Should I Refuse a Blood Test?

Under the implied consent law, you are obligated to take a breath or blood test when a police officer charges you with a DWI. However, it is important to note that officers must have reasonable cause to pull you over, accuse you of DWI, and then request that you submit to a chemical test.

Why should I agree to take a breath or blood test?

After being arrested, an officer should inform you that if you refuse to take either of them, your license will be suspended for at least 180 days. They should also notify you that your license will be suspended for 90 days or more if a test determines your blood alcohol was more than 0.08%.

However, there are several reasons that consenting to a test can be beneficial:

• You will avoid having your license suspended outside of your DWI case
• Your attorney can argue against the test evidence in court
• You could still be found guilty even if you refuse the test
• You may immediately lose driving privileges throughout your entire case

Even when you consent to a chemical test and have a BAC over the legal limit, you can apply to have temporary and restricted driving privileges while your attorney argues your case in court. However, when you refuse to consent to a test, it can often be harder to get this license suspension overturned.

What occurs after a refusal?

When you refuse to submit to a test, an officer will have you sign a statement that says you were informed of the consequences of a refusal. You will then have your license taken by the officer in exchange for a temporary license which is only valid for the next 41 days.

After this, you will have only 15 days in which to schedule an administrative hearing to contest your license suspension. At this hearing, you will need to prove the officer did not have probable cause to stop you or that you in fact did not refuse a test or were not properly informed of the consequences.

Refusing to take a chemical test generally does not help your cause. It may appear that it does at first since a conviction and jail time is worse than a 180-day suspension, but just because you refused to take a test does not mean you cannot be found guilty.

Contact Our Top DUI Attorney

Whether you refused or consented to a chemical test and are now facing charges, be sure to reach out to our knowledgeable firm today. Attorney Martinez has over 25 years of experience defending those accused of drunk driving charges throughout Texas. In his experience as a former chief prosecutor, he knows what the other side is looking to find and how to properly defend against their tactics. With a 10.0 Superb rating on Avvo and rated as a Top DUI lawyer by multiple publications, do not hesitate to get in touch with our accomplished firm today!

Call today for your free initial case evaluation at (713) 489-9773!

Understanding How Alcohol Interacts with Your Body

Knowing just how alcohol can affect your body can help you either avoid getting arresting for DWI or preparing you on how to act when pulled over. How much alcohol is in your bloodstream at a given time is affected by how fast alcohol is eliminated. Alcohol is eliminated when it is burned up in your body while the rest escapes through your breath, urine, and perspiration.

Alcohol makes its way into your blood by way of your gastrointestinal tract, namely, your mouth, esophagus, stomach, and small intestine. You will become intoxicated faster with an empty stomach because the alcohol has nothing to compete with it as it becomes absorbed by your stomach lining.

Where does the alcohol go?

Most people will absorb just over half of the alcohol consumed within a half-hour after drinking. Roughly 90% will be absorbed within that first hour, with the rest being absorbed after 90 minutes. The rate of absorption does depend on the quantity of alcohol consumed, concentration of the alcohol, rate of drinking, and the nature and amount of diluting material present in the stomach.

Almost all alcohol is oxidized in the liver, becoming water and carbon dioxide. The more you are accustomed to drinking, the faster it will probably be oxidized.

It may prove very helpful to be able to estimate your blood alcohol content at any time based only on the number of drinks you have, the time within which you had them, and your body weight. This can be accomplished by dividing 3.8 by your weight which will yield roughly how much your blood alcohol will increase with each drink within an hour. Bearing in mind that .08% is the legal limit, you should be able to give an educated guess to your current blood alcohol level.

This is not an exact measure, however, and you can still be arrested for suspicion of DWI no matter what your BAC. Contact an attorney right away from The Martinez Law Firm to right your DWI arrest.

 

Can You Get Your Criminal Record Cleared in Texas?

Is it possible to get your record cleared?

In the event that you were arrested in Texas, but never convicted, it may be possible to have your criminal record expunged. This would remove all record of you ever being arrested. While there are certain specifications and requirements to have your record cleared, it is a viable possibility that many may not realize it is an option they have.

Many people may think that their record is automatically cleared after their case has been dismissed or they have completed deferred adjudication probation, but this is not the case. Your criminal history will still show up on background checks and online searches, which could be extremely harmful to your future if you are trying to apply for a job, a loan, or a place to live.

Will your case be eligible for expunction?

As long as you were arrested but never convicted in the state of Texas, you may be able to have your records expunged. This means that you would be able to legally deny the arrest, even on employment applications or other important documents.

You may be a candidate for expunction if one of the following is true of your case:

• Your case was dismissed
• You were found “not guilty” during trial
• A person was arrested under your name without permission
• The case was no-billed by a grand jury
• You were ultimately convicted, but pardoned at a later date

Speak with Attorney Herman Martinez today!

