Missouri DWI Defense Attorney

What is DefendDWI.com?

DefendDWI.com is a service of Worsham & Vaughan, Attorneys at Law.  Will Worsham has been practicing law in Springfield, MO for over eight years.  He began his career working for the Law Firm of M. Shawn Askinosie handling all of the traffic related cases including Driving While Intoxicated.

As a member of Worsham & Vaughan, Attorneys at Law, Will practices primarily DWI, Criminal Defense and Traffic Law.  During his time in private practice, Will has proven himself as an effective DWI and DUI defense lawyer taking several cases to trial and winning on behalf of his clients.  Will is a member of the Missouri Bar Association, the Missouri Association for Municipal and Associate Circuit Judges and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.  He is admitted both to the Missouri Bar and the United States Federal Court -Western District of Missouri.

Will has handled hundreds of Missouri DWI cases including many DWI cases in Springfield and Greene County, Missouri.  While not every DWI or DUI case can be "won,"  Will's experience allows him to clearly explain the facts and the law to his clients along with the status of plea negotiations with the prosecutor in order to allow his clients to make informed choices about how they would like to proceed.  His aggressive style is effective even in difficult cases in helping his clients reach the best possible outcome based on their individual facts and circumstances.

While Will's clients often pay in excess of $1000.00 for his expertise and individualized handling of their case, this site and accompanying service provided through www.MissouriTrafficTickets.com is a result of Will's efforts to provide quality DWI representation to a broader base of clients at affordable rates.

By utilizing a staff of trained Paralegals who are assigned primary responsibility for a case, our clients have a person to call with questions and for directions in getting through this difficult time in their life.  The paralegal is responsible for all of the routine document preparation and filing as well as obtaining all evidence available in the case and preparing it for an attorney to  review. The attorney then has a face to face meeting with a prosecutor concerning the case to discuss the facts and a possible resolution short of trial, commonly referred to as "plea negotiations."

After the initial discovery (evidence gathering) and plea negotiations are completed.  Our clients then personally meet with their attorney to discuss all of the evidence and how the law applies in their particular case and provides guidance as to how the client might wish to proceed.  The client then makes a final decision. 

Buyer (Client) Beware!

Think all DWI Defense lawyers are the same? Think again. You get what you pay for.

I got the below email solicitation today asking me to sign up for a DWI Defense referral website. It basically says you can make a bunch of money on DWI cases because people are scared and all you have to do is take their money and plea bargain the case. That there is NO DEFENSE to DWI. Fact is there are LOTS of defenses to DWI when a person handles the situation correctly. Such as knowing the information I provide on this site.

What follows is the email that is an example of all that is wrong in the practice of DWI defense. It makes it hard for lawyers like me to practice because we offer a real defense to DWI and so are "expensive" compared to the "fee and plea" lawyers attracted to the service detailed below. Let the buyer beware.

DUI Defense is the most lucrative area of criminal practice: Here is why

Fact 1: Most dui cases are settled before going to trial because there is really no defense. DUI is really like a strict liability crime. Once you do it, you are guilty. Many dui defense attorneys file frivolous motions and in the process run up even higher fees for the client. Cases rarely go to trial and when they do, the DAs almost always win. So the most successful DUI Defense attorneys simply plea bargain and collect their fee from the client. This makes DUI Defense practice one of the most lucrative areas of the law.
Fact 2: Most DUI defendants are average people who otherwise have never committed a crime. The last thing they want on their record is a DUI. They are willing to pay as much as you ask for hoping they can beat the wrap. This is another reason why DUI Defense is absolutely the most lucrative area of criminal defense.

Fact 3: DUI Defendants look for a dui lawyer on the web because it is discrete. For reason stated above, the cost per click for online advertising has outpaced any other industry. A single click in some major markets can cost as much as $100.

Fact 4: We, www.dui1.com, are the Number 1 result when you search Google for the terms dui lawyer, dui lawyers, dui attorney, and dui attorneys. We dominate the web. We are Number 1 under the natural results, meaning we don’t pay to be up there. For this reason, advertising on dui1.com is the least expensive advertising avenue on the web.

Conclusion: If you do any type of criminal defense, throw your hat in and sign up at dui1.com. The fees are very low. When you get your first client, you will make more than several times of your investment.

To register, please visit www.dui1.com/register.aspx

To see a list of leads in our network, please visit http://www.dui1.com/DisplayLeadList.aspx

To see a list of our members, please visit http://www.dui1.com/DisplayMembers.aspx

Sincerely,

D---- S------, ESQ.

