Tag Archives: dui laws

DUI Advice, DUI News, DUI Risk, DUI Tips

Local cop gets arrested for DUI with BAC less than legal limit

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In case you had any questions about whether there is such a thing as a “legal limit” anymore on DUI cases in Washington State. This should answer that question. A local law enforcement officer was recently arrested for a DUI in Snohomish County, WA. Now this is nothing new, we have seen several police officers get DUI’s in King County here in the past year or so. However the difference between those DUI cases and with this one was this particular officer had a blood alcohol level of 0.05. Yes you read that correctly. 0.05 well below the legal limit of 0.08.

Now I have been saying this for the past year. Because of the high profile vehicular homicide cases that occurred in Seattle last Spring. The drastic change in negotiating policies with DUI cases by the King County Prosecutors Office. The recent proposed legislation to toughen existing DUI laws made by certain states legislators and the Governor. All those things have slowly contributed to this zero tolerance “unwritten rule” that is now happening before our eyes.

The fact that a police officer was arrested for a DUI in Mountlake Terrance with a blood alcohol level significantly less than the legal limit just corroborates what I’m saying. Think about it. If a police officer can get a DUI when they are clearly being responsible and doing what the legislator intended when it created a legal limit and made it lawful to consume alcohol and drive then it can happen to anyone.

I have said it here before and I will say it again. Unfortunately in this day and age you cannot have a drop of alcohol and drive a vehicle. If you get stopped for any reason and the Officer smells an odor of alcohol and you admit to drinking you will get arrested for a DUI. I guarantee that. No matter what anyone else says, I guarantee you will at least get arrested for a DUI. You may not get charged with one if the Prosecutor is doing their job correctly and finds there is not enough evidence to file a charge. But more often than not I have been seeing cases just like that Mountlake Terrance police officer get filed every day.

So please be careful out there and keep what I’m saying in mind. It has become far too common for drivers to get arrested for DUI below the legal limit in King County.

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About the author: Matthew Leyba is a DUI lawyer in Seattle, WA. He is rated a perfect 10/10 by Avvo.com when it comes to Seattle DUI lawyers. He also has been repeatedly recognized as a Rising Star by the Seattle Met Magazine in the area of DUI Defense, an honor only 2.5% of all Lawyers in WA state receive within their respective field of law.

DUI Advice, DUI Risk, DUI Tips

Bill to change DUI law dies in Washington State Senate

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If you follow this blog then you know Im a DUI lawyer in Seattle. One of the things that I do for my practice is try and stay up to date on any potential changes of existing DUI laws. Not only is this important to keep my practice current, but it also forces me to read the news.

If you recall last year during the 2013 legislative session there were a bunch of changes to DUI laws that were proposed. They were all set to make the existing DUI laws harsher and increase the penalties one would face if charged with a DUI. Most of these proposed laws did not pass due to the budget constraints. But the Washington State Legislature is at it again for the 2014 legislative session.

However last month one bill to change Washington’s DUI laws died in the state House of Representatives, when it wasn’t approved. The proposal House Bill 2506 would have raised a felony DUI conviction from a Class C felony to Class B, but the measure failed to move out of a House committee after a public hearing earlier this week. The bill would have increased maximum sentences for felony DUI convictions from five to 10 years, and increased fines from $10,000 to $20,000.

Now even though that bill died another bill has been proposed in the Senate and it is gaining ground quickly. Senate Bill 6090, sponsored by Rep. Mike Padden from Spokane, would cut that number of DUI convictions from four to three for a felony DUI. Currently a DUI becomes a felony if a person has four or more convictions in 10 years.

If I was a betting man I think this law will eventually pass. It may not be this legislative session. Quite frankly there are still budget concerns and monies are needed for another areas. But eventually the proponents of making Washington State have the Toughest DUI laws in the Nation will prevail.

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About the author: Matthew Leyba is a DUI lawyer in Seattle. His practice focuses on representing those charged with DUI and DUI related arrests. He has rated as a 10/10 by Avvo.com when it comes to Seattle DUI Lawyers, and he was named a Rising Star in that area of law by the Seattle Met Magazine.

DUI Advice, DUI Risk, DUI Tips

Another below legal limit DUI convicted in Redmond

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Last summer I wrote about a DUI case (not mine) in Redmond King County District Court where the defendant was convicted of a DUI with a 0.04 alcohol level. The legal limit in Washington State is 0.08. Well another defendant was convicted of having a below legal limit DUI in Redmond. This time it was a 2 nanogram THC level. The legal limit in Washington State now that marijuana is legalized is 5 nanograms.

