Just because I'm on vacation doesn't mean that I can't also blog! This shot is taken from the Tambu Lounge at Disney's Polynesian Resort, and the drinks pictured are delicious. As I sip my Zombie and enjoy the slack guitar playing from the bar, I thought I would write a little about how a DUI can affect someone under the age of 21. Maybe it's all the kids running around me, but for whatever reason, I feel compelled to say something.
Typically in Georgia, if you refuse to take the "State Administered Test" of your blood, breath, or urine, you will automatically get a twelve month license suspension through the Department of Driver Services. Whether or not that happens to you depends on the arresting officer, of course, but he or she has the power to initiate a proceeding that will suspend your license regardless of your guilt.
What many don't know, however, is that this same process can be initiated by the arresting officer of an individual under the age of 21 that takes the test and blows .02 or better. It doesn't matter how courteous you are; the officer has the power to take away your license for a year.
The only way to combat this is by requesting a hearing in front of an Administrative Judge, who will determine whether or not probable cause existed to ask you to take the test in the first place. An experienced DUI attorney can help you request such a hearing as well as ensure that you provide DDS all that they need to schedule the trial. There is a time limit on such a request, too. You must ask for a hearing within ten days of your arrest or your license gets suspended automatically.
I could go into how DUIs affect you in other ways, but I am afraid the Zombies might get the better of me. Look for future posts on how to select the best DUI attorney for you.
Aloha!
JD
John D. Duncan is president of J.D. Duncan, PC, founding partner of Prater, Duncan & Craig, LLC in Newnan, Georgia, and is Esquire by Day. You can find him at www.jdduncanlaw.com, or follow him on twitter and Facebook.
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