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Ann E. Parman, Attorney at Law, is a criminal defense lawyer that has been serving the people of Macon for over 25 years. The attorney primarily focuses on cases involving drunk driving, and she offers legal counsel and representation to those being put on trial for it. She aims to prove the client's innocence and protect them from legal repercussions. Parman is a member of the National College for DUI Defense.
Brodie Law Group is a civil litigation and criminal defense law firm serving the people of Macon and Gray, Georgia. The firm has experience defending individuals who have been arrested for a DUI. It has also handled drunk driving cases with various modifiers, such as prior convictions for drunk driving, underage drinking and driving, and refusal to be tested. Partner Sean Brodie is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Bushway & Waystack is a team of civil litigation and DUI lawyers in Macon. The firm works to build a defense for individuals who are being put on trial for drinking and driving. It aims to challenge the prosecution's evidence and earn either an acquittal or dismissal for the client. The team also removes DUI arrests from the records of acquitted clients. Partner Gregory Bushway has been listed in the National Trial Lawyers' Top 100 Trial Lawyers publication.
Deadwyler-Heuman Law Firm LLC is an immigration law and criminal defense legal office representing the residents of Macon. The firm works with those facing allegations of driving while impaired by narcotics or alcohol. It also represents clients who are under the age of 21 or are commercial truck drivers who were arrested and charged for a DUI. Founder Ashley Deadwyler-Heuman is a member of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Deal Law Firm LLC is a legal office that was formed by a civil litigation and DWI lawyer in Macon. The firm works with individuals who have been accused of a felony or misdemeanor DUI in order to prove their innocence and maintain their record. It represents the client during the arrest, arraignment, indictment, trial, and hearings with the DMV. Founder Lauren Deal also takes family law cases involving divorce and child custody.
Floyd M. Buford, Jr. is a lawyer who represents defendants in Macon and the surrounding communities. He focuses solely on DUI or DWI charges and assists clients in avoiding suspension or revocation of license or the installation of an interlocking device on vehicles upon conviction. Buford has handled numerous DUI offenses in his 35 years of defending clients before the Georgia courts. His background as a prosecutor also provided him with unique insights on building and resolving cases in favor of clients.
Greg Howard Bell, LLC, is a private legal clinic in Warner Robins that provides litigation solutions and other legal services to residents of the Macon metro. The firm was established in 2009 by Greg Bell, who has over 20 years of legal experience in DUIs, felonies, and drug cases. Some of the DUI cases the firm handles include illegal traffic stops, unlawful arrests, improper administration of field sobriety tests, illegal searches, and refusal to take breathalyzer tests.
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Guerin Law Firm LLC is a team of DUI attorneys in Macon. The firm's founding attorney, Mary Guerin, has been practicing law for more than 10 years, and her team focuses its practice on drunk driving cases. It works to render the prosecution's evidence inadmissible by challenging the initial stop, field sobriety tests, and laboratory results. Guerin is a member of the Georgia and Macon Associations of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Hogue, Hogue, Fitzgerald, & Griffin LLP is a boutique criminal defense and DUI firm in Macon. Keith Fitzgerald, a trial-proven lawyer, having been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star by Thompson Reuters, handles cases involving driving while intoxicated. He reviews videos of the stop and arrest, examines and disputes evidence presented by the prosecution, and vigorously represents the client during the trial, all the while negotiating to reduce the sentence and charges. Partner Franklin Hogue has been named a Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters.
J. Ryan Brown Law LLC is a boutique criminal defense law firm that serves the residents of Macon and the surrounding areas. It provides legal counsel and representation for DUI convictions. Its team has extensive experience with field sobriety tests and chemical tests. The firm also handles related offenses such as speeding, reckless driving, and driving without a license. Principal attorney Joshua Ryan Brown has been practicing law for over four years. He is a member of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Larry W. Fouche, Attorney at Law, L.L.C., handles criminal defense cases, including misdemeanor and felony DUIs, in Macon. Its principal attorney, Larry W. Fouche, spent five years as a police officer before practicing law. He uses this experience to examine DUI cases to find issues in the arrest, from officer conduct to field sobriety tests. He also educates clients on the prosecution's mindset to prepare them for courtroom trials. Larry and his staff offer consultation through video conferencing for both house and pre-trial arrests.
