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DUI

Drunk driving is a particularly high profile activity in Arizona and police can be very aggressive in the many in which they patrol, stop and investigate drivers. If you’ve even had a little to drink and are not legally impaired, odds are you may still be arrested and face DUI charges.

Implications of the Falsification of DUI Reports by Casa Grande Officer Bret Christofferson

Dec 1st, 2010
by Alex and Gaxiola.
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Richard Gaxiola, Arizona criminal defense lawyer, Speaks to the outrageous behavior of the Casa Grande officer in fabricating evidence in DUI cases.  The Casa Grande Police Officer,  Bret Christofferson, reportedly could not find a report so he reset the date on the breathalyzer [Intoxilyzer ] unit to recreate the missing report.  Unfortunately, that calls into credibility all his reports and any possible arrests or sentences related to this breathalyzer unit.  Law enforcement has an obligation and a responsibility to present evidence that is candid, that is accurate and that can be evaluated by a criminal defense attorney.  When such falsification of critical evidence occurs it wreaks havoc on the integrity of the criminal justice system.
If you or someone you know may be adversely affected by the falsified breathalyzer reports from a DUI offense issued in Casa Grande, please call our office for a free consultation today at 602-717-0631 or visit our website at www.criminallawaz.com. 

Think Twice before Having Another Glass of Wine with Dinner?

Sep 27th, 2010
by Alex and Gaxiola.
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Just in case you thought the Labor Day weekend was over and you were safe, you might want to think twice before taking that second glass of wine with dinner and then driving home in your car.Drink Wine and Get a DUI in Arizona

Did you know that DUI incidents in Scottsdale have increased? Although accidents related to DUIs are down in Scottsdale, incidents and arrests are up!

According to the Verde Independent, Cottonwood has received additional funding for the specific purpose of overtime pay for officers who focus on drunk and drugged driving. The Southwestern DUI Task force has been busy as well, issuing nearly 60 citations as part of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety.

Read the full article on what to do if you have been drinking and driving, and review the video. You might save yourself some $’s and heartache. If you are arrested for a DUI, please call our office for a free consultation. www.criminallawaz.com

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DUI NEWS ACROSS THE STATE
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DUI task force operation results in arrests of 10 people
Sierra Vista, THE HERALD
Wed, 09/22/2010 – 00:17
read the storyA total of 10 motorists were arrested during a recent deployment of the Southeastern Arizona DUI Task Force. The detail saw 19 officers from five agencies make nearly 100 traffic stops on Friday, which coincided with the bicentennial of the start of the Mexican War of Independence. Nearly 60 citations were issued by task force members, which are sponsored in part by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. 

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Scottsdale DUI-related accidents decrease
AZ Central.com/ The Arizona Republic
by Brennan Smith – Sept. 21, 2010 03:23 PM
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In 2009, there were 1,611 drivers involved with DUI incidents or arrests in Scottsdale through August. That compares with a slight increase to 1,687 through Aug. 31 of this year. Accidents involving DUIs, however, are down, with 178 from January through August 2009 compared with 158 in 2010 for the same period, police said.
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Impaired drivers, listen up
Verde Independent
9/18/2010 2:38:00 PM
read the story

The agency received a grant from the Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety to pay overtime hours for officers who focus specifically on drunk and drugged driving. The patrol is part of the Tri-City DUI Task Force.
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Bill’s Daily Roundup: Lots of Benefits This Weekend
Prescott News
By Bill Monroe, KQNA News, 1130 AM/ Friday, September 17, 2010 14:27
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This weekend, the Cottonwood Police Department will be continuing its DUI enforcement efforts through saturation patrols. Officials note the Department has received a grant-in-aid from the Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety last year. This funding pays for the overtime budget for officers, who direct their efforts at curtailing drunk and drugged driving along with education efforts. The planned efforts will be part of the Tri-City DUI Task Force.

