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Many individuals can face DUI charges when driving while under the influence of prescription medications, including sleep aids such as sedative-hypnotics, allergy medication and any others that impair driving ability.
Milton DUI on Prescription Medication lawyers can be your invaluable ally when fighting these charges. Unlike with alcohol, drug levels don’t directly correlate with impairment – there may be other factors at play which give the appearance of impairment due to medications or prescription.
1. Legal Challenges
Many individuals understand that alcohol impairment can make one subject to DUI charges; less well understood is that prescription drug-related DUI can also lead to arrest. Legal definition of DUI does not rely on blood alcohol concentration (BAC), but rather whether you are impaired so significantly as to compromise safe driving operations.
Milton DUI lawyers must understand how various medications affect a driver’s ability to drive. Some antibiotics contain stimulants which can slow reaction times and decrease coordination; antidepressants may impair judgement and decision-making abilities.
Your Milton DUI lawyer can also request an administrative license suspension hearing with the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS). Failing to request this separate hearing within 30 days will result in your license being suspended for one year with no permit available for reinstatement.
2. Defense Tactics
Combatting DUI charges arising from prescription medication poses special difficulties. An experienced Milton DUI lawyer will carefully investigate your case in order to develop a strong defense strategy, since drug presence does not directly correlate to impairment levels; medical conditions or other unrelated sources could replicate its effects and render you inebriated.
At your consultation, evaluate an attorney’s communication skills and ability to explain complex legal matters clearly in plain language. Inquire into their professional credentials as well as membership with any bar associations they belong to.
An experienced Milton DUI defense attorney can work to disprove the prosecution’s evidence by reviewing police reports for discrepancies or errors, consulting breath test experts to identify technical flaws that alter test results or determining whether your roadblock stop was legal. They may also work towards mitigating its effects by exploring options such as plea deals and mitigating circumstances – all which are options worth exploring given that any conviction in Milton Municipal Court will stay on your record forever and may have devastating repercussions for your freedom, career prospects and future opportunities.
3. Medical Challenges
Prescription medications can be lifesaving; however, when taken while driving they can lead to impairment just like alcohol. Drivers taking prescription medication that impairs their driving may be arrested for DUI; our Milton DUI lawyers know how to challenge a police officer’s assessment of your level of intoxication based on how your drugs affect your ability to safely operate a motor vehicle.
When arrested for DUI, you will be taken to either the police station or jail and booked. There may be several reasons that make your stop illegal and an experienced Milton DUI lawyer can challenge it in court.
Your arrest will result in the officer serving you a DDS 1205 notice that they intend to seek suspension of your license, giving you only limited time to request an administrative license hearing in order to protect your privileges and save them.
4. Legal Issues
Many drivers are surprised to discover that driving while taking prescription medication could result in a DUI charge. DUI cases usually focus on impairment rather than drug concentration levels in your system; impairment can vary by state and prescription drugs may slow reaction times, diminish coordination and interfere with decision-making capabilities – for instance some antidepressants cause sleepiness while certain antibiotics contain stimulants which lead to restlessness and an elevated heart rate.
Defense teams in Milton DUI cases may question whether police had reasonable suspicion to stop your vehicle and the results of chemical test, and challenge opinions given during DRE and standard field sobriety tests as well as roadside ADSEs. If a DDS-1205 notice of license suspension was issued by Milton’s DUI officer, you have only thirty days to request an administrative hearing with Department of Driver Services to preserve your driving privileges.
