1st DUI and unsure if hiring an attorney is necessary.

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1st DUI and unsure if hiring an attorney is necessary.

My son was arrested for a DUI in MN. He’s 22 yrs old with no prior offenses. He was originally pulled over for throwing a cigarette out his window. At that time the officer questioned if he had been drinking. My son said yes he had a few. The officer asked that he take a Breathalyzer and he blew .12. He spent the night in jail and was released the next day. He has a court date in less than a month. My question is should he hire an attorney? I feel he should but all his friends say there is no need since it’s his 1st. My second question is what is the aver cost for representation?

Asked on June 24, 2009 under Criminal Law, Minnesota

Answers:

L.M., Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 14 years ago | Contributor

DUIs (even first offenses) are taken very seriously these days.  He should definitely have an attorney.  Since he is an adult under the law, if he has little or no income, he would qualify for a public defender.  At his court appearance, he can ask the court for one.  Otherwise, if he hires an attorney, it can be costly.  I'm a California attorney, so I don't know what the going rate is in MN, but you can get on attorneypages.com and check with a few, or call your local bar association, and they can probably give you a few names and you can check with them before you hire anyone.  It's good that he cooperated with the officer.  They will likely suspend his license for a period of time and may require a drug and alcohol education class for 12-18 months as they do in my state.


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