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Huge Arizona DUI operation nets a few more arrests
AZ Central.com/ The Arizona Republic
by JJ Hensley – Sept. 8, 2010 12:00 AM
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An extra 5,000 officers took part in the state’s annual Labor Day push to target drunken drivers, but that extra manpower resulted in only a few hundred more DUI arrests…This year, nearly 6,400 officers took part in the statewide task force, compared with about 1,300 in 2009. Officers approached more than 36,000 drivers this year, up from 13,697 the year before. Law-enforcement officers across the state arrested 1,554 drivers for misdemeanor drunken driving in the 18-day campaign that began Aug. 20 and ran through Monday, compared with 1,154 drunken-driving arrests over the same period in 2009. The number of drivers suspected of “extreme” or aggravated DUI remained virtually the same.
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Reduced funding clouds task force’s future
Sierra Vista, THE HERALD
By Derek Jordan, Wed, 09/08/2010 – 00:01
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A countywide task force devoted to curbing impaired driving made more than 100 traffic stops and issued more than 50 tickets during the long holiday weekend, but looming funding reductions may impede future efforts. The Southeastern Arizona DUI Task Force focused on the Douglas, Willcox and Sierra Vista areas during the Labor Day weekend with increased patrols by 14 participating officers from four agencies. Beginning Friday and continuing through Monday, 110 vehicles were stopped, 51 citations were issued and nine DUI arrests were made, according to results from the Sierra Vista Police Department.
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Mesa PD targets impaired drivers on Labor Day
ABC 15.com
Victoria Pelham,, 09/05/2010
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Anyone coming back from the Salt River Monday ran into a massive DUI checkpoint set up by the Mesa Police Department. Dozens of officers lined the roads to catch anyone who had been drinking at the river or was under the influence of other substances. It is comforting to know they are removing [drunk drivers] from our roadways, but in another way it’s frustrating, because it is a simple message: If you’re going to be drinking, don’t drive.
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Labor Day DUI Task Force nets 10 extreme DUI arrests
KGUN9.com
Sheryl Kornman, Sep 04, 2010 6:32 PM MST
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The Southern Arizona DUI Task Force made 10 extreme DUI arrests in the first night of its Labor Day 2010 DUI Task Force deployment. Those individuals had a blood alcohol content of 0.15 or above. Anyone with a BAC of 0.08 can be arrested on suspicion of DUI. The total number of arrests on DUI charges were 32, after 391 traffic stops to check for drivers who appeared impaired. Four individuals under 21 were arrested on a DUI charge and 16 individuals were arrested for underage drinking. You must be 21 to drink alcoholic beverages in Arizona.
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Pinal County authorities prepare for holiday weekend DUI patrols
AZ Central.com/ The Arizona Republic
by Lindsey Collom – Sept. 2, 2010 12:35 PM
read the story

The Pinal County Regional DUI Task Force will be on the streets and looking for impaired drivers this Labor Day weekend. Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said impaired or reckless driving endangers everyone on Pinal County roadways and will not be tolerated this weekend. “If you drive impaired or reckless, you will be arrested,” Babeu said. “No excuses, no exceptions.”

Labor Day Weekend DUI: The Do’s & Don’ts

Aug 25th, 2010
by BlogAdmin.
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Labor Day Weekend is nearly here and with it come the parades, festivals, picnics, barbeques, parties and the drinking! Everyone wants to have an enjoyable time with friends and families and forget about the work grind for a couple of days!DUI Tip Card from Alex & Gaxiola, Criminal Attorneys Phoenix, AZ

According to statistics collected by The Nielsen Company1 on the number of cases of beer purchased in 2009 during a two week period prior to a holiday July 4th leads all other holidays with 63.5 million cases of beer sold, followed by Memorial Day at #2 with 61 million cases, and then Labor Day with 60.2 million. That’s a lot of beer! And a lot of drinking!

Along with all that beer buzz, unfortunately, comes drinking and driving, DUI charges, arrests, and drinking fatalities! All U.S. states and territories have made it illegal to drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 grams per deciliter or higher. Despite these laws, nearly 12,000 people nationwide during 2008 were killed in crashes involving drivers or motorcycle riders with BACs of .08 or higher. That would be equal to about 30 jumbo jets crashing each year. 2

We can expect that Arizona’s DUI task forces will be just as revved up for Labor Day as they were for the Memorial Day weekend earlier this year. Memorial Day weekend DUI arrests increased in 2010 by 185. Arizona DUI task forces made 476 DUI arrests during Memorial Day 2010 weekend,with nearly a fourth cited for extreme DUI. Officials say there were 291 DUI arrests during the Memorial Day 2009 weekend with 77 for extreme DUI. 3
Memorial Day Weekend, DUI Arrests in Phoenix, AZLet’s face it! DUIs are serious. A DUI charges conviction could result in the loss of your driver’s license, thousands of dollars in fines, incarceration (you actually pay for your incarceration costs), interlocking devices, mandated alcohol counseling, and other unimaginable hardships. Given the serious punitive sanctions imposed, following these Do’s and Don’ts from Richard Gaxiola, Arizona DUI defense attorney, will help to protect your rights, your family, your property and yourself if you are pulled over by a police officer.

