The drunk driving stop is the way many people become introduced to the criminal justice system. Most people stopped for OUI or DWI have never been in trouble in their lives. All of a sudden they are the focus of a police investigation, often forced to perform balancing exercises at roadside, handcuffed, taken to jail, interrogated, and held until someone bails them out. It can be a terrifying experience.<\/p>\n
The penalties for OUI and DWI can also be very harsh. On a first offense in Maine you can lose your license for one hundred and fifty days. You can be fined between Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) and Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00). You can even be jailed.<\/p>\n
In New Hampshire your license can be suspended from ninety days to two years, and you can be fined from Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) to One Thousand Two Hundred Dollars ($1,200.00).<\/p>\n
If your test is above .15 in Maine, or .16 in New Hampshire, jail is mandatory. If you refuse a chemical test in Maine, jail is also mandatory. On a second or subsequent offense the penalties become dramatically more severe.<\/p>\n
The defense of OUI\/DWI cases demands a lawyer who is both an experienced criminal trial attorney and who understands the law and science specifically related to OUI and DWI. I have been defending people accused of OUI for over thirty years. I have attended numerous national seminars on DWI defense and have even taught at local seminars on OUI defense in Maine.<\/p>\n
The OUI\/DWI is not a hopeless case and should not be approached as a hopeless case to which you will necessarily have to plead guilty. A skilled and knowledgeable attorney can save you from needless punishment and expense and ensure you are treated fairly throughout the process.<\/p>\n
My office is in Springvale, in York County, Maine, but I also work in Cumberland and Oxford Counties in Maine, as well as Stratham, Carroll and Rockingham Counties in New Hampshire. The consultation is always free in OUI\/DWI cases. If you have a legal problem, call the office and schedule a time for us to talk. You\u2019ll be happy you did.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The drunk driving stop is the way many people become introduced to the criminal justice system. Most people stopped for OUI or DWI have never been in trouble in their lives. All of a sudden they are the focus of a police investigation, often forced to perform balancing exercises at roadside, handcuffed, taken to jail, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":5,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"page.php","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":115,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9\/revisions\/115"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vanhoutenlaw.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}