DWI Chemical Tests

If you have been charged with a charge of Driving While Intoxicated, one of the most important pieces of evidence is the result of any chemical test obtain, whether it be via a breath test, or a blood test. You want to be absolutely sure before going to court that your attorney understands all the differing nuances of both breath and blood procedures beforehand, so they can ascertain whether the sample was properly collected, maintained, and stored to ensure the integrity of the sample drawn. 

If you have been pulled over by a law enforcement officer who suspects you have been Operating a Motore Vehicle While Intoxicated (DWI), they may require you to submit breath or blood test to determine your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level before they make a decision of what the charge will be for your offense. If, for example, your "BAC" was determined to be greater than a .15, even if it is a first-time DWI offense, the citizen accused will be charged with a Class A Misdemeanor charge in Texas (which has a higher punishment range overall).

If you are arrested and believe you may be under suspicion of Driving While Intoxicated in Texas, an aggressive, trained, and skilled a DWI Defense Attorney can help you understand your rights and what options are available. There are two different types of chemical tests that can be used in the State of Texas to help support a DWI charge against you to be used as evidence:

Breath Tests: The arresting officer will perform a breathalyzer test with a handheld device on the scene or may test you after you have been arrested (this is referred to as a "PBT" - and the results are not admissible in a court of law). By law, you can refuse this handheld breathalyzer test - it is merely a tool used by the investigating officer to aid in his decision to arrest; however, the arresting officer may not tell you about your rights prior to the test.  You will then be read, after being placed under arrest, what is called the "DIC-24 Statutory Warnings" - which will basically ask if you will consent, or refuse, to the taking of a chemical specimen - which is usually a breath specimen taken on the Intoxilyzer 5000. However, if you refuse to the taking of a chemical test after you have been arrested, it likely will result in losing your license for a certain length of time. If you do refuse to the taking of a chemical specimen, the investigating officer must obtain a blood search warrant before they can legally draw your blood. Often there is not a Judge available to get the search warrant signed, or they may not go through with this simply because the length of time the entire process takes. Either way, you should refuse to the taking of either test, because they are simply going to be utilized against you in a court of law. If the investigating officer does get a blood search warrant, we can attack it later in court.

Blood Tests: If done absolutely correctly, blood tests can more accurate than breath tests. However, there are a variety of steps, procedures, and protocols that must be strictly adhered to before the integrity of the sample is maintained. Moreover, if a blood search warrant is obtained, the longer it will take before the blood is drawn - and then there is a higher likelihood of your "BAC" level being lower than if you had consented when initially requested to give the sample. Only a qualified individual can draw the blood, then once the blood is drawn it must be sent to a lab for testing, and the proper amount of anti-coagulant, preservative, and blood draw techniques must be strictly followed - if they are not, the integrity of the sample likely could be compromised as a result.

If you have questions about any of the chemical test tests that can be obtained pursuant to a DWI investigation in Texas, either completed before or after your DWI arrest, please contact an experienced, trained, and skilled Texas DWI Defense Attorney to see what legally can be done to help you with your case to mount the best possible defense. At The Law Offices of Carl David Ceder, we are dedicated to our clients in providing the highest level of legal representation necessary to gain the best possible results, including with DWI cases that may also have breath or blood samples that were taken at the time of the arrest.

Texas DWI Defense Attorney

DWI arrests can be embarrassing, confusing, unpleasant, and an altogether confusing and terrifying experience for most to go through. Many of those who are arrested for a charge of Driving While Intoxicated have never had to traverse through the criminal justice system before - and the process can be quite daunting. Considering this, it is imperative that you utilize an aggressive, knowledgeable, and experience Texas DWI Defense Attorney that will dedicated to providing the best service possible to contest the charge against you. You deserve to have the best support, advice, counsel on your behalf in order to give yourself the best possible chance to achieve a positive result with your case.  

Contact Now

Carl and his team take great pride in their work, and hope you will consider making contact with our office should you decide you would like to inquire about anything further. You can e-mail Carl directly at Carl@CederLaw.com and/or at Info@DFWDefenders.com, and/or call the office 24 hours a day at 460.2000.DWI(394) and/or 214.702.CARL(2275). Thank you for your time, and please contact the office with any questions and/or concerns you may have going forward or about the overall process. Phones should be answered 24 hours a day/7 days a week for immediate and personal assistance. E-mail messages will be responded to with 24-48 hours, depending on whether Carl is in trial.