You may have your reasons why you choose to plead not guilty to the driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs or alcohol accusations placed against you. Namely, you may believe your traffic stop was illegal, the conducted tests were flawed, and your arrest was unethical. While you are being brave in fighting for what you believe is fair and just, you may still worry about what happens if you go before the New Jersey criminal court, fight the charge, and ultimately are found in the wrong anyway. To address your legitimate concerns, please continue reading to learn what happens if you plead not guilty to a DUI charge but are ultimately found guilty, and how an experienced Morristown DUI defense lawyer at Graves Andrews, LLC can do everything in their power to fight off this undesirable ruling.
What does it mean to plead not guilty to a DUI charge?
You must understand that pleading not guilty does not necessarily mean you are denying that your DUI arrest occurred or that you are accusing the arresting officer of lying. Instead, you are simply requiring that the prosecution prove their case against you beyond a reasonable doubt. In other words, you are exercising your constitutional right to challenge the evidence.
And so, with this plea, your case may move into the discovery process, motion hearings, and negotiations, all of which would not have occurred with an admittance of guilt right off the bat, so to speak. This means that, at this time, your legal representative may review the police reports, bodycam footage, test results, witness statements, etc., that the prosecution might have against you.
Here, your lawyer may deduce that the evidence is weak and advise that maintaining a not guilty plea is a strategic legal strategy moving forward. And with negotiation options left wide open, they may work on your behalf to reduce the offense, minimize the penalties, or overall drop the charge placed against you altogether.
What happens if I plead not guilty to a DUI charge but am found guilty?
If your legal representative cannot manage an effective plea bargain, your case may escalate all the way to a trial before the New Jersey criminal court. In a worst-case scenario, the court’s final ruling may be that you are indeed guilty of committing a DUI offense. However, the silver lining here may be that the court generally cannot penalize you for exercising your right to a trial.
That said, the judge hearing your case is expected to impose penalties based on statutory guidelines and the facts of the offense, not on whether you initially fought the charge. Unfortunately, though, after being found guilty in a trial, you may no longer have access to plea deals offered to you earlier. This means you may have missed out on lessened sentencing terms, sadly.
Please do not hesitate to work together with a skilled Morristown criminal defense lawyer. The team at Graves Andrews, LLC will have your best interests at heart always and will fight for justice to reign in your favor.