A case handled by YUSU Lawfirm. Identifying details have been anonymized.
Case at a Glance
- Matter: Refusal of a breath alcohol test, second offense
- Client: Defendant
- Stage: Retained at trial; appeals by both sides
- Result: First instance: suspended sentence. Appeal: fine
The Client's Situation
The client had a prior conviction for injury caused by drunk driving followed by leaving the scene. This time the client refused a breath test and went home, and was tried for a second refusal. The prosecutor sought a prison sentence. A sentence of imprisonment without labor or heavier, once final, would have meant automatic dismissal from the client's job.
Key Legal Issue
The question was not guilt but whether factors existed to avoid prison and any sentence of imprisonment without labor or heavier, and how the court would view the circumstances of the refusal.
What YUSU Lawfirm Did
Attorney Soobin You wrote an opinion on how the refusal came about, secured petitions from the workplace and family, checked the employer's rules on the effect of a conviction, and submitted material on the family's livelihood. At first instance the court imposed a suspended sentence. Both the client and the prosecutor appealed, so a heavier sentence was possible. On appeal the defense filed an appeal brief and two further opinions focusing on the client's limited record, family responsibilities, remorse, automatic dismissal and the long gap since the earlier offense, along with efforts at alcohol treatment.
Result
The appeal court set aside the first judgment and imposed a fine. The judgment noted that automatic dismissal would be too harsh given the time between the offenses, and the client avoided that consequence.
What This Case Shows
In refusal cases the record shows the refusal but rarely why it happened, so the defense has to build that explanation. When the prosecutor also appeals, the sentence can go up, so the appeal needs new grounds for changing the type of sentence.
Related Legal Services
For how we handle this type of matter, see DUI Defense. More outcomes are collected in our Case Results.
Related cases and guides
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