Recent Changes in DWI Law

Recently passed House Bill 972, also known as the new “crime bill,” makes some significant changes in several laws regarding crime, specifically in the laws pertaining to DWIs. 

The bill expands the crime of involuntary manslaughter in the first degree.  Involuntary manslaughter, in this situation, can be defined as the act of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated which results in the death of a non-passenger, or doing so and causing the death of two or more people, or doing so with a blood-alcohol content of more than .18% and causing the death of any person.  This is also called aggravated vehicular manslaughter.  This expansion increases the penalty from a class C felony, which means a maximum prison term of ten years, to a class B felony, which entails a prison term of at least ten years to a maximum of twenty years, in these particular situations.

The bill changes the definition of "persistent offender."  Currently, persistent offender, as used in Chapter 577, RSMo, is defined as a person with two or more convictions for intoxication-related offenses during the past 10 years.  The bill removes the time requirements so as to include all past intoxication-related offenses.

Two new types of offender status, "aggravated offender" and "chronic offender", are created for the purposes of applying the enhanced penalties and prison requirements of Section 577.023.  An aggravated offender is a person convicted of:

• Three intoxication-related offenses; or
• Two intoxication-related offenses, when one of them is for:
  • involuntary manslaughter,
  • murder in the second degree (a class A felony, which can be punished by death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for 20 years or more) when the underlying felony is an intoxication-related offense,
  • aggravated vehicular manslaughter, 
  • assault in the second degree (operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated or under the influence of controlled substances or drugs which causes physical injury to any other person), or
  • assault of a law enforcement officer in the second degree.

A chronic offender is a person convicted of:

• Four or more intoxication-related offenses;
• Two seperate occasions resulting in convictions for:
  • Involuntary manslaughter,
  • aggravated vehicular manslaughter,
  • assault in the second degree, or
  • assault of a law enforcement officer in the second degree, or
    
• One prior conviction for:
  • Involuntary manslaughter, or
  • aggravated vehicular manslaughter, or
  • assault in the second degree, or assault of a law enforcement officer in the second degree,
  • and two other intoxication-related offenses.

The bill makes driving while intoxicated or driving with an excessive blood-alcohol content a class C felony when the defendant is sentenced as an aggravated offender and a class B felony when sentenced as a chronic offender.  Aggravated offenders must serve at least 60 days of imprisonment and chronic offenders at least two years of imprisonment before becoming eligible for probation or parole.

The bill expands the crime of endangering the welfare of a child in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor.  The offense is committed when a person operating a motor vehicle commits involuntary manslaughter, assault in the second degree, driving while intoxicated, or driving with excessive blood-alcohol content while a child younger than 17 years of age is in the vehicle.

I just made a mistake, why am I being treated like a criminal?

In a recent article in The Champion Magazine, DWI practitioner Mimi Coffey calls DWI the "Modern Day Witch Hunts" citing bad science and an indifferent or intimidated judiciary (The Champion, November 2004,  Page 51).

Ms. Coffey goes on to effectively describe all the problems with Standardized Field Sobriety Testing which even in a best case scenario is only 80% accurate.  One of the lynch (no pun intended) pins of FST is the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test or Eye Test.  She points out that there are over forty different types of nystagmus (involuntary jerking of the eye) that are not distinguished by traditional HGN testing and over thirty different causes of nystagmus OTHER than alcohol or drug intoxication including strep throat and the flu!

She goes on to write, "Another real problem with the horizontal gaze nystagmus test is the timing of its presence and an actual alcohol concentration. The HGN, as administered by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) protocol for the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST) has been cited as the only reliable index of blood alcohol when examined for its ability to distinguish BACs under and over .04% within the .00-.08% range. So it is a fallacy to use this test to determine that someone may be over .08 BAC. What is also alarming is the fact that nystagmus can remain for some time once the BAC has reached .000. In a dose/response study of 89 subjects, 62% of the dosed subjects exhibited nystagmus in one or both eyes at BAC levels of .00% when tested immediately after all alcohol was cleared from their blood and 56% of those subjects still exhibited nystagmus one hour later. In the same study, it was determined from 66 healthy, well-rested subjects who did not consume any alcohol and completed 5.5 to 8.0 hours of sleep after being awake for 9 to 14.5 hours (average 11.2) that they had distinct nystagmus in one or both eyes. Afterwards these same subjects were re-examined with an average awake time of 24.5 hours and distinct end position nystagmus was observed in one or both eyes in 55% of the group."

