What you should know about drunk driving charges in Missouri

$1500 for First Offense, $2200 for 2nd Offense

First, Michelle wants you to know you should NOT be paying $3000 to $5000.00 as other firms charge for a FIRST DWI.  She charges an average of $1500.00 for a first DWI. DON’T PAY TWICE AS MUCH AND THEN GET STUCK WITH A ONE YEAR LAWYER MEETING YOU AT COURT!   Michelle will be your lawyer and will appear in court for you. She has tried two week trials and has been a trial lawyer since 1999.  She keeps her fees reasonable because she makes most of her business off referrals, not fancy internet ads or commercials.  She believes if she gets you a good result, you will send her business and she has operated that way for 14 years.  In MOST cases, a first offense will not have a trial because the plea deals are often acceptable.  Don’t get lured into believing you need to pay ridiculous amounts for a first DUI because you will be going to trial.  And even if your case needs to go to trial, big name “advertising lawyers” get more heat from the prosecutors. Choose a lawyer with a respected name in the legal community. Call Michelle M. Funkenbusch NOW, 314-338-3500.  CALL WITHIN 10 DAYS OF YOUR DWI OR YOU MAY LOSE YOUR CHANCE TO FIGHT IT!!!

Second, getting arrested for drunk driving is an unnerving experience. The impact of the arrest can be felt for years to come. A conviction for drunk driving can lead to any number of penalties, such as:

  • Significant criminal fines
  • Loss of driver’s license for a minimum of 90 days up to a lifetime revocation
  • Alcohol Education classes including SATOP and VIP classes, along with fees, community service and SR-22 Insurance, to reinstate your license
  • Jail sentences
  • Probation for 2 years on a first offense

If you were arrested for DWI, you will need a trial attorney in your corner that knows the SCIENCE and the LAW.  Michelle M. Funkenbusch studies the SCIENCE behind DWI’s and can try the case if necessary!  She takes every DWI case very seriously. Whether you were arrested because you made a bad decision and drove after having too much to drink or whether you were unfairly charged with drunk driving, attorney Funkenbusch can fight for your rights and your freedom. Contact the law firm today, 314-338-3500.

In Missouri, field sobriety tests and breath tests CAN be beaten at trial but you must call NOW, 314-338-3500!

Anyone who is driving an automobile while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or anyone who drives while visibly intoxicated, may be charged with DWI (known in some parts of the country as DUI, or simply drunk driving). In the state of Missouri, the legal blood alcohol concentration is .08 percent. Police officers typically will conduct a field sobriety test, or a blood or breath test, to determine if the operator should be charged with DWI.  Funkenbusch attends yearly seminars to study how to defeat these field sobriety and breath tests in court. She knows the science better than the police officers and can cross-examine them in court about their failure to properly conduct these tests.  YOU NEED FUNKENBUSCH ON YOUR SIDE!

What happens after a DWI arrest?

A failure of the field sobriety tests (horizontal gaze nystagmus test, the walk-and-turn test and the one-leg-stand test) can lead to a breath test.   The officer may arrest you for DWI if you fail the breath test, or field sobriety test. Keep in mind that a skilled DWI attorney like  Michelle M. Funkenbusch knows how to challenge these tests in court and win a dismissal of the charges.

A DWI charge does not have to ruin your life. It’s important to contact an experienced defense lawyer as soon as possible if you are charged with DWI. An attorney who is well versed in state laws may be able to help you avoid a DWI conviction.

Attorney Michelle M. Funeknbusch has the experience and resources that people charged with DWI need to fight for their legal rights. Attorney Funkenbusch has a record of getting people charged with DWI the positive results they need. Even if you received a DWI conviction without an attorney, you can rely on a tough-minded attorney like Michelle M. Funkenbusch to deal with a Withdrawal of a Guilty Plea to a DWI.

ARE YOU ON PROBATION AND WANT TO GET OUT OF IT???? A Motion for Early Termination of Probation can be filed based on the new 2012 statute: http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C200-299/2170000703.HTM   that allows an offender on probation to earn compliance credits to reduce the term of probation, parole, or conditional release by thirty days for each full calendar month of compliance with the terms of supervision.  Funkenbusch was one of the FIRST attorneys to successfully apply the theory of this state statute in municipal court to obtain a termination of the mandatory 2 year probation after only one year.

