Why You Should Hire an Experienced Michigan OWI / DUI Defense Attorney Immediately After an Arrest

If you have been arrested for OWI, DUI, drunk driving, impaired driving, or operating under the influence in Michigan, what you do during the first days after your arrest can matter. An OWI case does not begin at your first court date. Important driver's license deadlines may already be running. Video and other evidence should be identified and preserved. Decisions may need to be made about alcohol testing, substance use evaluations, treatment, and preparation for arraignment. If charges have not yet been formally issued, an attorney can establish communication with law enforcement, the prosecutor, and the court so that, if a warrant is later issued or the case is formally filed, arrangements may be made for the client to voluntarily appear for arraignment rather than being unexpectedly arrested on the warrant.

At Bondy Law, PLLC, we routinely represent individuals facing Michigan drunk-driving investigations and charges, including OWI, OWVI, High BAC / Super Drunk, OWI Second Offense, felony OWI Third Offense, operating with drugs, and OWI accident cases. The sooner an experienced Michigan OWI defense attorney becomes involved, the sooner the defense of the case can begin.

Do You Need an OWI Defense Lawyer Immediately After Arrest?

There are several reasons not to simply wait for a court date or for the prosecutor to contact you. An experienced OWI defense attorney can immediately begin identifying deadlines, protecting evidence, preparing for arraignment and bond, investigating the circumstances surrounding the stop or accident, and helping the client avoid decisions that could make the case more difficult. Early representation is particularly important when there is an implied-consent refusal, blood draw, accident, injury, disputed driving, questionable traffic stop, or potential felony OWI charge.

Michigan Implied Consent Refusal: The 14-Day Deadline

One of the most important reasons to contact an OWI attorney immediately involves Michigan's Implied Consent Law.

If police claim that you refused a chemical test (blood, breath, or urine - typically a breath test at a police department) after an OWI arrest and issue an implied-consent refusal notice in the form of a DI-93 "Officer's Report of Refusal," you have 14 days from the date of the refusal to request a hearing with the Michigan Secretary of State. If a timely hearing is not requested, the Secretary of State will impose significant license sanctions. For a first refusal involving a noncommercial vehicle, that generally means 6 points will be added to your driving record in addition to a mandatory one-year driver's license suspension; a second or subsequent refusal within seven years generally results in a two-year suspension. These sanctions are imposed for an implied consent violation, regardless of how your pending OWI charge is resolved and even if the actual OWI charge is ultimately dismissed by a court at a later date. This driver's license proceeding is separate from the criminal OWI case.

Waiting for your arraignment before contacting an attorney can therefore be a serious mistake, the implied-consent deadline may expire before the criminal case meaningfully begins. An OWI attorney can review the paperwork immediately, determine whether an implied-consent hearing must be requested, and begin preparing to challenge the suspension. The attorney may also take steps towards preparing a circuit court petition for a hardship restricted driver's license if the implied consent violation appeal is denied.

Evidence Should be Preserved Before it Disappears

OWI cases frequently involve much more evidence than a police report. Depending upon the case, important evidence may include:

• Police body-camera and dash-camera recordings;

• 911 calls and dispatch recordings;

• Breath-testing records;

• Blood-draw and laboratory records;

• Photographs and surveillance video;

• Accident-scene evidence;

• Witness statements;

• Vehicle data; and

• Records concerning the officer's administration of field sobriety tests.

  
  

Some evidence can disappear or become more difficult to obtain with time. Witnesses' memories also fade. When an accident is involved, early investigation can be particularly important. Counsel may determine that an expert, such as an accident reconstructionist, is necessary and may also want to visit and photograph the location while road conditions, sight lines, construction, signage, lighting, and other relevant circumstances can still be accurately documented. An experienced drunk driving defense attorney should be investigating the government's evidence, not simply waiting for the first plea offer.

Early Treatment and Mitigation Can Matter

A strong OWI defense involves challenging the prosecution's evidence, but it can also involve preparing for every possible outcome, including immediately engaging in mitigation efforts. Depending upon the client's history and circumstances, an experienced OWI attorney may recommend an early substance use evaluation, alcohol education program, counseling, AA or another recovery program, or other rehabilitative services. Appropriate voluntary action can accomplish two things: address any genuine substance use concern immediately, before court intervention; and, create meaningful mitigation evidence if the case eventually reaches plea negotiations or sentencing. The appropriate approach varies significantly between a first-offense OWI client with no prior history and someone facing an OWI second or felony third-offense allegation. There is no single program that makes sense for every client.

Preparing for an OWI Arraignment Before You Ever Enter Court

Another significant advantage of hiring an attorney early is the ability to prepare for the OWI arraignment and bond hearing. Michigan courts determine bond and pretrial release conditions at the beginning of the case. Michigan law generally starts with personal recognizance or an unsecured appearance bond, while permitting additional conditions when necessary to address appearance and public-safety concerns. However, prior criminal history, failure to appear in court history, accidents, high BAC test results, and other factors often lead judges to require a financial bond, even in first offense OWI cases.

