[fabsroman]

M.T..

By the time my clients call me on issues like that, they have usually decided to blow or not blow, give blood or not give blood. However, I did get a phone call once from a client before he gave the breath/blood sample. This was before refusing to do so could be used against you and the administrative penalty for not blowing was a lot less (i.e., 90 days for the first one and 120 days for the second versus 120 days for the first one and 180 days for the second one now). I advised him of the administrative consequences of blowing and not blowing, the fact that the evidence could be used against him at trial, and that if he refused to blow it could not be used against him. I advised him not to blow if he thought he was going to fail the test. He refused to blow, lost his license for 3 months, and was found "Not Guilty" at trial because he was well in his 50's and the officer gave him balancing tests that he should not have. So, the officer did not have any credible evidence at trial.

Usually, people in Maryland do not get locked up for driving under the influence and there is rarely a bail amount. However, if a bail hearing is set, I appear before the commissioner or Judge and explain why the bail should not be set too high. I have only had to do this twice. Once for a second degree assualt charge and another time when I went to Court with my client, got him off the charges, but he got picked up for a violation of probation.

I don't do a lot of criminal stuff. Most of my work is in the small business area, and my rule regarding criminal stuff is that if the criminal case is not for a current client of mine, I don't take it. If it is a felony, I don't take it either.

Everybody is entitled to representation, it doesn't mean they are going to get off just because they have an attorney. It is my job to put up a defense for the client, if the client has one, and it is the assistant state's attorney's job to put my client in jail. At the end of the day, we are both supposed to strive toward finding out the truth, and allowing the Judge to determine the sentence.

If this guy was my client, he got arrested for driving under the influence, and he told me he was on some sleeping medication, I would advise him to let them draw blood to determine what he was on. That evidence would leave no question as to why he was driving under the influence, and if the drug could disorient him enough that he didn't know he was on it, I guess that could be a mitigating circumstance.