Peoria County DUI Lawyers

Peoria DUI Lawyers Gullberg & Box handle DUI and criminal charges, taking a hands-on approach and proactively tackling every case. Where others cannot or will not, Gullberg and Box are willing to take the time to investigate thoroughly and providing one-of-a-kind personal rapport with their clients. They understand how traumatic an arrest can be, and the high levels of stress that accompany a defendant after the arrest. If you want premium defense, contact Gullberg & Box Peoria DUI lawyers. It's important to have an attorney that believes in his client, but that is exactly what you will get with Gullberg & Box. Their goal is to reduce your charges, if not have them dismissed altogether.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a DUI in Peoria County, call Gullberg & Box Peoria DUI attorneys to begin fighting your charge: (309) 768-2015. Read all of Gullberg & Box's qualifications at the bottom of the page, below the following summary of Illinois DUI laws.

Although Gullberg & Box of Peoria do not condone drinking and driving in any way, they appreciate that everyone can make a mistake. Peoria's DUI lawyers at Gullberg & Box work hard to achieve favorable results for their clients, including those who have what seems like insurmountable evidence against them. You need to know your rights when you are driving and are pulled over by the police in Peoria County after you have consumed alcohol.

A traffic stop is the brief and public detention, as opposed to an arrest, which is a detention you cannot be released from.

There is a very big difference between a DUI arrest and being pulled over at a traffic stop in Illinois. At a traffic stop, before the arrest you have the right to refuse the field sobriety test. Law enforcement officers are no longer reading the Miranda Rights, but you absolutely still have those rights and so many people are not aware of what they can and cannot do or say when they were stopped on the road. Consult a Peoria DUI attorney to find out what all of your rights are during a traffic stop.

At a traffic stop, the officer will ask questions which, if you never answer, could spare you from self-incrimination. It is likely that during this time, both your statements and your conduct will be used against you in court. Before the arrest, the officer is studying your field sobriety test and asking questions. Though it might be a natural impulse to follow along with the officer's requests, it seems that cooperating does more harm than good. What the officer is looking for is probable cause, so that he can later arrest you for DUI. It is best to consult with a Peoria DUI attorney if you've been arrested for a DUI.

When being questioned in a public environment (be it in your vehicle or on foot) remember that drivers, just like any one else questioned in a civilian setting, have Miranda rights. It is an Amendment Constitutional right to remain silent, knowing that anything you say can and will be used against you. This means you have the right not to answer. Always remain polite, but firm.

If the officer asks, "Have you been drinking tonight?" many people will answer, "I had a couple." They are hoping for some lenience from the officer, thinking that maybe cooperation will somehow lessen the extent of how serious their crime is. But by saying, "just a couple," you are indirectly admitting that you are under the influence of alcohol and will certainly come back to haunt you if the case goes to court.

Incriminating evidence like this can complicate an DUI case in Illinois. If you have been arrested for a DUI in Peoria County, meet with a Peoria DUI lawyer and discuss the interaction between you and the arresting officer. Your DUI lawyer at Gullberg & Box will determine what incriminating evidence the officer has on your case, and develop a plan to counter their evidence in court.

Field Sobriety Tests in Illinois give an officer probable cause for a DUI arrest. If you fail a Field Sobriety Test, the officer can paint a guilty picture of you in court. If you submitted to a Field Sobriety Test during your Peoria County DUI arrest, make sure you find good representation from a Peoria County DUI lawyer.

Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST's) are psychophysical tests which have been developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety and are meant to study sensory response to physical stimuli. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), these tests allow a properly trained officer to assess the intoxication levels in the suspect he is testing. By having his subject test balance, coordination, and information processing...all the abilities deemed necessary for safe driving.

There are four different kinds of field sobriety tests:

The portable, preliminary breath test is done by the officer with a breathalyzer located in his squad car. The device measures the breath alcohol content of the driver. A Peoria DUI lawyer will tell you that this is not an evidentiary instrument. The result cannot be used in court as evidence, but it can be used in court to determine whether the officer correctly determined that they had probable cause for the DUI arrest.

Under Illinois law, you have the statutory right to refuse this test. Contact a Peoria County DUI Attorney especially if you submitted to a breath test during your DUI arrest.

This requires the driver to follow the motion of a small stimulus with the eyes only, keeping your head straight. The officer moves the stimulus left and right, having the driver follow as closely as he/she can with their eyes. It's important to note there should be no flashing lights in the background.

This is a "divided attention" test. According to NHTSA this test shows whether or not you are capable of the same mental and physical abilities you would need to safely drive a vehicle.

The final test consists of two stages, the instruction stage and the balance and counting stage. For the instruction stage, you must stand with your feet together, arms at your side, and listen for instructions from the officer. This way, your attention is divided between balancing yourself and listening to/remembering the instructions the officer has given. Then there is the balancing and counting stage. This stage requires the driver to lift one leg, either one, with the foot approximately six inches off the ground. While looking at the elevated foot, you count out loud, "one thousand one," "one thousand two," and so on. Generally this goes on for 25 to 30 counts or until the officer gets the clues he is looking for. Field Sobriety Tests can incriminate you further and, if you submitted to one, it is even more important to talk to a Peoria County DUI Attorney about your case and prevent serious DUI charges being made against you.

Despite legislature which has been introduced as late as 2003 stating that a refusal would automatically lead to a suspended license, it has been overturned. You have the right to refuse a field sobriety test in Illinois.

Unlike field sobriety tests, if you refuse the breath testing you can have some serious consequences including the suspension of your driver's license for one year.

By operating a vehicle, you are giving implied consent to be breathalyzed, that is why these penalties are applied if you refuse to blow into the breathalyzer. Aggravated penalties make DUI cases in Illinois harder to fight, definitely speak with a Peoria DUI attorney if you are facing Illinois DUI charges.

This is the record created for measuring your BAC and determining whether or not your breath alcohol content is great enough to constitute an Illinois DUI. It has been agreed that anything above a 0.8% is intoxicated, and anything 0.5% or below is arguable.

William K. Gullberg is an experienced attorney, particularly in the field of DUI defense. He is a member of the National College for DUI Defense. He has been listed in the DUI Attorney Aces website, which showcases the best and brightest attorneys working in the country. Bill Gullberg is known to bring a fervent sense of passion into every case, representing the rights, freedom, and property of every single client.

William starts each case with the objective of having it dismissed or at least reduced by a great deal. William K Gullberg, Peoria DUI Lawyer with Gullberg & Box, has had eighteen years of experience in Chicago, where he formed his own firm. In 1997 he moved his practice to downstate Illinois.

Peoria DUI Lawyer William K. Gullberg is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Warren County Bar Association, the Henderson County Bar Association, the National College for DUI Defense, and the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois School of Law.

Peoria County DUI Attorney Meagan K. Box handles OWI cases in Peoria County and is licensed to practice in Illinois. She is dedicated to her clients, and will fight tirelessly to defend their rights, freedom, and property.

Peoria DUI Attorney Meagan K. Box worked for Henderson County, Illinois as the alternate public defender. During her time in this position she handled a wide array of cases including Illinois DUI, battery, theft, drug charges, criminal damage to property, and even arson.

Meagan is a graduate of the SIU School of Law, where she was a member of the Moot Court Trial Team. She graduated Summa Cum Laude.

She began her career in 2002 as a law clerk for William Gullberg Jr., and became a Peoria DUI Attorney after passing the Illinois bar. As of 2006, Meagan is the junior partner of Gullberg & Box.

If you or a loved one has been charged with a DUI in Peoria County, call Gullberg & Box Peoria County DUI attorneys to begin fighting your charge: (309) 768-2015.