This particular client came to us on a referral from a friend of his that we had previously helped on a case.  The client was on a motorcycle and officers witnessed him being attacked as he stood next to his motorcycle. What started off as our client being a victim of a crime, the situation quickly turned into him being arrested for a felony level OWI.

This case never made it past preliminary hearing.  The prosecutor called the arresting officer to testify and the officer talked about the physical signs of impairment he witnessed with the client and how he had done a terrible job in performing the field sobriety tests. 

Then it was our turn.  The one fact that the officer could establish was when the client was operating the motorcycle.  He testified the client told him he drove it, just not when.  The officer acknowledged that the driving was unknown and because of that he did not know whether at the time the client drove he was under the influence of an intoxicant.

The burden of proof at a preliminary hearing is probable cause, a very easy standard for the government to meet, except for that day.  The Court found that there was no link between the impairment observed and the driving.  The Court dismissed the entire case.

The client was thrilled, once he came out of shock.  He couldn’t believe in about 5 questions we were able to convince the Court there was no probable cause.  His business will continue to thrive and he will be able to go on with his life. We were very happy to have obtained such a great result in his case.