As a 10.0 Superb Rated lawyer on Avvo, declared a Client’s Choice DUI lawyer for 2012 and a Top Contributor for 2013, Attorney Herman Martinez is more than qualified. He is recognized as one of the top criminal lawyers in Houston, Texas.

A former prosecutor with a history of successful case results, call our Houston criminal defense lawyer, Herman Martinez, at The Martinez Law Firm for a FREE case consultation today!
Don’t let a past mistake ruin your future; get your record cleared today!

How “Double Jeopardy” can Protect You in Your Case

 

If you were arrested for any crime, you cannot be tried for that crime twice (with some exceptions) according to the federal laws on double jeopardy. Jeopardy protection only applies in certain types of legal proceedings, but it is always important to try and challenge any actions that could possibly violate a double jeopardy statute. Essentially, the defendant protected by double jeopardy cannot be tried again on the same or similar charges following a legitimate acquittal conviction.

This does not apply to when a person commits the same crime again. Instead, this is a protection against being tried for the exact same crime more than once. For example, if a person was caught using drugs and was charged for this crime but won an acquittal, he cannot be retried without an appeal. Double Jeopardy is protected in the Fifth Amendment of the United States where it says that no person shall be subject for the same offense twice to be put in jeopardy of life and limb. There are four distinct provisions which can be identified in the double jeopardy clause. These are:

• Subsequent prosecution after acquittal is illegal
• Subsequent prosecution after conviction is not permissible
• Subsequent prosecution after mistrial is unconstitutional
• Multiple punishment for the same indictment is unconstitutional

If you have been arrested and/or tried for a crime, and you are told that you are going to be re-arrested, it is important that you hire a Houston criminal defense attorney to help you and argue Double Jeopardy in your case today. Don’t hesitate to hire a successful criminal defense lawyer, like Herman Martinez, from The Martinez Law Firm to represent you and make sure that you get the treatment that you deserve in your case. Learn more by talking with an experienced attorney at our firm today!

 

Do I Need a Lawyer for My Evading Arrest Case?

Generally speaking there are two types of evading arrest charges in Texas. The one that gets the most publicity involve long police chases. Everyone can understand when someone drives recklessly throughout Harris County, Texas why felony charges are filed in these instances. What most people do not understand is that not pulling over for a traffic ticket quickly enough could lead to felony charge. For example, I recently, had to defend someone that was less than two miles from their house, knew they had a warrant for his arrest so he just thought he would drive home instead of getting his car towed. To most people that seems reasonable, but not to the police officer who pursued him to his house, confirmed his home address with his driver’s license and proceeded to arrest him for felony evading arrest in a motor vehicle. After making his $2,000 bond he thought he could go to court to explain his story to the judge who bluntly told him that he was likely to confess to the crime while the prosecutor took notes of everything he said. Ultimately, he recognized that it would be better to stay quiet, hire a lawyer to defend. That was a good call on his part because I was able to get his case eventually dismissed, kept off his permanent record so the general public could not see the arrest.

Do yourself a favor, try to pull over as quickly as possible when you see the police lights behind your vehicle. If you make the mistake of not pulling over in time for the police officer do not go to court without a lawyer. Getting a felony conviction for any crime will ruin your life! To get a FREE case consultation from one of the best Criminal Defense Attorneys in Houston, contact The Martinez Law Firm today.

Were You Charged with Arson?

If you started a fire or explosion and you knew that the property where the fire took place belongs to another person or sits on property belonging to another person, then you can be charged with arson. Also, if you were aware of the fact that the fire you set affected a location that contained property belonging to another person, this is considered arson as well.

In addition, if property is insured against damage and there is a mortgage or lien on a property that is held by someone other than yourself, you can be charged for damage. This is because some individuals will purposefully attempt to burn a home or location in order to get a fire insurance settlement.

The Texas courts also maintain that a person can be charged with arson if he or she recklessly set fire or set off an explosion without any regard to the safety of others or without regard to another’s property. This means that if you start a campfire or play with fireworks in dry woods where a burn ban is put in place, and this eventually causes fire damages, then you could he charged with arson.

Also, if you accidentally start a fire that causes damage while you are trying to create a controlled substance, then this is considered arson. If you smoke and then toss a smoldering cigarette into a dry brush, which ignites a fire, then you can also be charged with this crime.

With so many different opportunities to be charged with arson, it is essential that you be cautious when working with fire and avoid every being reckless with it. Arson is considered a second-degree felony and is punishable by between 2 and 20 years in prison. If the fire involves a church, or if someone else is injured or killed, then it can carry a life sentence. Arson in the course of creating a controlled substance is punishable with between six months and two years in jail.