3 affirmative defenses for a DUI charge

Driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol carries serious consequences, including fines, imprisonment, license suspension/revocation, mandatory alcohol assessment and treatment, and loss of opportunities (employment, housing, and education).

If you are charged with a DUI, you can fight it by challenging the breathalyzer test, field sobriety tests (FSTs), and circumstances surrounding the stop (the police lacked reasonable suspicion).

However, if you lack solid evidence for these defense strategies, you can bring new facts to the court that can mitigate the legal consequences of your action – not deny the charge but provide a good reason why the prosecutor should not win. This is called affirmative defense.

Here are three affirmative defenses you can employ in a DU I case:  

Necessity  

If you had to drive while intoxicated to prevent or minimize greater harm, you can use necessity as your defense. For instance, a loved one had a medical emergency or was in imminent physical danger.

Note that you should have reasonable grounds for believing the emergency existed and no other means was available to avoid the harm.

Duress

If you had to drive while intoxicated because you were under an immediate threat of death or serious injury, you should inform the court you were under duress. For example, when someone forces you to drive by threatening your life.

Involuntary intoxication

If someone puts alcohol in your drink, you will be involuntarily intoxicated – you consumed the alcohol without knowing. If you can establish this fact, you can use it as your defense.

Affirmative defenses are successful when applied correctly. Seek legal guidance to protect yourself from potential DUI consequences.       

This article is for general information purposes. It helps you know you have options. Hence, you should get legal help. The information provided is not legal advice.