Can a Criminal Defense Attorney Help Me Avoid Jail Time for a DUI Offense in Nashville?

If you are facing allegations of driving under the influence, your civil liberties and future may be in jeopardy. A DUI conviction is accompanied by imprisonment, hefty fines, and a revocation of driving privileges. Once you are released, you are likely to have trouble finding housing, securing employment, and renewing professional licensure. You may even be denied visitation rights, forcing you to miss seeing your children grow up. These collateral consequences can have a permanent financial and emotional impact on your life, making you wish you fought harder to avoid a conviction.

At Andrew C. Beasley, PLLC, we are committed to keeping you from spending time behind bars. If you have been charged with a DUI offense, our Nashville DUI lawyers are ready to go to bat for you.

Reasonable Doubt

A skilled DUI lawyer will be able to hone in on any weaknesses in the government’s case, preventing a prosecutor from reaching the burden of proof necessary to convict you. In criminal cases, the prosecution must prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. The highest burden in the law, beyond a reasonable doubt, requires that a person of average intelligence would have no doubt in their mind regarding the defendant’s guilt.

Plea Bargains

In exchange for pleading guilty to a lesser charge, the prosecution may offer the defendant a more lenient sentence. It is estimated that upwards of 95% of state convictions will be resolved through plea bargains. A district attorney is more likely to offer a plea bargain if the defense can highlight flaws in the prosecution’s case. This will make it unlikely that the state will secure a conviction, making a prosecutor more inclined to offer a plea agreement.

Alternative Sentencing

Eligibility for alternative sentencing will depend upon the defendant’s criminal history, the severity of the crime, and if mitigating circumstances apply. At Andrew C. Beasley, PLLC, our DUI attorneys will do everything possible to keep you from serving time in a prison cell.

Probation

In some cases, a defendant may be able to serve their sentence outside of prison, in what is known as probation. Known as a suspended sentence, a convicted defendant may be sentenced to probation by a judge or through a plea agreement.

Not all convicted defendants are eligible for probation, but those who are will be assigned a probation officer. To comply with probation, certain conditions will have to be met, typically requiring the defendant to regularly check in with the probation officer, comply with drug and alcohol testing, and adhere to the law.

Diversion Programs

Available to first-time offenders, a diversion program is a type of probation that allows you to avoid spending time behind bars. Tennessee offers two types of diversion programs: Pretrial and judicial diversion. Pretrial diversion takes place before a verdict is rendered. It suspends the prosecution of your case and sets conditions which must be successfully completed. If you fulfill the conditions of the diversion program, you may be eligible to have your charges expunged.

In contrast, a defendant will only be eligible for judicial diversion if he or she has a class B misdemeanor or a lesser charge. Judicial diversion is only granted by the court after the defendant pleads guilty or nolo contendere or is found guilty. The sentence is waived if the defendant successfully completes the probation.

Community Service

Instead of incarceration, a judge may order you to complete community service, specifying a certain number of hours that must be completed in a given time frame. In Nashville, community service registration is typically open to the first 25 people who sign up, allowing individuals to choose what service they would like to provide.

House Arrest

In Tennessee, you may have the option to serve time outside of a prison cell through electronic monitoring. You will be limited on where you can go, typically only being allowed to travel to work. House arrest is an option that is given to offenders guilty of lesser crimes, such as a DUI. The electronic monitoring is generally done through an ankle bracelet. If your location registers outside of the geographic scope set by the court, you may be forced to serve the remainder of your sentence in prison.

Consult with Our Nashville DUI Lawyers Today

If you have been charged with a DUI, the Nashville DUI attorneys at Andrew C. Beasley, PLLC, are ready to advocate for you. We have helped hundreds of clients charged with DUIs achieve a successful case outcome, keeping their freedom along the way. If you are ready to schedule your free consultation, contact us online or by phone today.