Law Office of T. Rabb Wilkerson, III, P.C. serves the legal needs of individuals and families in Macon and neighboring areas. Its founding attorney, Rabb Wilkerson has more than 20 years of experience defending first-time or repeat DUI offenders. Through a solid defense, he helps them avoid penalties like license suspension. Other areas of his practice include family law and personal injury cases. In 2010, Wilkerson was appointed as interim district attorney of Houston County by Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue.
Lori C. Obenauf, LLC, is a law firm located in Macon. Its criminal defense attorney, Lori C. Obenauf, has over 34 years of combined legal and business experience. She assists individuals and families involved with DUI and underage traffic tickets. She also helps resolve family legal concerns, including military divorce, child custody and visitation, juvenile court dependency, adoption, and child support. She is also a registered mediator who has experience in mediating a wide range of civil disputes.
Mayo Hill is a law office serving clients in and around Macon. It represents people who have been arrested for DUI, drug possession, and traffic-related offenses. Robert Cabe, the firm's trial attorney, works with his legal team to help protect the rights of the accused throughout the investigation. Cabe served as an Assistant District Attorney for the Macon Judicial Circuit in Central Georgia. His experience as a prosecutor has given him a thorough understanding of how the government will use evidence against the accused.
Miller & Key caters to individuals in need of criminal attorneys in Macon and the neighboring areas. Its team of lawyers has handled more than 100 jury trials on behalf of its clients. For DUI, the law office evaluates cases for issues like how the evidence was collected, the possibility of inaccurate breath testing, and the actions of the police officer. Founding attorney J. Scott Key is a parliamentarian and legislative co-chair at the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Ramay Law Firm works with clients in Macon and the surrounding areas. It takes on various criminal cases, including DUI or DWI, both misdemeanor and felony types. Its defense attorney, J. Anderson Ramay, Jr., aggressively upholds the rights of drivers who have been wrongly accused or detained without cause, helping them regain their driving rights and stay out of jail. He also handles cases involving drug possession and assault. Ramay obtained his Juris Doctorate degree in 2004.
Thames Law is a multi-practice firm that represents clients in Macon and the surrounding areas. It protects clients' rights facing DUI charges to preserve their driving privileges and avoid having a criminal record that may affect their livelihood and future opportunities. Its attorneys handle cases in several practice areas, including estate planning and immigration law. They also have staff that is fluent in Spanish. Founding attorney J. Britt Thames has been serving the metro area since 2014.
The Law Offices of Ken Smith LLC is a general litigation law firm serving the residents of Macon and the nearby communities. One of the firm's primary areas of practice is criminal justice, and its team is responsible for the defense and representation of those accused of driving under the influence. The team also works with those who have multiple prior DUI convictions. Additional practice areas include personal injury and business law.
With more than five years of legal experience, The Seekie Law Firm serves the residents of Macon and the surrounding areas. It provides legal counsel and representation for a wide range of criminal defense cases, including DUIs, drug crimes, and violent offenses. It also handles mental health defenses, bond and bail hearings, and probation violations and revocations. Principal attorney Nyonnohweah Seekie is a member of the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. She can also serve clients in Spanish.
The Walker Firm works to protect the rights of drivers who are facing DUI charges in Macon and neighboring areas. It also defends clients against OVI, reckless driving, speeding, and parole and probation violations. In addition, it strives to resolve drivers' license suspensions. Since 1980, The Walker Firm has addressed the legal needs of the residents of the Middle Georgia region, handling over 11,000 cases throughout the years. Jay Walker III, one of the attorneys, is a veteran and a member of the American Trial Lawyers Association.
