIC FACTS: The citizen in this case was stopped for allegedly ?crossing
the white fog line three times?. After
the arresting officer asked her to get out of her car, he noticed her ?hold on
to her door for balance? getting out. He
asked her to perform the roadside gymnastics known as ?DWI field sobriety
tests?. He told her to perform the
?magic pen test?, which police call the ?horizontal gaze nystagmus? or ?HGN?
test. She passed it, even in the cop?s
opinion. He then had her do a ?walk and
turn test? and a ?one leg stand test?.
She allegedly passed one of these and failed the other. The officer then had her perform two
?non-standard? (read: home-made) tests for which there is no scoring
system. The officer?s conclusion of
course, after the entire series of sidewalk acrobatics, was that the citizen
was under the influence and he arrested her.
At the station she refused to give blood to the police, explaining that
she had smoked a small amount of marijuana earlier in the evening. She later received a suspension action notice
from the New Hampshire DMV because she allegedly refused to submit to a ?blood
test? test after being arrested for DWI.
The notice said that her driver?s license would be suspended for two
years for the refusal, as she had a prior refusal from another case on her
This driver contacted Attorney Mark Stevens at 1-603-893-0074 within the
thirty day time period in which a hearing can be requested to challenge this suspension. Attorney
Stevens filed a hearing request with the Department of Safety in
HEARING PROCEDURE: Attorney
Stevens requested a hearing for this citizen at the
The issue in this case was whether there
was even enough evidence to sustain an administrative license suspension based
on the officer?s unsupported conclusion that this driver was impaired by
anything. After hearing the wafer-thin
evidence of ?alleged impairment? presented by the state, the hearings examiner
rescinded the administrative license suspension in this case.
RESULT: ADMINISTRATIVE LICENSE
SUSPENSION DISMISSED!!! This citizen?s
right to drive was restored. She did not
suffer the two year administrative suspension that the state sought to impose
on her.
Attorney Stevens thanks God for this successful
defense!!!
TODAY?S SCRIPTURE:
?And let us not lose heart and grow weary and faint in acting
nobly and doing right, for in due time and at the appointed season we shall
reap, if we do not loosen and relax our courage and faint.?
Galatians 6:9.
Information in this column should not be construed as legal advice and does not constitute an engagement of the Mark Stevens Law Office, nor any attorney associated with the Mark Stevens Law Office. The information contained herein is of a general nature and may not apply to any particular set of facts and circumstances. Please bear in mind that laws change frequently. We will make an effort to update the information on a regular basis, but are under no obligation to do so. No part of this document, nor any information contained in this website, may be disseminated without this paragraph. This may be considered legal advertising.
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