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Maybe you figured you could drive home from Wichita with your eyes closed by now, so what difference would a couple drinks make? Or maybe you thought it was too pricey to get a hotel in Topeka for the night, so you braved the drive, even though you had one too many shots to celebrate your buddy's birthday. No matter how your blood-alcohol content (BAC) went over the legal limit, Kansas drunk driving laws severely punish drunk driving -- also known as "driving under the influence" -- because driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs kills thousands of people in Kansas each year and injures even more.
What Kansas Law Says
Under Kansas drunk driving laws, "driving under the influence" means that an officer determined you had a BAC higher than the relevant legal limit. Typically, an officer will notice that you were swerving while driving, cutting off other cars, or otherwise driving suspiciously, and then the officer will pull you over and ask to administer a field sobriety test and either a breathalyzer or a chemical blood test.
If you drive through a sobriety checkpoint, the officer does not need to have reasonable suspicion that you are driving under the influence -- the officer just needs to follow the preset rules for a legal sobriety checkpoint. For instance, the officer must check every third car.
BAC legal limits:
Penalties for Drunk Driving Charge:
Aggravated DUIs:
Read the full text of the Kansas States for more information.
I Was Charged with a DUI: What's Next?
If you've been charged with a DUI, a skilled Kansas criminal defense attorney has ways to challenge the charge against you. Typically, a criminal attorney will argue one of three defenses. First, an attorney will argue that the police officer illegally stopped your car. For instance, if you were not speeding, didn’t have a broken taillight, and were otherwise following the rules of the road, the police officer may have illegally pulled you over; so any tests conducted after that cannot be admitted into evidence. Second, if the stop was legal, an attorney will argue that the officer improperly administered the field sobriety or breathalyzer test. Finally, an attorney can argue that the breathalyzer machine itself malfunctioned.
There may be other defenses you can use if none of these apply to your situation.
Get a Free Case Review from a Kansas DUI Attorney
Under Kansas drunk driving laws, you can pretty much count on your car being impounded and your license being suspended. While an attorney can help fight those issues, most drivers defending a DUI charge are far more concerned with avoiding jail time. An attorney experienced with defending against Kansas drunk driving charges can help you encourage the judge to order as much of your sentence as possible to be served either as community service, house arrest, or at least as a work release program. If you have been charged with driving under the influence and need skilled legal assistance in Kansas, get a free case review from a Kansas attorney.
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