DUI Job Loss?
When Michigan drivers are arrested for DUI (drunk driving), the first thing that goes through their mind isn’t “I wonder how much my fines will be for this”? Instead, it’s more along the lines of “What will my spouse and children think of me after this?” and “What will my boss have to say? Do I even have to tell him? Will I lose my job?”
Unfortunately, the answer to the last question is sometimes “yes,” and a drunk driving case can cause problems even for those employed in very high places. For example, the first woman bishop in Germany recently resigned after being pulled over for drinking and driving by local police. (Business Week, Patrick Donahue). She was the first woman to head Germany’s largest protestant church which unites 22 groups in the Lutheran, Reformed and United protestant faiths, and was elected just last year. She claims that her actions are not worthy of office. Her resignation came just days after being arrested.
But a Michigan DUI doesn’t have to ruin your life. Things can be done to prevent job loss, and to prevent dire consequences. Many DUI lawyers and DUI clients define a successful drunk driving case as a dismissal of the charges, a non-guilty verdict, or a reduction of the original drunk driving charge to a non-alcohol charge, and these things are important and excellent results, but what about those concerns that can directly affect the client’s personal and professional life?
A Michigan DUI crime cannot be expunged or removed from your record. This brings up many concerns when considering future employment options. Depending on your company’s employee handbook, a Michigan DUI could cause you to be terminated from your current job or passed over for that promotion you’ve been working so hard for. Many professional positions, such as law enforcement, medical, and even attorneys, are required to report their Michigan DUI offense to their employer.
And what about that family vacation you’ve been waiting for? While your Michigan DUI case is pending in the court system and sometimes even after your case is completed, you typically are not allowed to leave the state without permission from the court, and your request for travel could even be denied.
If you are divorced or are currently going through a divorce and have minor children, a Michigan DUI conviction can be used by a vindictive spouse to attempt to persuade a divorce court to change your custody or visitation rights.
We have had success in reducing a Michigan DUI felony charge down to a misdemeanor charge, allowing the client to keep his or her job. We will put our knowledge, trial skill and experience in defending Michigan DUI cases to work so that we can obtain the best possible result for you!
Get a FREE confidential CASE EVALUATION on your Michigan OWI/OWVI/DUI by calling (248) 306-9159 , or filling out this consultation request form. Call now, there’s no obligation!
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baronedefensefirm – who has written 204 posts on .
Patrick T. Barone is the author on two books on DUI defense including the well respected two volume treatise Defending Drinking Drivers (James Publishing), and The DUI Book – A Citizen’s Guide to Understanding DUI Litigation in America. He is also the author of a monthly DUI defense column for the Criminal Defense Newsletter, published by Michigan’s State Appellate Defender’s Office. Mr. Barone is an adjunct professor at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School where he teaches Drunk Driving Law and Practice. He is also on the faculty of the Criminal Defense Attorney’s of Michigan’s Trial Lawyer’s College where he provides trial skills training to Michigan’s criminal defense practitioners. Mr. Barone lectures nationally on various DUI defense topics, and he has appeared in newspapers, on television and on radio as a drunk driving defense expert. Mr. Barone has been certified as an instructor and practitioner of the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests and has also attended a 24-hour certification course at National Patent Analytical Corporation (the manufacturer of the DataMaster) and has thereby been deemed competent by the manufacturer to operate, perform essential diagnostic verifications and calibration checks on the DataMaster. Mr. Barone is a Sustaining Member of College for DUI Defense. Mr. Barone is the principal and founding member of The Barone Defense Firm, whose practice is limited exclusively to defending drinking drivers. The Firm is headquartered in Birmingham, Michigan.
