Prince George’s County Prescription Drug DUI Lawyer
You need to contact a Prince George’s County prescription drug DUI lawyer if you have been charged. These charges seriously impact your ability to commute to and from work and should be regarded as serious. With the help of an attorney, you could demonstrate to the court that your ordeal was a one-time mistake and potentially work toward a favorable outcome.
How Prince George’s County Characterizes a Prescription Drug
Prescription drugs could be both drugs prescribed by a doctor and drugs that are purchased over the counter.
Any CBS-based drugs, opiate-based drugs, are common in Prince George’s County. People are on painkillers, muscle relaxers, and other substances. Those inherently suggest that someone would be impaired if they took them.
Requirements for a Charge
For someone to be charged with prescription drug DUI, the officers need probable cause that suggests that the individual is under some type of influence believed to be related to some type of CBS, either prescription or non-prescription. This effect means that the driver is unsafe on the road and is putting others at risk, including themselves.
The first thing to the prosecution in a prescription drug DUI case must prove is that the prescribed drug or over-the-counter drug was taken incorrectly and negligently, leading it to behave differently than it normally behaves and impairing the driver.
However, side effects from a drug may not constitute malicious intent from an individual but may result from unexpected or unknown situations.
Accountability and Prescription Drug DUI Charges
If a person takes a drug that they rely upon and still find themselves having to drive, then they could still be held accountable. That is still not perfect in terms of a defense because they are still taking something that causes impairment. It becomes concerning to the state that the person may have a problem due to the drug making them an unsafe driver.
The Role of a Toxicologist During Trial
The role of a toxicologist or a forensic chemist is to take a blood draw properly, handle the blood correctly, and conduct an appropriate test.
Penalties for Prescription Drug DUI Convictions
Prescription drug DUIs are charged under the same articles as other DUIs, TA 21-902 C and D. Penalties include 60 days maximum in jail and a $500 maximum fine.
Honesty and Attorneys
Attorneys do not like surprises. If a person is taking a drug that they have been taking for the last 15 years with no issues and now an officer says that drug is what impaired them, the attorney would want to know about that history. This helps them evaluate the case properly. Attorneys cannot evaluate a case with inconsistency of information.
Aggrivations to a Charge
If a person is found with prescription drugs that are not theirs, they may face elevated penalties because they are not taking the drug as part of a prescribed treatment.
Necessary Information for a Defense Attorney to Collect
If a person is taking a drug prescribed by their doctor, attorneys will want to see how long they have been on it. Sometimes, their pharmacist can print out their last one-year log, which can be used to show that the drug was being taken within guidelines with no ill intent on the part of the person.The interaction with drugs is unique. Even the same drug that everybody takes can effect one person much differently than the other. Many different factors can coalesce to change the way a drug interacts with a person’s system.
Attorneys need to evaluate that, talk to a doctor, and then use that supporting information to take away the criminal aspect of the case by showing a lack of malicious intent.
The defense attorney needs to present a case that shows that the person took their prescription within the guidelines and factors outside of their control led to the impairment issue, rather than a person taking higher dosages than prescribed, for instance.
Speak to an Attorney Today
Facing a criminal charge is something that scares most rational people. Worse yet are charges that affect your ability to commute. Thankfully, a Prince George’s County prescription drug DUI lawyer could demonstrate to the state that the medince you take was necessary and that your charge was a one-time ordeal. Contact a defense attorney today.