While drunk drivers unquestionably cause many serious injuries and deaths, many people are stopped arrested, prosecuted and convicted of DWI with little or no evidence of impairment, not even causing property damage let alone injury or death.

Unfortunately, excessive media attention and advocacy groups have caused a rush to judgment  in acceptance of such "science" from courts anxious to avoid a "soft on crime" reputation.  Prosecutors find the DWI offender an easy target when it comes to posting impressive filing (the amount of cases filed) numbers as well as conviction numbers as the uninformed and unrepresented accused simply pleads guilty without the benefit of counsel.  DWI conviction numbers are routinely touted in the effort of Police Departments and Prosecutors to appear "tough on crime."  "Kill them all and let God sort them out" seems to be the mantra of modern day DWI enforcement. 

What can happen to my license if I'm arrested for DWI?

When a person is arrested for DWI or DUI in Missouri, several things can happen concerning the person's driver's license.  Missouri law provides that a driver arrested for Driving While Intoxicated is required as a condition of operating a motor vehicle on the public highways to submit to a test of their Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) upon reasonable request of a law enforcement officer (Missouri's Implied Consent Law).  Failing the test or refusing the test both result in a loss of driving privileges.

Administrative Alcohol Suspensions

If the arrested person takes a Blood Alcohol Content Test (BAC Test) and the result is over .08% (Missouri's legal limit) then the arresting officer will usually immediately seize the driver's license and issue a Notice of Suspension. 

Please note that in my experience the officer usually doesn't tell the person that they have just been served a Notice of Suspension.  Normally the officer only says that the license is suspended and while giving the arrestee the Notice of Suspension tells them that it is a 15 day driving permit before their suspension becomes active.  I don't know if this is an intentional attempt on the part of law enforcement officers to deceive people about their rights or not, but the practical effect is if people don't read this "driving permit" they will never realize that at the moment the officer gives them that piece of paper, the clock starts running on their right to challenge that suspension. 

This suspension is called an Administrative Alcohol Suspension and, if a request is timely filed, is subject to review by and Administrative Law Judge.  While the threshold the State has to meet for the suspension to remain in effect is very low (mere preponderance of the evidence), it is in almost all cases best to request the hearing as there is nothing to lose by having the hearing.  This suspension lasts for 90 days.  Limited Driving Privileges are available automatically for the last 60 days of the suspension with a timely filed SR-22 certificate of insurance.  Full reinstatement is automatic after completion of SATOP (Substance Abuse Traffic Offender Program), SR-22 filing, and payment of $45 reinstatement fee.

Chemical Refusal Revocations

If the arrestee refuses to submit to a BAC Test, then the arresting officer will still seize the driver's license and issue a Notice of Revocation.  The same warning applies: usually the officer is vague as to what is actually happening and the accused is usually left with the impression that their license has been revoked with no recourse.  The revocation for refusal to submit to a B.A.C. Test is for one year. 

This "Chemical Revocation" is reviewable by the Circuit Court in the jurisdiction of arrest upon timely filing of a petition by the arrestee.  Once again while the threshold the State has to meet for the revocation to remain in effect is low, a challenge should be filed in order to preserve the rights of the accused. 

A driver revoked for refusal to submit to a chemical test is generally eligible for hardship driving privileges upon application and SR-22 filing after the first 90 days of the revocation.  Upon completion of SATOP, SR-22 filing, and payment of reinstatement fees, the driver is eligible to re-test to restore driving privileges.

Loss of Driving Privileges Resulting from Convictions

First convictions for Driving While Intoxicated or Driving With Excessive Blood Alcohol Content result in eight points on a Missouri Driving Record as set forth in Missouri Statutes, RSMo. §302.302.  In Missouri, a point suspension results when 8 points are acquired within 18 months.  A second or subsequent conviction for DWI or BAC results in 12 points applied to the driving record.  Again, according to RSMo. §302.302 accumulation of 12 points in 24 months results in a one year revocation of driving privileges.

Reinstatement from suspension or revocation requires SR-22 filing, completion of SATOP, payment of reinstatement fees and in the case of revocation, re-testing.  If a point suspension or revocation results from the same incident (stop or arrest) that also resulted in an Administrative Alcohol Suspension or Revocation for Refusal to Submit to a Chemical Test, then the two suspensions will run concurrently (at the same time) and no additional loss of driving privilege will result from the later of the two suspensions/revocations to occur.  The State of Missouri does however require reinstatement fees to be paid for both.