Attorney: Patrick Apple
Type of Case: DWI charge
Case Result: Dismissed
County: Guilford County
Criminal defense attorney, Patrick Apple, helped a client fight a DWI charge in Greensboro, NC. Our client was charged with a DWI while parked in a driveway.
If convicted, our client was facing a minimum sentence of 24 hours in jail, loss of driving privileges, a substantial increase in insurance premiums over the next five years, supervised probation, and significant costs and penalties among other things.
Getting Charged with DWI While Parked
Around midnight, police responded to a call reporting suspicious people walking in the woods near a neighborhood in Greensboro, NC. The police were unable to corroborate the allegations of suspicious persons. But, immediately after responding to the call they spotted our client driving from one driveway to another. Our client parked and turned off his vehicle’s lights. The client traveled only a distance of 100 yards.
Greensboro law enforcement ran our client’s license plate and found that our client’s vehicle was not registered at the address where they had parked. Law enforcement then shined a spotlight on our client’s vehicle and pulled in to the driveway blocking them in. At this time, law enforcement approached our client and smelled alcohol.
So, they began an investigation for driving while impaired and started asking questions. A passenger in the vehicle blurted out that our client had “more than a few drinks” that evening. Then, the client was asked to do field sobriety testing and was ultimately charged with DWI.
Fighting the DWI Charge
Unfortunately, our client blew over the legal limit when he arrived at the station. Greensboro attorney Patrick Apple knew that he had to keep these breath results from coming into evidence so he filed a motion to suppress. This motion was based on law enforcement’s unconstitutional stop which was in violation of the U.S. and North Carolina constitutions.
Patrick Apple devised a defense strategy to show that the officer lacked the required reasonable suspicion standard when he conducted the stop on our client. He also had to show that a stop occurred because the officer never initiated his vehicle’s emergency lights.
Fortunately, at the time of the stop, the client submitted to the officer’s show of governmental authority. This allowed our team to argue that a stop in fact occurred and that the officer did not have reasonable suspicion to seize or stop the client.
Upon successful representation from DWI lawyer, Patrick Apple, our client’s case was dismissed.
The client was able to avoid active jail time, keep his license, protect his driving record, protect his criminal record from having a conviction, and not have to go through the lengthy, costly, and difficult process of having to get his license reinstated following a DWI conviction.
Contact a Greensboro DWI Lawyer Today
If you or a loved one is ever stopped for a DWI while parked, we advise you to remain silent but to follow the lawful commands of the law enforcement officer. Then, contact a DWI attorney in Greensboro as quickly as possible to investigate any potential issues regarding an unlawful stop.