OWI cases frequently involve additional bond conditions such as:

• No consumption of alcohol;

• No use of illegal or non-prescribed controlled substances;

• Random breath or urine testing;

• Portable alcohol monitoring;

• Substance use evaluations and treatment;

• Pretrial supervision; or

• Other conditions based upon the particular allegations and the client's history.

  
  

Preparing for these issues before arraignment gives your attorney an opportunity to present the court with a plan rather than reacting to restrictive conditions after they have already been imposed. For example, depending on the client's circumstances, counsel may be able to propose a reliable portable breath-testing device instead of inconvenient random testing that interferes with employment. A client may also benefit from obtaining a professional substance use assessment before court or voluntarily beginning appropriate education or treatment. These decisions should be individualized to the specific client and case. The goal is not to manufacture mitigation. It is to address legitimate concerns early and demonstrate that the client is taking the case seriously, mitigating any public safety concerns of the judge at the time of the client's arraignment and as the case progresses through the pretrial stage.

Avoiding Arrest on an Arrest Warrant After the Charge is Authorized

In many Michigan OWI cases, particularly cases involving blood testing, the individual arrested may be released before formal charges are authorized. Weeks or even months may pass while the prosecutor waits for laboratory results and reviews the case. Hiring an attorney during this pre-charge OWI investigation can be valuable. Counsel can monitor the case and, when appropriate, communicate with the investigating officer, detective, prosecutor, and court. If charges and a warrant are eventually authorized, counsel may be able to arrange for a voluntary appearance or scheduled arraignment rather than allowing the client to unexpectedly discover the warrant during a traffic stop, at home, or at work. Michigan's court rules specifically provide a procedure for voluntary appearances on many outstanding warrants and create a presumption against flight risk in qualifying cases when a defendant voluntarily presents to the issuing court. Whether a voluntary appearance is available depends on the circumstances, but early representation gives an attorney an opportunity to address the issue proactively.

Specialized OWI Defense Training and Professional Organizations Matter - Know your Lawyer

OWI defense combines criminal law with issues involving toxicology, breath and blood testing, standardized field sobriety testing, constitutional search-and-seizure law, driver's license consequences, and scientific evidence. That is why you should always consider an attorney's specific training and experience defending drunk-driving cases.

For example, police officers frequently rely on Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFSTs) when deciding whether to arrest someone for drunk driving. The three standardized tests recognized in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) SFST curriculum are the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN), Walk-and-Turn, and One-Leg Stand tests. NHTSA's training materials emphasize standardized administration and evaluation of these tests. That is one reason there is value in hiring an OWI defense attorney who has completed training in the same NHTSA SFST methodology used to train law enforcement. An attorney familiar with the NHTSA curriculum can analyze the body-camera footage rather than simply accepting the officer's conclusion that someone "failed" field sobriety testing.

Spencer M. Bondy's OWI practice includes robust NHTSA SFST training and involvement with organizations focused on impaired-driving defense, including the Michigan Association of OWI Attorneys and the National College for DUI Defense (NCDD). These organizations provide excellent training and resources involving trial techniques, scientific testing, blood-alcohol testing devices, toxicology, pharmacology, field sobriety testing, accident reconstruction, and other subjects directly relevant to DUI defense. Membership alone does not determine whether an attorney is right for a particular case. But when choosing a Michigan OWI lawyer, clients should ask whether the attorney regularly handles OWI cases and understands the scientific evidence involved.

What Should You Do After an OWI Arrest in Michigan?

The period immediately following an OWI arrest should be used productively. Preserve every document police gave you. Do not discuss the facts of the case on social media. Remain abstinent from alcohol and illegal drugs. Do not wait for a judge to order abstinence before taking the case seriously. Do not miss any testing or reporting requirement already imposed. Most importantly, speak with an attorney who regularly handles Michigan OWI cases as soon as possible - there may be deadlines that cannot simply be fixed later.

Arrested for OWI, DUI, or Drunk Driving in Michigan? You Should Speak with an Experienced Michigan OWI Defense Attorney

An OWI defense should begin before the first court hearing, not after it. Early representation allows an attorney to protect driver's license rights, preserve evidence, investigate the arrest, evaluate field sobriety and chemical testing, prepare the client for arraignment, address bond conditions, arrange an orderly court appearance when possible, and begin developing both the defense and mitigation strategy.

Spencer M. Bondy and Bondy Law, PLLC represent clients facing OWI, DUI, drunk driving, and impaired-driving charges throughout Michigan, including cases in Oakland County, Livingston County, Washtenaw County, and surrounding courts. If you have been arrested for OWI, are under investigation for drunk driving, refused a chemical test, or are waiting for blood-test results, contact Bondy Law, PLLC as soon as possible to discuss the next steps in your case.

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