In the past weeks it has come to my attention that DUI officers, especially in Phoenix and Scottsdale, may be charging extreme DUI in citations without evidence to back it up. Typically, a preliminary breath test result of .150 or greater is sufficient to allege extreme DUI. If the blood test result came back under .150, then the prosecutor's office would simply dismiss the charge.

On the other hand, if the preliminary breath test came back under .150, the officers would not charge extreme DUI. If the blood test result then showed a .150 or more, the prosecutor's office would file an additional count of extreme DUI to supplement the .08 and impaired charges already issued by the officer at the time of release after the arrest.

Now it seems that the officers are starting to charge extreme DUI even if they lack information to support it. If this is the case, it could signal a new practice that would simplify things for the prosecutor's office. It is much easier for the prosecutors to dismiss an wrongly charged count of extreme DUI than to add a legitimate count of extreme DUI later.

So if you are looking at your citation and it says "extreme DUI," but you don't remember the officer taking a hand-held breath test (and you took a blood test), don't despair. It may be that they overcharged you. If this is the case, the process will sort it out.

A word of warning. DO NOT plead guilty to extreme DUI without first consulting with a DUI lawyer. If you do, you will be stuck with it even if the evidence should have exonerated you.

The new set of Arizona DUI Laws went into effect today. While there are some other minor changes, the one that warrants your immediate attention is the consequences for an extreme DUI.

For anybody arrested today or later, if you are convicted of extreme DUI (.150 or greater alcohol concentration), you will be sentenced to 30 consecutive days in jail. No jail time can be suspended.

If you are convicted for a second offense in seven years for extreme DUI, then you will be sentenced to 120 consecutive days in jail, with no time suspended.

The super-extreme (.20 or greater) remain unchanged, at 45 days for a first offense, 180 days for a second offense.

Now more than ever it is extremely important to have legal representation. The average misdemeanor DUI case in Arizona now carries more jail time than many serious felonies.

During a routine DUI arrest, police charged a suspect with battery after he allegedly farted at the police station.

As a DUI lawyer, I talk with police officers nearly every day. Getting sworn at, spit on and much worse is part of the job, and it doesn't usually phase the professional and experienced officers.

This is over the top and in my opinion destroys the officer's credibility.  Here is a copy of the complaint.

The vast majority of my clients are involved in their defenses, and cooperate with my office 100% by providing us with all of the information we need about their DUI case in a timely manner. I try to set the ground-rules early on in the attorney-client relationship. If there is something that might affect your DUI case, I need to know about it now.

Don't hold anything back from your lawyer. What your attorney does not know can only hurt you. The consequences of not telling your DUI lawyer something can be grave. A bad or embarrassing fact, something you said or did in the past, is not a surprise best left for me in the late stages of your case.

I don't want to find out in the middle of your trial that you "tweeted" somebody from your cell phone (from the bar the night of your arrest) that you were wasted and that it's fun to drive that way (fictional example). I don't want the prosecutor to confront you with facebook or myspace entries and photos that prove your guilt while you are on the witness stand. I don't want to find out that you have prior convictions after we have signed a plea agreement that calls for you to avow that you have none (also a fictional example). In short, if there is something you know about your DUI case that I don't, and I am your lawyer, then something is very wrong.

Open communication between you and your DUI lawyer is one of the most important aspects of your defense.

I have jumped on the bandwagon and am now a "Twittering" DUI lawyer. My username is ArizonaDUILaw, and my twitter page is http://twitter.com/ArizonaDUILaw,

I have also added a twitter widget to this blog, and this post is supposed to make it to my twitter page as well. We will see what happens when I press "publish."

As you can probably gather, it was a slow day for DUI news, and no changes in DUI law to speak of.

The DUI eye test, also known as the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test, or HGN for short, is explained and illustrated in this video.

DUI consequences have become more punitive in most states with each passing year. This year will be no different in many states.

In Arizona, for example, the DUI consequences for a first offense misdemeanor DUI with an alcohol level of .150 or more will increase to 30 consecutive days in jail.  This means that the consequences for somebody who has never had a criminal conviction will mandate that they spend 30 days in jail.

The most common destination for a person convicted of DUI in Arizona is Sheriff Joe's Tent City Jail. Because of the conditions at that jail, the DUI consequences in the Phoenix area have never been so high.

Most people don't think about the DUI consequences before getting behind the wheel, so they are surprised when they research them after being arrested. While the penalties on paper seem extremely high, a good DUI lawyer can make a difference in the sentence by negotiating the case down to a lesser charge, or by litigating the case.

The DUI consequences are now too serious to leave anything to chance.

Rumors are buzzing that there is going to be a major Arizona DUI taskforce this weekend. So that you don't end up in my office next week, make sure that you have a designated driver or money for a cab.

Next week I will be reporting more in-depth on the changes coming in Arizona DUI laws.

Have a good weekend, and be safe.

The preliminary breath test (PBT) is not admissible evidence in many states in DUI cases because it is not accurate. If you have a high breath test result that is not explainable by the amount of alcohol you drank, don't despair. When your blood test result comes back it may prove you right, or innocent, or at least not as high as the PBT.

Most people think that if they wait an hour or so after they finish drinking before leaving the bar, they will be okay. Some drink water or coffee to speed the "sobering up" process. This is a common but dangerous blunder.

Depending on your alcohol metabolism (which is a complex topic and beyond the scope of this post), the amount and type of drinks you had, and the contents of your stomach, waiting an hour could actually make you more drunk.

When you look at alcohol elimination rates, which most experts agree average anywhere from .010 to .020 per hour, understand that those rates are based on an individual who has fully absorbed all the alcohol consumed, and is only eliminating. Once fully absorbed, you can trace a linear slope to sobriety. But until you are fully absorbed, it is hit or miss.

Because it takes anywhere from several minutes to several hours to absorb alcohol, assuming you are fully absorbed at the time you finish drinking, and assuming that you were exclusively eliminating alcohol during the hour or two of "sober up" time,  is not only dangerous, it is foolish to rely on a chosen elimination rate and time.

If you are out and you think you need time to sober up before driving, the smart thing to do is to consider that you are likely under the influence of alcohol, and potentially not fit to make that judgment call. If you think you should wait a little before driving, eliminate the risk and call a cab or a friend. Even though taxis are expensive, they are nothing compared to fines and attorneys fees.

Your goal is to get home without hurting anybody. Sleeping in your own bed safe and sound beats sleeping on a bunk in jail, and the next morning you can go pick up your car and get on with your life instead of coming to see me. Don't worry about me, my practice will survive and probably continue to thrive even if you make the smart choice when faced with the choice between a ride home or "sober up time."