If you’re not familiar with the DUI laws here in Washington State you may wonder how is this even possible. How can someone who is significantly below the legal limit first of all be charged with a DUI and secondly be convicted of it. Well welcome to the post-2012 world we live in when it comes to DUI cases in King County. In my opinion as a DUI lawyer practicing in Seattle, WA there were three things that changed in 2012-2013 that answers my questions above.

First a major shift occurred in King County when it came to negotiating DUI cases. If you practice DUI defense at all in King County then you know what Im talking about. Long story short if you get charged with a DUI in King County the chances of getting the charge reduced is significantly more difficult than pre-2012.

Secondly in early 2013 there were several high provide vehicular homicide cases where the defendants were repeat DUI offenders in Seattle. The caused a major uproar in our State Government. Both the Governor and the State Legislature used these horrific tragedies as a spring board to drastically change and toughen our DUI laws in Washington.

Lastly because of the negative media those vehicular homicide cases caused, several State legislators used that as a rallying cry against all DUI cases. Regardless if it was a first offense below the legal limit DUI or a repeat offender who caused an accident they were all the same. And many people in the general public have started to become swayed by this uproar and guess what those are the people who fill the jury pools deciding DUI cases.

So when you take all that into consideration. The change in negotiating policy, the negative backlash that all DUIs have been getting, and the brain washed general public who think any DUI is illegal even one that is significantly less than the legal limit. It is a recipe for disaster and that is in my opinion as a DUI lawyer how someone can get convicted of DUI with a blood alcohol level or marijuana level below the legal limit.

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About the author: Matthew Leyba is a DUI lawyer in Seattle, WA. He has repeatedly been named a Rising Star in the area of DUI Defense by both his peers and the Seattle Met Magazine, an honor less than 2.5% of all Lawyers receive. Additionally he is rated a 10/10 and listed as a Superb Seattle DUI lawyer by Avvo.com

Bellevue DUI Laws, DUI Tips, Seattle DUI Laws

Washington State DUI arrests decrease after liquor sales privatized

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I recently was checking out news articles trying to think of a new topic for my DUI blog.  And I came across this gem.  It’s from mynorthwest.com and discusses how since Washington State has gotten out of the liquor store business and liquor sales have become privatized (meaning if you want a bottle of scotch all you have to do is go down to your local QFC), DUI arrests have actually decreased surprisingly.

I remember when this initiative was on the ballot.  All you would hear from opponents of this measure was how alcohol killed more children than any other drug, and then you would hear from some parent who lost a child to a drunk driver.  A pretty powerful message if you ask me.

Well according to this article.  Between June 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012 there were 21,577 DUI arrests and 2,575 collisions related to alcohol, according to data from the Washington State Patrol. There were 19,703 DUI arrests the following year – June of 2012 through June of 2013 – with liquor sales in grocery stores and other retail businesses. The state patrol reported 2,347 collisions in that time frame.

So by those calculations.  The amount of DUI arrests and collisions on Washington State actually decreased.  Which brings me to my next point.  Lately here in Washington State and specifically King County there has been a lot of negative media towards the existing DUI laws.  People want the laws changed, they want increased penalties, they want DUI offenders put in jail, etc.

Despite being a DUI lawyer in Seattle, I’m not in favor of drunk driving.  In fact my wife and I have a strict zero limit if we are going to consume alcohol.  This has more to do with the fact you can get arrested for a DUI in King County if you’re below the legal limit more so than our personal views.  But in my opinion changing the laws is not going to deter people from drinking and driving.  Unfortunately I have no idea what will, but standing on a podium screaming at the top of your lungs about how evil it is to drink and drive and demanding change is not going to work.

Short of requiring ignition interlock devices in every vehicle manufactured or prohibition I have no clue what is the right course of action.  But I do know that all the statistics that are being cited, all the hysteria over changing the DUI laws is not going to work.  Heck you would have thought that DUI arrests would have increased following the privatizing of liquor sales in Washington State, yet they didn’t.  It just goes to show you that sometimes the group think is not always right.

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About the author:  Matthew Leyba is a DUI lawyer in the Seattle Bellevue area of Western WA.  He has been voted as a Rising Star in the area of DUI Defense by the Seattle Met Magazine, an honor less than 2.5% of all Attorneys receive.  Additionally he is also rated as a 10/10 Suburb DUI lawyer by Avvo.com