Jacksonville ranks 4th in nation for DUI arrests

Of the nation’s 20 largest cities, a recent report showed Jacksonville has the fourth-highest percentage of people who’ve been arrested for driving under the influence (DUI). That’s certainly no shocker for our Jacksonville DUI Defense Law Firm. Our criminal defense law firm has represented hundreds of people accused of DUI in Jacksonville.

Last year in Duval County alone, there were 3,700 DUI arrests, according to a report by Action New Jacksonville. Yet not all of those arrests will result in convictions. The details of the traffic stop are key in a DUI arrest and, in some cases, the stop is thrown out by the judge and the charges are dropped entirely. The officer must have a reasonable suspicion that a driver is committing a crime or traffic infraction – speeding, driving recklessly or in an unsafe manner — before he or she even approaches a vehicle. After the officer makes contact with a DUI suspect, he or she must see or detect more suspicious activity before asking a person to perform field sobriety exercises. Common suspicious activity our Jacksonville DUI attorney sees in police reports are having watery eyes, emitting the odor of alcoholic beverages and slurring one’s speech.

If the officer has enough suspicion to move forward with the investigation, he or she will ask the person to do field sobriety exercises. These include walking in a straight line and turning around; standing on one leg; standing with their legs together to test balance; moving your arms to touch your finger to your nose and reciting the alphabet or a series of numbers in order (Rhomberg Alphabet). Police have a scoring system for those exercises, and if the suspect does not score well, downtown he or she goes to be booked into the jail and asked to submit a breath test. Our Jacksonville DUI defense firm knows all of the steps and procedures that police must follow in a DUI arrest.

There will undoubtedly be thousands more DUI arrests in the upcoming year. According to the television report, among resident of large metropolitan areas only people who live in Los Angeles, San Diego and Indianapolis have a better chance of getting a DUI than Jacksonville residents.

If you need a DUI attorney in Jacksonville, Clay County or Nassau County, call The Mussallem Law Firm, PA at (904) 365-5200 for a free consultation. Our Duval County Criminal Lawyer is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.