What to do if stopped for a DUI: The Do’s & Don’ts

  1. Prepare yourself. Roll down all your windows to air out the car, turn on your interior lights and put your hands high in plain site on the steering wheel. Do not get out of the car. Don’t panic, freak out, or start reaching around your car for breath mints or mouth wash. Reaching frantically around for anything as the law enforcement officer approaches your vehicle increases their suspicion. Stay calm.

    The Do's and Don'ts of Drinking and Driving

    Watch this informative Video

  2. Be polite and cooperative. Conduct yourself in a polite, courteous and cooperative manner.
  3. Provide requested information quickly. Provide license, registration and proof of insurance when requested. (Every vehicle should have their registration and auto insurance together in a location that can be accessed quickly.)
  4. Invoke your right to remain silent. Politely refuse to answer any questions and don’t admit to anything. Do not admit to any consumption of alcohol or drugs to the police officer on the roadside, or to any other individual at the police station. Politely tell the officer that a lawyer told you not to answer any questions. Remember, if say nothing, there is no way the officer can testify that you were slurring when he pulled you over and questioned you. Do not answer any of the questions from the Interviewer at the police station either! (when you last ate, how many drinks you had, etc.)
  5. Don’t do the Field Sobriety Tests (FSTs) on the roadside. Field sobriety tests are not required under Arizona Law. Field Sobriety Tests include the walk and turn test, the horizontal gaze nystagmus (follow a pen, flashlight and finger with your eyes), the one leg stand, finger to nose, and other coordination balancing tests.
  6. Don’t submit to a Portable Breath Test on the roadside. This is a hand held device for breath testing used by police officers at the scene of the stop. This is later used by police officers to establish probable cause to arrest you for a DUI.
  7. Don’t consent to a search of your person or your car. Never do this!
  8. If you are arrested, you must consent to either a breath and/or blood test (at the discretion of the law enforcement officer) or your driver’s license will be suspended for one year.
  9. Get a sample. After consulting with your attorney, politely request a sample of your blood, breath or urine to be preserved for an independent analysis.
  10. Get a separate chemical test. Invoke your right to obtain an independent chemical test of your blood or urine.

Additional DUI Tips

  1. Call your attorney. Demand an immediate, private and free call to your attorney: Richard Gaxiola, DUI Defense Attorney. Richard is available 24 hours a day at 602-717-0631.
  2. Don’t assume you must plead guilty. There are many defenses to DUI cases, including defenses specific to breath testing or blood testing. Additionally, challenges to the reasonableness of police stopping your vehicle should also be investigated.
  3. Don’t Defend Yourself in court. DUI defense can be very complex. You will need an aggressive, experienced DUI defense attorney who is familiar with the law, the legal issues to challenge and the courts where your DUI case will be heard.
  4. Do not ever miss your court date. Before you’re released by the police, you will be given a court date. Missing your court date could result in a bench warrant for your arrest.
  5. Get a free consultation with an experienced DUI defense attorney and discuss how your DUI charges can be dismissed, or reduced to a different charge. A reduction to another charge can end up saving thousands of dollars in court fines and fees, driver’s license points and save you from having a criminal record. Keep in mind, however, after you plead guilty to DUI charges, it’s too late!

Contact Richard of Alex and Gaxiola, P.C. for a free case evaluation of your case at 602-717-0631, or visit www.criminallawaz.com.

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Sources:

1. The Bachelor Guy, http://www.thebachelorguy.com/think-st-paddys-day-is-the-biggest-beer-drinking-day-guess-again.html
2. GHSA, http://www.ghsa.org/html/projects/dd/otlua/laborday10.html
3. The Associated Press, http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/06/01/20100601arizona-dui-arrests-memorial-day-weekend.html