Justified Stops

Determining whether a particular stop was conducted according to a legal process has taken up the time of many Fort Worth DWI defense lawyers and lawyers across the nation. These types of cases largely depend on the particular circumstances of the cases before the court. Additionally, a Fort Worth DWI defense attorney may explore decisions made in other jurisdictions in order to provide support for his or her legal position or to refute that of the prosecution.

Reasonable Suspicion

In most jurisdictions, a law enforcement officer must have reasonable suspicion before he or she can lawfully stop a vehicle on the roadway. This is less than probable cause, but it requires the law enforcement officer to have a reasonable belief that the driver is committing a crime or traffic violation or concealing evidence of a crime. However, courts across the country have found similar circumstances in cases to sometimes result in a justified stop while others were found not to be justified.

Example: Squealing Tires

A Fort Worth DWI defense attorney can explain that in one Texas case the court found that a law enforcement officer was justified when he stopped someone after hearing tires squeal. In a similar case in Florida, the court found that a stop was not justified after leaving a hotel parking lot with squealing tires.

A DWI defense attorney will attempt to use existing case law to support his or her client’s position if a previous decision is in favor of it or will make distinctions between cases when the decisions are not.

Legal Assistance

If you would like more information about the rules related to determining justified stops, contact a Fort Worth DWI defense lawyer from the Law Office of Bryan P. Hoeller by calling (877) 208-3382. He or she can review the facts of your case and argue on your behalf if the circumstances did not result in a justified stop.