DUI, or driving under the influence, is a criminal charge applied to someone who is suspected of operating their vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant, such as drugs and/or alcohol. Every state in the U.S. has a law on the books that bans driving while intoxicated; however, the specific criteria may differ from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In some states, a driver with blood alcohol content (BAC) in excess of 0.08% can be brought up on DUI charges while other states set a higher threshold or increase the severity of charges in accordance with the level of intoxication. In some cases, DUI is determined not via testing but by behavior; drivers who are intoxicated to the point of impairment and who cannot safely operate their vehicle may be arrested on suspicion of DUI.
The terms driving under the influence (DUI), driving while impaired (DWI), and operating a vehicle under the influence (OVI) are all legal phrases that refer to the crime of operating a vehicle while impaired by drugs (illegal or prescription), alcohol, or both. These terms are largely interchangeable though some states use only one acronym in their statutes for the sake of clarity. There are also other acronyms occasionally substituted for DUI, such as DWAI (driving while ability impaired), OWI (operating while intoxicated), OUI (operating under the influence), and DUII-CS (driving under the influence of intoxicants: controlled substances).
In addition to the more immediate penalties that come with a DUI conviction, this costly mistake can have other consequences. DUIs stay on your driving record for years with the exact length of time differing from state to state — the California Department of Motor Vehicles, for instance, tracks DUIs for 10 years and may use that information to determine things like license eligibility. In Alabama, DUIs stay on the record for five years while in Alaska they're permanent. In states that use point systems to track driving infractions, DUI points may stay on the record far longer than the DUI itself.
The cost of a DUI lawyer depends largely on three things: geographic area, the lawyer's experience, and whether the case is settled quickly with a plea or ends up going to trial. Attorneys may charge a flat rate, more commonly used for simple cases that are likely to wrap up quickly, or they may charge by the hour, which can add up quickly if the case requires a lot of pretrial preparations and court time. Ultimately, a DUI lawyer could cost as little as $700 or bill in excess of $4,000.
Finding the right DUI lawyer is crucial, especially when it comes to preventing a suspended license and minimizing fees and other penalties. To choose the right one:
Individuals detained on suspicion of a DUI are typically taken to jail, their vehicles impounded, and either held on bail or processed and released pending a court date. That initial court appearance is a chance to enter a plea; it's a good idea to retain legal representation prior to this hearing so they have an opportunity to argue for reduced charges or even dismissal.
Drunk driving charges are often enough to warrant a suspended license pending the outcome of the case. A DUI conviction could mean losing that license entirely as well as paying fines, court costs, and DMV fees and paying for treatment or other intervention programs as instructed by the court — perhaps even completing jail time. These penalties tend to be less severe for first-time offenders and increase significantly thereafter.
While it's possible to contest a DUI without a lawyer present, case law is complex, and navigating those laws can be tricky. A DUI lawyer can't guarantee a positive outcome, but they are in a far better position to make crucial moves, such as challenging the legality of the original traffic stop, questioning the officer-led sobriety tests, and introducing evidence that could lead to an exoneration. In short, it's tempting to save money by going it alone, but the consequences could be costly. Before deciding against a lawyer, take advantage of a free consultation and weigh their recommendations. If budget is a factor, there are court-appointed public defenders who may take on the case.
DUIs are expensive. In addition to attorney fees that often run the gamut from $700 to over $4,000, there may also be bail costs, court-ordered fines, alcohol education courses, traffic school, DMV fees, the cost of increased insurance rate, fees associated with recovering an impounded car, and the possibility of paying for a court-ordered ignition interlock device. All together, the average cost of a DUI sits at around $6,500 not counting peripheral expenses, such as alternate transportation while unable to drive and lost income due to court dates and incarceration.
Driving under the influence is classified as a misdemeanor unless the DUI meets certain state-specific criteria such as:
Since car insurance rates are based on driving history and projected risk, it stands to reason that a DUI conviction will result in higher insurance rates. How much those rates go up depends on the state. In Colorado, insurance rates jump around 18% following a DUI conviction while North Carolina sees a median rate increase of more than 300%. To put that in further perspective, consider New Jersey; the state's average insurance rate is $1,419, but the average rate with DUI increases 132% to $3,292.
