Ocean Springs DUI Lawyer

Helping People Throughout Mississippi with Driver’s License Issues

If you are facing criminal charges related to driving under the influence, call the experienced,  Ocean SpringsMississippi DUI and driver’s license issues attorneys at Haug, Farrar, Franco & Ruiz, PLLC today at (228) 872-8752.

When you are charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you have two problems from the start:

• Preservation of driving privileges: The first thing you think of is likely whether you may lose your driver’s license. In fact, you may lose it temporarily (through suspension) or permanently (through revocation) depending on the details of your case. This is why it is critical to get a lawyer on your side right away — to explore all options, quickly and thoroughly, for keeping you qualified to drive while your case is pending and beyond. If you rely on driving to make a living or take care of your family, this aspect of your DUI case is vital to your quality of life.
• Avoiding a criminal record: The idea that you may end up with a misdemeanor or a felony on your record may seem remote and abstract now, after you have been arrested or charged with drunk driving. However, a criminal record will have a much greater impact on your life over the long run than a short-term loss of driving privileges. It can affect your future career and personal life in countless ways.

We cannot state it emphatically enough: Your DUI arrest is a legal emergency. You need to do what it takes to get a qualified, dedicated Ocean Springs dui defense lawyer on your side as soon as possible and for as long as it takes to get the best outcome attainable in your case.

Skilled Advocates Available In Ocean Springs, Mississippi

Please understand that Haug, Farrar, Franco & Ruiz, PLLC, is here to defend you, not to accuse you after a DUI arrest. Our Mississippi criminal defense lawyers are prepared to hit the ground running to ensure the best achievable results will remain options for you. The sooner you have an attorney on your side, the more opportunities there may be for you to emerge from this legal challenge with your driving privileges and your clean record intact. Helping you move forward with as little disruption to your life as possible is a goal worth fighting for.

The first step after a DUI arrest is to contact a lawyer right away. We are on call, ready to defend you vigorously in the face of DUI charges or other criminal charges.

After you decide to enlist our help, our first order of business will be to investigate the details that can make or break your case such as:

• Examination of the evidence the police and prosecutor have begun collecting against you
• Review of videos, field sobriety test results, blood, breath or urine test results and eyewitness testimonies
• Scrutiny of how law enforcement agents came up with the supposed legal blood alcohol content (BAC) that you are accused of

What Happened Right Before You Were Arrested?

You may have been stopped because of a traffic violation. You may have been scrutinized after a minor fender bender. Or you may have been tested after a mandatory stop at a checkpoint.

The police officer who arrested you on suspicion of DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs) may allege that you appeared inebriated as a result of his or her observations of your eyes, speech, balance, walking gait and/or the smell of your breath. Perhaps the police officer who arrested you administered a breath, blood or urine test.

Note: If police have pulled you over but you have not yet submitted to a breath, blood or urine test, we strongly urge you to insist on your right to talk to an attorney before you comply. If you have consumed any alcohol at all, submitting to one of these chemical tests can put your case into a tailspin before your defense is underway.

However, if you already submitted to a BAC test, you still need an attorney’s advice and representation right away.

Or perhaps the police suspected you were drunk because of the results of a field sobriety test (FST) instead of or in addition to a BAC test. A skilled defense attorney may challenge the results of any such test such as:

• A horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test
• A walk and turn (WAT) test
• A one-leg stand (OLS) test

If one of our lawyers is your defender, we will begin by looking closely at the circumstances of whatever test brought you under suspicion.

If We Represent You, We Will Start With Education And Investigation

When you choose our law firm to defend you, we will also take time to help you understand your rights as well as laws that pertain to your case. For example:

• A BAC reading over .08 (determined when you blew into the intoxilyzer or submitted to a blood or urine test) over .08 means the prosecutor may say you were verifiably under the influence of alcohol. However, was that reading correct?
• A BAC reading of .02 and above will become the prosecutor’s evidence against you if you are under age 21.
• A BAC reading of .04 or above means you will be held to be guilty if you were driving a commercial vehicle.

Other factors besides your BAC reading and your age that can affect your case outcome include:

• Whether it is your first DUI arrest
• If you have a prior case on your record, how long it has been since that previous conviction
• Whether you have a commercial driver’s license (CDL)

If you choose to work with a defense attorney at Haug, Farrar, Franco & Ruiz, PLLC, in Ocean Springs, we are prepared to fight with you and for your future before the prosecutor, judge and/or jury.

Were You Accused Of Drinking And Driving? Request A Free Consultation

We represent clients in communities such as Biloxi, Gulfport and others in the area. Contact us to schedule an appointment with an Ocean Springs dui defense lawyer at no charge.