Funkenbusch can also help you with a Petition for Review of a Denial of a Limited Driving Privilege and a DWI expungement to get your record clean!

How a drunk driving defense lawyer can help

1) REFUSAL TO BLOW: We can file a Petition for Review of your Chemical Refusal (failure to blow) and try that case.   You have 30 days from the date of your notice (usually the date of your DUI) to have an attorney file a Petition with the Circuit Court or Associate Circuit Court where the arrest/stop occurred. (Sections 302.311 and 577.041 RSMo).    This is an administrative hearing with the DOR acting as a “prosecutor” instead of the general criminal county prosecutors.  What happens in criminal court with the traffic ticket is a completely different trial/hearing.  If it is your first DUI and you have no prior alcohol related convictions, we can often get the Department of Revenue (DOR) to “confess” the Petition for review and agree to withdraw the suspension if you plead to an SIS on the separate criminal case.

The Department of Revenue will NOT agree to confess a Petition for Review if you have a prior alcohol/drugged driving related incident(s), a very poor driving record, an accident with injuries or no insurance, you refuse to plead guilty to the DWI in the underlying offense (an SIS in an acceptable guilty plea), you hold a commercial Class A driver’s license, or for some other reason the DOR directs that there be no confession.

2) FAILED BREATH TEST: Within 15 days from the date you receive notice of your suspension due to being over .08 BAC, your attorney can file a request for a hearing on the DUI.  The issue at the hearing is to decide if there is reason to believe you were driving with a blood alcohol level over the legal limit (section 302.505 RSMo http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C300-399/3020000505.HTM).   These hearings are difficult to win as the DOR is the judge and prosecutor; however, once you appeal a final decision of the DOR it goes to the Circuit Court in the county of your arrest.  That appeal must be filed within 15 days after the hearing decision is mailed.  The risk is small as the

3) FIRST DWI OFFENSE:  If it is your first offense, we can often negotiate with the criminal prosecutor to get you a Suspended Imposition of Sentence so that you don’t have a conviction on your record.  There is NO NEED TO PAY A LAWYER $5000.00 for a first offense.   It is often not worth the risk of a trial on a first offense because the plea deals are usually acceptable to defendants.   An SIS is a standard deal and our fees average around $1500.00 for a first offense.

4) SECOND OFFENSE: If it is your second offense, we can often negotiate with the prosecutor to get you a Suspended Execution of Sentence so you avoid jail.

5) FELONY DWI/REPEAT OFFENDERS:  We can try your case for you but DWI court may be available to you and may be a better option in the long run.  Michelle Funkenbusch can petition for your acceptance into a DWI Court Program so that you can get treatment for an alcohol addiction.  These are difficult programs requiring a lot of commitment on your part. It is a “self-pay” treatment program for repeat and persistent DWI offenders in lieu of incarceration. It is a minimum 15 month intensive outpatient program that may allow you to avoid a felony conviction, assuming you successfully complete the program.  Make an appointment with Michelle to get a copy of her DWI Court orientation Guide.

For a free consultation, contact Michelle M. Funkenbusch. She can explain your rights and discuss your options. Call 338-3500 today.

 

A Sample of the Cities We Handle:

We represent people in St. Louis, Pine Lawn, Belle Villa, City of Calverton Park, Maryland Heights, St. Charles, Creve Coeur, Arnold, Hillsboro, Warrenton, Wentzville, Columbia, Rolla, Kansas City, Joplin, O’Fallon, St. Peters, Clayton, Ballwin, Wildwood, Eureka, Fenton, Richmond Heights, Florissant, Hazelwood, Poplar Bluff and Union, and communities of St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Boone County, Lincoln County, Jefferson County, Jackson County, Phelps County, Butler County, Franklin County, Gasconade County, Marion County and Greene County, and statewide Missouri, as well as nearby areas of eastern Illinois. (MO, IL)

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