Guaranteeing no jail time is one of the most urgent questions for many Virginia DUI defendants

Guaranteeing no jail time is such an urgent concern for so many Virginia DUI defendants that many ask me about that from the moment we calendar an initial confidential consultation. As a Fairfax DUI lawyer, I know that minimizing — and, better yet, eliminating — incarceration risks is vital, while obtaining a dismissal or acquittal is even better. A great outcome against your Virginia DWI or criminal case does not come from wishful thinking nor relying all on prayer, but by your obtaining the right Virginia DUI lawyer for you, and both of your busting your butts for a great outcome, with your lawyer paying full time and attention to your unique cause and goals while integrating the attorney’s abilities and experience with those goals, and with your taking steps to show — no matter how innocent or not you are — that the person you are when walking into your court date is a much relevantly improved person than on the day you got charged or arrested for allegedly committing a crime.

You can help write the answer to your question about guaranteeing no jail time from your Virginia DUI case

If you started driving a car (or even sat in the driver’s seat with the engine running or even with the key left in the ignition) after drinking too much beer, wine, alcohol or liquor, you took a risk. If you got charged with violating the Virginia DUI or criminal law, it is time to take the financial risk on the right lawyer for you in looking for guaranteeing a great outcome in your case. As an important windfall, if your Fairfax DUI lawyer wins your Virginia DWI case or gets it dismissed, you save substantial money, time and aggravation that would have come with a conviction in terms of paying for attendant court fines and costs, the mandatory alcohol ignition interlock device, the mandatory Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program (VASAP) and any restrictions on driving beyond simply using the ignition interlock.

How did I recently get a no-jail sentence for a Virginia DUI defendant with a 0.23 BAC blood test result?

I have defended Virginia DUI defendants — prosecuted under Virginia Code § 18.2-266  with blood alcohol concentration (BAC) results as high as 0.35, which, if accurate, is a major warning about possibly very serious alcohol abuse. Recently, I obtained a no-active jail result for a client whose blood alcohol concentration (BAC) blood testing result was 0.23, which risked a ten-day mandatory minimum non-suspendable jail period. How did I accomplish such a great outcome? The prosecutor was in a good mood and we chatted a bit after I first told him: “I’ve got great news for you,” which cannot work unless the speaker agrees with his or her own words, just as with anything a person says. This caught the prosecutor’s attention. “We can save the time and aggravation of your colleague or you on the trial date [this was a trial scheduling date] by simply settling this case for the maximum possible jail sentence (one year) all suspended, the maximum possible fine ($2500) suspending all but $1000, an agreed number of community service hours, and agreed number of AA meetings.” The prosecutor said he would discuss my idea with the law enforcement officers (LEO’s) involved in my case, which is not an exercise in guaranteeing a great Virginia DUI defense result, but usually at least a sign that the prosecutor may well spend significant thought about my proposal. (Note that I could have told the prosecutor why we both have negotiating bets to hedge based on my available attacks to the very start of my client’s car, but the judge was likely to conclude that the police stop of my client’s car was lawful / Constitutional, and I kept that argument in my back pocket.)

Keeping the momentum going in negotiating a great Virginia DUI case result

The prosecutor told me that he needed a bit of time to consider my proposal, while he also handled many other cases on that morning’s docket. A possible risk of that is if inertia then takes hold instead of moving case negotiations forward. Here, I kept the momentum going with this prosecutor in defending my Virginia DUI client, by telling the prosecutor a few minutes later that I was sweetening the offer by also throwing in a guilty plea to the allegations that my client was exceeding the speed limit by ten miles per hour, followed another car too closely and made an unsafe lane change. Had the three foregoing alleged traffic infractions been the only charges, I would have been ready to fully fight them. Here, my client’s career prospects were at significant risk had he received even an overnight in jail, and I told the prosecutor the same for pursuing guaranteeing no active jail time. The prosecutor returned with a very good plea counteroffer, that mainly increased the fine to be paid, agreed to a modest number of voluntary community service work, and has my client waiting thirty days to obtain a restricted driving license.

Finding the right Virginia DUI lawyer who will keep the steam and momentum going, with a constant eye on acquittal or a desired negotiating outcome

Your time and effort are well spent seeking the right Virginia DWI lawyer, not who will be guaranteeing your case outcome (because none can) but who consistently keeps his or her eyes on the prize of the best possible outcome in your Virginia criminal case. As a Fairfax DUI lawyer having successfully defending hundreds of clients charged with violating the commonwealths’ drunk driving charges, I know that hard work means little without a great attendant result. I never rest on my laurels. I keep learning and improving. I am among the small number of Northern Virginia DUI lawyers who are members of the tremendously helpful National College of DUI Defense. I am among the few Virginia DUI defenders who has been trained in conducting standardized field sobriety testing (SFST or FST) with one of the nation’s premier teachers to police for this category.

Highly-rated Fairfax DUI lawyer Jonathan Katz works tirelessly for your best defense against Virginia DUI, felony and misdemeanor prosecutions. Jon Katz has successfully taken hundreds of DUI and criminal cases to trial, which makes him all the more court-ready for you. Call 703-383-1100 for your free initial in-person consultation with Jon about your court-pending case.