Whether you plead guilty or not guilty to your drink driving offence will depend on if there is a valid defence open to you. At LAC Lawyers we have the experience and knowledge to best inform you of all the defences available to you to successfully defend your charge.
Outlined below are the most common ways to successfully defend a drink driving charge.
CHALLENGING THE READING
When conducting a breath test police generally use what is termed “alcoholmeters”. Alcoholmeters measure the Prescribed Concentration of Alcohol (PCA) in your blood system. The police are vigilant in keeping these devices well calibrated so as to give an accurate reading, therefore challenging the accuracy of these devices is not an easy task. However, at LAC Lawyers we have had success in proving that the reading given by the device was not the same as the reading you had at the time of driving. When this is done correctly this is a defence that proves that the reading from the alcoholmeter was not representative of your blood alcohol level at the time you were driving.
To successfully challenge the reading of the device lawyers at LAC Lawyers will work in conjunction with various scientific specialists to prove this defence. Factors we will consider to get you a successful outcome will include:
- How much you drank;
- When you drank the alcohol;
- How much food you consumed during the day;
Speak to one of LAC Lawyers to see if this defence applies to you.
HONEST AND REASONABLE MISTAKE
Honest and reasonable mistake is a defence to a PCA charge. For this defence to be successful you must have honestly and reasonably thought that you were under the legal limit when you were driving.
At LAC Lawyers we have applied this defence successfully on many occasions. Speak to us to determine if this defence applies to you.
POLICE FAIL TO BREATHALYSE YOU WITHIN TWO HOURS
If two hours has passed since you last drove your car police cannot legally require you to undertake a breath test. If this situation has occurred then you may be able to successfully apply this defence to have this evidence of your intoxication excluded.
POLICE BREATH TEST YOU AT YOUR HOME
It is a little known fact that police cannot legally require you to submit a breath test at your home. LAC Lawyers experienced staff will ensure that any evidence that has been illegally obtained from you is excluded.