There are times when an individual facing a DUI charge faces other charges. For example, if a Georgia resident was arrested for DUI first offense after being in a traffic accident, police might also charge that person with vehicular homicide, hit-and-run or drug crimes depending on the nature of the accident and what police allege to have discovered inside that person’s vehicle. Criminal allegations that include multiple crimes can be more complicated to defend and require a multifaceted approach.
On Aug. 25, police charged a woman with DUI and accused her of causing a four-car traffic accident on Interstate 85. The accident occurred in Gwinnet County at approximately 4 a.m. It resulted in one car flipping over more than one time and caused the other cars to smash into each other. Fortunately for all drivers involved, and fortunately for the woman accused of causing the accident, no fatalities or even a single injury were reported.
Nevertheless, police allege that the arrested woman had been driving the wrong way on Interstate 85 for approximately four miles prior to the accident. In addition to being charged with DUI, she was charged with hit-and-run. She was also charged with driving recklessly and driving the wrong way.
It is not uncommon for Georgia police to analyze the facts of a particular traffic accident and inappropriately accuse a person of different crimes he or she is not guilty of committing. In many cases, there are perfectly reasonable and obvious explanations for a series of events. Such explanations can be used as a powerful legal defense.
In other cases, a person who is accused of multiple charges, in addition to DUI first offense, may need to negotiate a plea bargain to get a reduced punishment. For example, a person accused of vehicular homicide and driving recklessly might plead guilty to driving recklessly in order to get the charge of vehicular homicide dropped. Ultimately, it is the facts of a particular case that will reveal the legal defense strategy that is most advantageous for the specific accused individual.
Source: LawrencevillePatch, Police: Wrong Way Driver Causes 4-Car Accident on I-85, Vanzetta Evans, Aug. 27, 2013