Interviewer: Are the People being arrested for DUI close to the .08 legal limit? Are they literally “drunk drivers”?
Brian Frees: I represent people who do fall very close to that line. They weren’t pulled over for a driving pattern, or that they were obviously under the influence, but they were pulled over, because they might have committed some other minor traffic violation, or had a head light out, or, some other, issue that umm, brought the law enforcement into their attention.
The Typical Reasons for Police to Pull Someone Over in the State of Utah
Interviewer: When police pull people over, what do they say that the reason they pull people over, or you say they just ask for the license and registration. Like, how does a traffic stop evolve into a DUI investigation than an arrest? What do you see?
Brian Frees: Typically people get pulled over and the police ask for license and registration and, some of my clients ask officers for clarification of why they were pulled over. Sometimes the officers are, just non-responsive to that question, sometimes they say, you were speeding, or you’re in traffic or there’s a light out on your vehicle. The conversation then progresses from there to where they will ask them a question of, “Have you been drinking tonight, or how much have you been drinking tonight, or , maybe they will say, I smell alcohol, have you been drinking tonight?
The Typical Backstory Associated With a DUI Stop in the State of Utah
Interviewer: Do clients have a common backstory to the DUI stop?
Brian Frees: There are a few big classifications that people have in common. One is, they call me and they say, I know I screwed up, I was drinking too much, and I am trying to mitigate the consequences of it. Then the other side, they are calling me, saying, I have no idea that I would had blown over, I had only consumed 2 glasses of wine with dinner, or I had taken my normal medication, and I was, pulled over by law enforcement for driving under the influence. Some people are really surprised that this is happening to them, and the other group of the population are there that understand they have made a mistake, and they are umm trying to make sure they get a fair deal of redemption.
People May Try their Hand at Self-Representation For a First DUI
Interviewer: Do you get more first time offenders, or do you get a lot of repeat offenders.
Brian Frees: In my practice over the past 4 years, I have not had anybody that I represented on a first DUI, who then got a second DUI. I’ve represented quite a few people that had maybe done it themselves on the first DUI, and now it is decided that they may need an attorney for their second, or some people that choose to get an attorney on their first DUI. I’d say the majority of them are first time offenders.
The Majority of People Perceive DUI as a Serious Set of Charges in Utah
Interviewer: Do people feel that DUI is a serious set of charges or are they relaxed?
Brian Frees: The majority of people think it is a very serious charge, you just got a mandatory driver’s license suspension for 120 days, just based on the arrest, and you only have 10 days to motion, for your hearing. People try to prevent the ramifications of losing driving privileges for that long.
