Legal Question in DUI Law in Colorado

Re: How much time do they have

At DMV, you win. In Court, you do not. But, the DA cannot file the DUI-Per Se charge (easiest for them to prove). The result is admissible and any problem goes to the weight of the evidence. The good news is that this opens up a defense of rising BAC. This defense is not available with the Per Se charge because the jury will just convict on it. But without the per se charge, we can argue that at the time of driving, you were not impaired or intoxicated, but that by the time they took blood, the alcohol had metabolized and you were intoxicated. It depends on the level, but this can be a good defense. It requires drinking alcohol just prior to getting in the car. There may be other defenses too.

If you want, contact me.

Re: How much time do they have

Unfortunately, no. You get it dismissed with DMV, but not with the courts. The court will say the delay goes to the weight of the evidence, but not to the admissibility. In other words, the test result comes in, and a jury just has to decide how much credibility to give it. The one good thing is that it means that the DA cannot prosecute you for the Per Se DUI charge, for which all they have to prove is that you drove and that you had a BAC over .08. So that is good, because the DUI charge itself is more difficult to prove. But as I said, unfortunately, the time limit does not get the case dismissed, but it does potentially help with your defense. Good luck, and if you need any help, just let me know.

Bill Griffin