It’s not easy to fight a DUI in Oklahoma, where these charges are taken seriously and the penalties can be tough. Drug-related DUIs can be especially hard, since our state has some of the strictest controlled substances laws and penalties in the country. The best strategy is always to contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer as soon as possible.

Drug-Related DUIs: Strategies and Advice

Get an Attorney

We can’t stress this too much: don’t try to go up against the state on your own. The state has enormous resources and the will to enforce the law against you. Even though the law technically holds everyone innocent until they are proven guilty, the reality is that law enforcement and prosecutorial offices often assume the guilt of anyone who has been arrested and act accordingly.

You cannot expect anyone in law enforcement or in the prosecutor’s office to voluntarily inform you of your rights beyond what the law requires as a bare minimum, or to work to protect them. The very best thing you can do for your case is to get a qualified and experienced defense attorney on your side as quickly as possible. Your attorney will protect you and your rights at every step, make sure you know what you’re doing and have someone by your side whenever you talk to your accusers, and will negotiate on your behalf and represent you in all situations.

The chances of coming away with the best possible outcome are much higher with a lawyer than without one, and once you have an attorney, they will help you decide on a strategy for your defense, which could include any of the following, depending on the specific circumstances of your case:

Related Topic: Top 10 Defenses for a DUI Charge

Challenging the Legality of the Traffic Stop

One of the main strategies in fighting a drug-related DUI charge is to take a look at the legality of the traffic stop. For a DUI arrest to be valid, the initial stop must have been lawful, which means that the law enforcement officers involved must have had reasonable suspicion to pull you over. Simply having a hunch is not enough, and they cannot have pulled you over because of the type of car you drive, the color of your skin, the time of day, or any other factor.

An officer’s reasonable suspicion must have been based on observed traffic violations, erratic driving, or other indicators of impaired driving. If it can be shown that the officer lacked reasonable suspicion or probable cause for the traffic stop, any evidence they obtained during the stop, including any chemical test results, may be inadmissible in court.

Questioning Field Sobriety Tests

Field sobriety tests (FSTs) are commonly used by officers to assess whether a driver is impaired at the scene. These tests include the walk-and-turn, one-leg stand, and horizontal gaze nystagmus tests, and they are designed to measure coordination, balance, and eye movements. However, these tests are not foolproof and can be challenged on several grounds, including that some of them are simply more reliable than others.

One strategy is to question the conditions under which the tests were administered. If there was poor lighting, if you were asked to perform them on an uneven surface, if it was raining or snowing heavily: all these environmental factors can make a huge difference in your performance on these tests. Those aren’t the only external factors that can affect performance on these tests, either. Some medical conditions and medications can influence the test results even if you weren’t impaired by drugs at all.

Another approach here is to examine the way the officer administered the tests. The officers must follow specific protocols when conducting FSTs, and if they don’t, your lawyer may be able to use this to argue that the tests were not conducted properly and are not reliable.

Disputing Chemical Test Results

Chemical tests, such as blood and urine tests, are used to detect the presence of drugs in a driver’s system, and many people think of these as fool-proof ways of knowing if a driver was impaired. However, these tests are not infallible and can be challenged on several fronts.

One strategy is to question the accuracy of the testing equipment and procedures. All kinds of things can be a problem here, like improper calibration of the testing devices, contamination of the samples, or errors in handling or storage. Any of those issues can lead to inaccurate results.

Another possible way to challenge these chemical tests is to examine the chain of custody for the samples. The prosecution must be able to show that the samples were handled properly from the moment they were collected until they were tested. If there were any gaps or irregularities in the chain of custody, this calls into question the reliability of the test results.

Claiming Medical and Prescription Drug Defenses

In some cases, a driver may be charged with a drug-related DUI because of the presence of prescription medications in their system. Now, just having a prescription for a drug is not in itself an automatic get-out-of-jail-free card. If you were driving after taking a prescription drug which you had clearly been informed would impair your ability to drive, the state will treat you the same as if you were taking an illicit drug for the purposes of the DUI itself.

However, having a valid prescription can be a key component of a defense strategy if you can show either that you were taking the medication as prescribed and were not impaired, that you were not informed that the drug could impair your driving, or if there was an unexpected interaction with a food or other medication that you were not warned about and which caused you to be impaired. Medical records, doctor’s notes, and expert testimony can support this defense.

Calling Upon Expert Testimony

A good defense lawyer may be able to call on expert testimony as a strategy to help you fight a drug-related DUI charge. Experts in pharmacology, toxicology, and medicine can all provide insight into how certain substances affect the body and challenge the prosecution’s claims of impairment. They can also explain how medical conditions that you might have, or other factors, could possibly influence test results or driving behavior.

For instance, a toxicology expert might be able to show that the levels of a particular drug that were found in your system were not actually sufficient to cause impairment. A pharmacology expert might be able to explain how your prescribed medication can sometimes interact with other substances in an unexpected way that you would not normally be warned about or couldn’t be expected to know.

Investigating Officer Conduct

Testimony from passengers, other drivers, or individuals who interacted with you before or after the alleged DUI incident can sometimes provide a different perspective and contradict an officer’s observations. In a perfect world, law enforcement officers would always assume you are innocent until proven guilty and never allow personal feelings to get in the way of their job. In the real world, we can all have those moments when we just need to be “right” about something.

It’s not unheard of for drivers to fall afoul of a police officer having a bad day, and any violations to your rights during the stop can be used to challenge the DUI charge.

Those charged with drug-related DUIs should get legal help immediately to build a strong strategy for defense. If that’s you or someone you love, contact Cannon & Associates in Edmond, OK and Oklahoma City now for help.