Law Office of James D. Owen, LLC

A DUI (driving under the influence) is a criminal offense for driving a motor vehicle under the influence while impaired by alcohol or other drugs. At least one in three people will be involved in a DUI related crash at some point in their lives. Unfortunately, it is an offense that carries a high fatality rate. It is estimated that 28 people die every day as a result of either driving under the influence or being a victim in a crash involving an intoxicated driver.   State governments try to mitigate these statistics by offering classes to at-risk youth, youth who have been charged with substance abuse crimes, and adults who…

An Ohio Supreme Court decision now makes it much easier to defend against drunk driving (DUI and OVI) cases in Columbus, Ohio. In Cincinnati v. Ilg, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that every person accused of a drunk driving offense involving a breath-analyzer machine may obtain all computerized breath test data from prior results generated by the alcohol tester into which they blew.  The accused may do this in order to obtain data that the Court deemed necessary to: (1) “challenge the accuracy and credibility of a breath test by showing that the breath-analyzer failed to operate properly at the time of testing”; and (2) challenge whether the machine’s “breath…

Columbus drivers can learn from Kerry Kennedy’s recent DUI case (where she claimed to be “accidentally” under the influence of prescription drugs), including her arrest, defense, jury trial, and ultimate acquittal. Prescription Drug OVI Lawyer I’ve previously written for Columbus drivers about the difference in Ohio DUI or OVI law between “drugged driving,” meaning having a prohibited concentration of a controlled substance in your blood or urine; and driving under the influence of a drug of abuse, meaning that your ability to operate a vehicle is impaired due to drugs.  If you had a valid prescription for the controlled substance found in your blood or urine and you took the…

Arrested With A Prior Record? Our approach to defending Columbus drunk driving (DUI or OVI) cases, particularly where our client has one or more prior record drunk driving convictions, is often two-fold:  (1) aggressive litigation, and (2) meaningful mitigation.  This blog post deals with the latter, mitigation.  And when we discuss mitigation, we mean a strategy that focuses on “damage control” as well as aggressive litigation. Our experience in Columbus and central Ohio has shown that developing meaningful mitigation evidence can help sway prosecutors into agreeing to more favorable plea bargains involving reduced charges, and also to convince judges to impose more lenient sentences.  Mitigation can therefore be an important…

Recent DUI Arrest On Monday, former “Saturday Night Live” star Chris Kattan was arrested in Southern California for suspicion of DUI after he crashed his Mercedes Benz across a barrier of orange cones and flashing signs into the rear of a maintenance truck. After being approached by police, SNL Kattan agreed to take Standard Field Sobriety Tests, a Breath Test, and a drug test.  A video of his field sobriety tests shows he failed miserably.  SNL Kattan reportedly admitted to investigating officers that he’d been taking prescription pills earlier that night. What can Columbus viewers learn from SNL Kattan’s unfortunate incident?  Obviously, driving while under the influence of pills is…

Recently, the famous, and now potentially notorious, pop star Justin Bieber was arrested in Miami and charged with DUI, resisting arresting, and driving with an expired license. Officers reported that they initially stopped Bieber for drag racing a rented Lamborghini against another supercar in a residential area. Bieber was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, due to the usual police litany of having an odor of alcohol on or about his person, bloodshot eyes, and slow movements. The interaction with police was, reportedly, less than cordial with Bieber repeated using profanity, failing to obey orders, and ultimately resisting arrest. Following his arrest, Bieber submitted to the…

Super Bowl Public Service Ad Using his DUI arrests and conviction to help others, Bruce Smith, a former Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins legend and NFL Hall of Fame defensive end, is appearing in a Super Bowl public service ad this Sunday to speak about his 2010 conviction for drunk driving and his previous DUI arrests. Smith was busted for DUI three times in his NFL career, an all-time record for a Redskins defensive end. In the ad, Smith urges viewers to: “Please, learn from my story and make sure a safe ride home is also part of your game plan.” What can Columbus viewers learn from Bruce Smith’s DUI…

Most people have heard of Miranda rights. Miranda applies to a person in police custody and being questioned. Prior to any interrogation (not including routine questions such as name, date of birth, Social Security Number), the person must be advised that: they have the right to remain silent; anything they say can be used against them; they have the right to speak with an attorney prior to any questioning; they have the right to have an attorney present during any questioning; and, if they cannot afford to hire an attorney the right to have one appointed. If you are arrested for DUI or OVI in Columbus and request an attorney,…

The short answer is that after the arrest, you have a right to a lawyer, but before the arrest you do not. So, if a Columbus police officer stops you to investigate whether you are driving drunk (DUI or OVI), you do not have a right to counsel. Your right to counsel only attaches after the police arrest you, and even then, only for critical stages of the prosecution. Despite this, if you’re pulled over in Columbus for drunk driving (DUI or OVI) or for any other charge, you should always ask to speak with a lawyer and refuse to make any statements or consent to any tests, including field…

Do You Have To Take A Field Sobriety Test? No. The police will never tell you this, but you are not required to take any of the SFSTs.  The simple truth is this: the SFSTs are only used to make the police case against you stronger. The tests are extremely hard to perform. In some cases a ballerina would have difficulty passing them. You may think you are doing well but when you finally see the police report you will normally find the police failed you on each test, and often for extremely technical reasons that have nothing to do with whether you were intoxicated. The best course of action…