subject: Why You Should Tell Your Dui Attorney If You Are An Alcoholic [print this page] You have been charged with DUIYou have been charged with DUI. You know that you are facing fines, license suspension, and even potential jail time. Maybe this is your first DUI citation, or maybe it is your fourth. The trust is that many DUI offenders are alcoholics, but they don't know how to deal with their situation. For the following reasons, it is a good idea to tell your DUI attorney if you know or think you have an alcohol problem.
1) Establish Trust.
You don't want your DUI attorney to lose faith in you or, worse, not have any faith in the first place. Human nature is such that people (yes, attorneys are people) gravitate toward people they can trust. By telling your DUI lawyer at the very beginning of the representation that you have an alcohol problem, you establish instant credibility and make it more likely that he or she will pull out all the stops for you. In other words, you want your attorney to fight for you.
2) Sentencing.
A lot of court systems provide alternative sentencing solutions for those charged with DUI, especially if you are a first-time offender and even if you are a repeat offender. But if the court doesn't know you either need an alternative or are willing to accept some of the programs, then you won't be provided an opportunity for alternative sentencing. Think about drug and alcohol diversion programs, substance abuse classes, and other educational tools to help make sure that you are more conscious, and don't repeat your mistake.
3) Help.
Your DUI attorney will have a hard time helping you if he or she doesn't know what kind of help you need. By admitting that you have a problem, your DUI attorney can then seek help from different sources, and not necessarily the court. A good DUI attorney will have resources available to utilize, and contacts that could help you with both your tendency to drive after drinking and with your alcohol problem as a whole.
4) Your Life May Depend On It.
More than anything, your DUI attorney has the proverbial keys to your life (pun intended). Continually driving under the influence of alcohol not only endangers the lives of other innocent strangers and friends, it also endangers your own life. For that reason alone, if you have a problem, you need to tell your DUI attorney who can provide solutions where needed.
Admitting to your DUI attorney that you are an alcoholic is very difficult. However, if you are serious about getting help and straightening yourself out, it is necessary. Once you do it, then you create a strategy with the help of your attorney for defending your DUI charge, appearing before your state's licensing agency, and getting help.
