Why Choose Us – DWI Long Island and NYC

DWI Long Island and NYC – The attorneys you choose makes all the difference. DWI (Driving While Intoxicated), DUI (Driving Under the Influence), and DWAI (Driving While Impaired) are treated most seriously by prosecutors and judges. Each of these charges carries potentially harsh penalties with collateral consequences.

It is critical to choose attorneys who can effectively navigate this complex area of criminal law, and who will identify and strenuously press every advantage to secure the best possible outcome of your case. Stein & Stein has fought for and secured favorable dispositions for countless clients charged with DWI, DUI, and DWAI. Put our knowledge and experience to work for you.

We guarantee that we will provide the expertise you deserve to bring about the most favorable decisions allowed by the judicial system. You can read first hand why past clients have chosen us.

Offenses involving drinking and driving are vigorously prosecuted on Long Island and in New York City, and the applicable penalties are harsh.

An individual charged with DWI / DUI / DWAI is vulnerable to the following: For detailed explanations >

Permanent Criminal Record
Incarceration
Probation
High fines and surcharges
Suspension/Revocation of Driving Privileges
Vehicle Forfeiture
Ignition Interlock
Mandatory Substance Abuse Treatment

VEHICLE FORFEITURE

If an individual is charged with DWI, DUI, DWAI, the law allows the government to seek seizure of his/her motor vehicle. Different counties handle vehicle forfeiture quite differently.

If one is charged with DWI/DUI in Suffolk County, Long Island, the County’s policy is to commence forfeiture proceedings when the individual has previously been arrested for a drinking-driving offense.

Nassau County frequently pursues forfeiture from first offenders, and may do so even if one is only charged with the traffic infraction of Driving While Impaired (DWAI).

New York City, by contrast, will make a case by case assessment, taking into account factors such as the extent of the defendant’s alleged intoxication and prior criminal history. Frighteningly, the forfeiture action may begin shortly after arrest and well before the criminal case has been resolved.

SUSPENSION OF DRIVING PRIVILEGES PENDING PROSECUTION

Stein & Stein has secured hardship licenses for countless clients, which has allowed those clients to keep precious jobs which otherwise would surely have been lost.

The law permits judges to immediately suspend the driving privileges of an individual who has been charged with DWI/DUI. Moreover, even an otherwise eligible motorist is incapable of obtaining a conditional license from the Department of Motor Vehicles until 30 days after the charged incident. Therefore, even someone who is ultimately determined in court to be innocent may suffer for weeks without a driver’s license while the prosecution is pending.

For working individuals, or those who need a car to get to school, college or regular doctors’ appointments, this consequence can be absolutely devastating. In order to alleviate this consequence, an experienced attorney will request a hardship hearing on his client’s behalf as soon as the license suspension is imposed. At the hardship hearing, the attorney will introduce evidence of the client’s need to work, attend school or doctors’ appointments, and demonstrate the lack of feasible transportation alternatives.

If successful, the court will grant the client a hardship license which allows the client to legally drive back and forth to work, school and/or the doctor.

REFUSALS

Stein & Stein has represented countless clients at Refusal Hearings, often securing reinstatement of the clients’ driving privileges.

Motorists are required by law to submit to a chemical test to determine their blood-alcohol content (BAC). A refusal to submit to a validly requested chemical test subjects an individual to a one-year revocation of his/her driving privileges, even if that individual is subsequently found “not-guilty” of DWI. An individual who is alleged to have refused to have submitted to a chemical test is entitled to a Refusal Hearing at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

An experienced attorney will represent his/her client at the Refusal Hearing, challenging evidence and cross-examining the arresting officer in an effort to invalidate the refusal based upon tried and true impeachment techniques. Even if the refusal is ultimately deemed valid by DMV, the experienced attorney will nevertheless have garnered information and established facts which will benefit the client in the criminal proceeding. For these reasons, it is essential to choose a knowledgeable, experienced, aggressive attorney.