Union City DUI (dismissed), plea to Reckless Driving

Our client was stopped by Union City Police from a call of a disturbance at a gas station (client got into a heated argument with the clerk).  Officer also noticed a headlight out.  Client showed signs of drinking and impairment and was arrested for DUI and No Headlight.  Client also lived out of state and missed his court appearance for his Union City DUI in Fulton County State Court and a bench warrant was issued.  Mr. Sullivan was able to get the bench warrant lifted in Fulton County State Court and negotiate a dismissal of the Union City DUI charge in exchange for a plea to Reckless Driving. 

Covington DUI Refusal: Reduced to Reckless Driving

A concerned citizen was following our client and called in to Georgia State Patrol that our client was failing to keep the vehicle in a single lane.  A Georgia State Trooper spotted our client’s vehicle and also noticed it failing to maintain the vehicle within the lane.  The trooper initiated a traffic stop in Covington, Georgia and after a brief conversation, allowed our client to drive off.  The Trooper then saw our client drive off onto the shoulder of the road and stopped the vehicle again.  A DUI investigation began, where our client performed field sobriety evaluations and tested high on a portable alcosensor (almost twice the legal limit).  Our client was subsequently arrested for a DUI in Covington.  Mr. Sullivan was able to convince the prosecutor that the client performed well enough on field sobriety evaluations that a jury might not convict on the DUI charge.  The prosecutor agreed and a plea to reckless driving was negotiated. 

Cobb County DUI Breath Test .173: Reduced to Reckless Driving

Our client was charges with a Cobb County DUI after being stopped for failing to maintain his lane.  Marietta Police conducted an investigation for DUI where our client agreed to submit to field sobriety evaluations.  Our client was subsequently arrested for DUI and took the state breath rest with a result of .173.  The case began in Marietta Municipal Court, but the Marietta DUI charge was sent over to Cobb County State Court to preserve our client’s right to a jury trial.  Mr. Sullivan conducted a motions hearing to exclude the .173 breath test from being admissible at trial.  While the judge was deciding the motions, Mr. Sullivan was able to persuade the prosecutor that the test would be inadmissible at trial.  Subsequently, Mr. Sullivan negotiated with the prosecutor to dismiss the Cobb DUI charge and our client enter a plea to reckless driving.  

Spalding County DUI, .40 Blood Test: Reduced

In her Spalding County DUI case, our client lost control of her vehicle and crashed into a collision repair shop parking lot in Spalding County.  A witness saw the accident and called police.  Georgia State Patrol responded and conducted an investigation.  Due to the accident, no field sobriety evaluations were performed, but the trooper noticed a very strong odor of an alcoholic beverage from our client.  Our client was transported to the hospital for treatment. Our client was charged for DUI in Spalding County and blood was draw for testing at the GBI.  The blood test result was .40, five times the legal limit.   Mr. Sullivan was able to persuade the prosecution that due to the delay of the case and admissibility issues of the state’s blood test to dismiss the DUI charge, resulting in a negotiated plea to Too Fast for Conditions and Reckless Driving.  

DeKalb County DUI, .154 breath test; Hit and Run: DUI charges dismissed

Our client rear-ended a car while exiting the expressway in Dunwoody, GA.  He decided not to stop at the scene, but eventually stopped in Chamblee, Ga.  A Chamblee officer responded to the scene, but called in Dunwoody police to come to the scene as the Hit and Run charge occurred in Dunwoody.  A DUI investigation was conducted and our client was arrested for DUI by Dunwoody police.  He agreed to take the state-administered breath test and blew a .154 – almost twice the legal limit in Georgia.  Mr. Sullivan moved the case from Dunwoody Municipal Court to DeKalb County State Court to challenge the DeKalb DUI arrest and the admissibility of the breath test on constitutional and police jurisdiction grounds.  Mr. Sullivan was able to convince the DeKalb State Court prosecutor that the state breath test would not be admissible at trial, and without that, the rest of the prosecution’s DUI case was weak.  The DeKalb DUI charges were dismissed, and Mr. Sullivan negotiated a plea to the Hit and Run charge (which our client admitted to doing) and minor traffic offenses.