Arrested for DUI in Las Vegas. What police don’t want you to know.

There is a sad irony, you may lose your independence on Independence Day.  That’s right, you may be arrested while you are celebrating the birth of a nation founded on the concepts of freedom.  If this happens, you will want to become free as quickly as you can—free from jail, free from the charges, and free to go back to your life.

Drinking and driving is illegal in Las Vegas and metro police are looking out to catch tourists and locals driving after parties on Independence Day.  Alcohol is a great way to unwind and to enjoy yourself in a social setting, such as during a 4th of July celebration. However, you may not even think you are drunk when you get into your car.  You do not even have to start your vehicle to be approached by a police officer and charged or arrested for DUI.  The reason, it is legal to arrest you simply for sitting in your car with the car engaged for the purpose of running the air conditioner.   Maybe you want to rest in the cool and maybe you are even waiting to sober up before you start driving.

Technically, you are operating your vehicle while under the influence even though you are not driving your car.  It should be called OUI, not DUI.  The Nevada Supreme Court looks at "physical control" of the car as the determining factor of whether the DUI should stick.  A defense attorney is definitely necessary to unwind the facts and the law that the Nevada Supreme Court has defined:

"After consideration of the many cases discussing the concept of actual physical control, the parties' briefs, and oral argument, we conclude that a person is in actual physical control when the person has existing or present bodily restraint, directing influence, domination, or regulation of the vehicle.  In deciding whether someone has existing or present bodily restraint, directing influence, domination, or regulation of a vehicle, the trier of fact must weigh a number of considerations, including where, and in what position, the person is found in the vehicle; whether the vehicle's engine is running or not; whether the occupant is awake or asleep; 4 whether, if the person is apprehended at night, the vehicle's lights are on; the location of the vehicle's keys; whether the person was trying to move the vehicle or moved the vehicle; whether the property on which the vehicle is located is public or private; and whether the person must, of necessity, have driven to the location where apprehended." Rogers v. State, 773 P.2d 1226, 105 Nev. 230 (Nev., 1989).

An arrest for DUI on the 4th of July can be very humiliating and your Las Vegas DUI lawyer understands the sensitivity and privacy with which a matter such as this should be dealt.  Perhaps there are family members that you really do not want to have learn of the incident, for instance because you are also going through, or about to go through, a family law child custody battle.  This is why you call a lawyer who is bound by confidentiality, not a friend or family member—who is not.

Charged or arrested for DUI in Las Vegas?  Call a Las Vegas Criminal Defense law firm at  (702) 435-2121.

Your experienced criminal defense law firm in Las Vegas will fight to secure your release and look for any problems with the government’s legal arguments and procedure.

You need a Las Vegas DUI defense attorney who is experienced with charges stemming from driving while under the influence.  Las Vegas criminal defense attorney Louis C. Schneider is a former Clark County District Attorney who prosecuted cases in Las Vegas until he opened his own private practice and started working to defense the accused.  Mr. Schneider also represents individuals in family law cases involving child custody and divorce.

Your criminal defense law firm in Las Vegas should be the Law Offices of Louis C. Schneider and Associates, which is located conveniently near the courthouse and the Clark County Detention Center in Downtown Las Vegas.  Call a Las Vegas Criminal Defense law firm at  (702) 435-2121.

REQUIRED DISCLAIMER

The information about Las Vegas DUI criminal charges contained on this page is not intended to be legal advice about criminal law.  Your criminal law matter should always be evaluated by a Las Vegas DUI lawyer as soon as possible.  You should treat your DUI with the seriousness it requires and hire an experienced professional criminal defense law firm located in Las Vegas.