If you have been arrested for a DWI in Austin or the surrounding cities, here are ten commonly made mistakes you need to avoid according to Biederman and Burleson, P.L.L.C.;

1. Not taking the matter seriously.  This is a charge that can follow you for the rest of your life if you are convicted.  The additional cost of auto insurance alone could cost you thousands of dollars.
2. Not hiring an experienced DWI attorney.  The law is extremely complex and you need competent representation.  You must raise the right defenses at the right time or you will lose them.  Facts will disappear, memories fade and witnesses vanish.  A winnable case can quickly become a loser.
3. Hiring a DWI attorney based on the amount of the fee alone.  The State of Texas has almost unlimited resources when it comes to your case.  You need to hire an experienced DWI attorney and pay a fee which will allow him to put time and effort into your case to counter the prosecution.
4. Not complying with the Driver’s License law.  You could lose your right to drive.
5. Driving after your license has been taken away.
6. Not taking full advantage of your constitutional rights.
7. Taking the prosecutor’s first offer.  The first offer is not a bargain; its just to get rid of your case with the least amount of work.  Very few cases are dismissed or reduced to a non-alcohol charge at this stage.  You do not give the judge an opportunity to rule on constitutional challenges.  You give up your right to raise these issues and make the State prove it’s case.
8. Failing to appear in Court.  The Court will issue a bench warrant for your arrest and revoke any bond.  The next time you are stopped for a traffic infraction, you will be spending some time in jail and posting a bond for your future appearances.
9. Talking to anyone but an experienced DWI attorney about your case.  Anything you say to anyone else can be used against you.
10. Thinking that talking to a numerous amount of attorneys will help you handle your case yourself.  You need to hire a DWI lawyer and have him handle your case in the courtroom.

Augie Garrido, coach of the University of Texas at Austin baseball team, has been suspended indefinitely without pay because of his Austin DWI arrest. Once school officials gather more information, they’ll decide what to do in regards to his position at the university.

Garrido was stopped near downtown Austin when he was driving a Porsche Cayenne with the headlights off just before 1AM. Garrido failed a field sobriety test and also admitted to having five glasses of wine and being intoxicated. He had apparently spent the evening at J. Black’s on 6th Street and Eddie V.’s on 5th Street, both in the downtown Austin area. He was booked into the Travis County Jail that night.

The Longhorns’ first baseball game is coming up fast on February 20, when they’ll play the University of Illinois-Chicago. The last time Garrido missed a baseball game was back in 2006 when he was suffering from dehydration symptoms. For now, the Longhorns’ associate head coach and pitching coach will be taking over the team.

Garrido is the highest paid college baseball coach, earning a salary of about $800,000. In 2012, Garrido is expected to be the first college coach to make $1 million or more, according to the Austin American-Statesman. Though he has a five-year contracts that says he’d receive $300,000 per year for each year left on his contract should he be dismissed, this stipulation may not apply if he’s fired for breaking UT’s standard of conduct rules.

Austin DWI Arrests: Know Your Rights

Augie Garrido’s DWI arrest is a great example to us all that you need to know your rights when it comes to Austin DWI arrests. Mr. Garrido admitted to the police officer that he was intoxicated. If you are questioned by a police officer and asked incriminating questions, know your rights. Tell the officer that you respectfully decline to provide any answers until you’re able to consult with your Austin attorney, Kyle Lowe.

With over 4,000 Austin DWI arrests each year, police officers are bound to make mistakes every now and then.  Experienced DWI lawyers have the knowledge and skills to identify these common mistakes and use them to help you in your DWI case.  Most lawyers can tell you about some of these common DWI mistakes.

First, DWI officers will commonly infer that erratic driving behavior is directly correlated to alcohol consumption.  However, this is not always the case.  In some instances a DWI lawyer can show that erratic driving may have been from reaching for a cell phone, or iPod, rather than intoxication.  Similarly, DWI lawyers can sometimes prove that the smell of alcohol on a defendant is not from the consumption of alcoholic beverages, but rather from something benign like mouthwash or from a spilled beverage.  Mistakes like these may give the DWI officer faulty probable cause to arrest you for a DWI.  Remember, that if you are being falsely accused, the field and breath tests are not designed to prove your innocence. Taking these tests will not un-arrest you, but rather go towards showing that you are guilty of a DWI in Austin, Texas.

Another common mistake by DWI officers is improper administration of the Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST).  An experienced DWI lawyer in Austin is well versed in the proper standards and techniques for administering the SFST test as any deviation from these standards could invalidate the results of the test and help your case.  For example, there are a surprising number of individuals who cannot pass these tests without ANY alcohol in their systems.  As such, DWI officers are required to identify and disqualify persons who cannot physically pass the SFST. Additionally, most DWI lawyers in Austin will tell you that proper administration of the SFST test requires that the officer remove all distractions such as flashing lights, loose gravel or debris on the road, or environmental factors like wind gusts or wet conditions.

There are many other SFST standard practices that good DWI lawyers understand.  Improper instructions, during both the instructional or administrative phase, as outlined by the NHTSA manual, can compromise the validity of a SFST test.  Further more, administering the SFST tests in the improper order, as designated by the NHTSA, can compromise the validity and strengthen your position to mitigate or avoid penalties associated with your DWI arrest in Austin, Texas.

Remember, when it comes to DWI arrests in Austin, know your rights.  If you are asked an incriminating question, politely inform the DWI officer that you respectfully decline to answer without consultation from your attorney in Austin, Texas: Kyle Lowe.