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Is jail time mandatory if convicted of a BUI? This blog examines BUI laws and compares them with DUI laws to explain that while jail time is not mandatory if convicted of a BUI, a judge still has the discretion to impose a jail sentence of up to 364 days in jail.
Boating Under the Influence in Washington State: BUI Law 101 Its that time of the year when Seattle celebrates SeaFair. It is also the time of the year that law enforcement makes their one and only attempt at enforcing state BUI laws. And in their rush to get as many BUI arrests as humanly ...
Washington State Distracted Driving Law meeting resistance A petition asking Washington state lawmakers to rewrite the new distracted driving law has over growing support. As of Wednesday morning, the campaign had over 26,800 signatures of its 15,000 goal. The Driving While Under the Influenc...
Washington State has enacted one of the nation's toughest distracted driving laws after our State Legislature passed a bill outlawing nearly every conceivable form of attention-diverting behavior behind the wheel.
Here's some important information about Seafair and BUI investigations that we hope you never need.
The recent passing of Justice Antonin Scalia has surely ignited a political firestorm. But as students of the law, we should take time to carefully examine who Justice Scalia really was aside from all the political posturing and chest puffing. Clearly, some of his positions on abortion rights, ...
We are fast approaching one of our favorite past times in the Seattle area, Seafair weekend. However, with weather anticipated to be in the high 80's and the Blue Angels return in recent years, the number of boaters on the lake will be met with a huge volume of law enforcement looking for impair...
WSTC launches ads to warn people not to drive while stoned
As recreational marijuana use becomes legal, Washington state residents are now trying creative new excuses as to why they should not be charged with a marijuana DUI. In Spokane County, a teen driver tried to get out of an impaired driving arrest by arguing that he didn't smoke pot himself, but i...
Any bad news for the San Francisco 49ers is good news for the Seattle Seahawks. Last week, 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was sentenced to three years probation and 11 days community service following a no contest plea to a drunk driving and weapons charge, reports NESN. Smith had faced three felo...
An ingenuous idea to come out of Texas. The City of Austin came up with a "Drive Alive Austin" campaign that features a waiver of a parking ticket if you make the right decision to leave your car behind and not drive home drunk, reports KVUE. Too often, individuals will make the fatal mistake of...
There is a major piece of federal legislation affecting DUIs that will be proposed by New York Representative Nita Lowey, reports Forbes. The legislation is being hailed as a deterrent to drunk driving as it will require that individuals convicted of a DUI to install an ignition interlock device ...
If you're into the modernist cuisine scene in Seattle, you may have heard of chef Maxime Bilet. However, the modernist chef recently made the news for all the wrong reasons. Instead of his food making the headlines, the author and chef is being accused of drunk driving and a hit-and-run following...
Not many people would mistake Martin Luther King Jr. Way in south Seattle for the Autobahn in Germany. With a city speed limit of 30 mph and urban traffic, most drivers maintain or drive well below the posted speed limit. However, on June 28, an unidentified 26-year-old man was caught driving 80 ...
Right now it can take a law enforcement officer up to four hours to receive a warrant to conduct a blood draw on a suspected drunk or drugged driver. In many cases, the suspect would have sobered up enough by the time of the blood draw making the results of the draw meaningless to support a DUI c...
The Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) officially began their "Drive high, or get a DUI" campaign, reports KXLY.com. The WTSC is beginning its campaign by airing three different television ads that use humor in depicting the dangers of driving under the influence of marijuana. The gist ...
It seems like these stories only happen in Florida. Lawyers and court employees reportedly gawked from a courthouse as a well known Broward County judge slammed her BMW SUV into a parked police vehicle and then repeatedly slammed her vehicle into a gate at the court parking lot, reports The New Y...
A Washington man was charged with suspected driving under the influence and child endangerment following a car accident. Police say that the unidentified Federal Way man lost control of his car and flipped over off the street. The man had his three young children in the car at the time, reports K...
The Washington State Patrol announced that they are stepping up drunk driving patrols starting in the beginning of July. The summertime months are notorious for drunk driving and July 4th is a holiday season that typically involves alcohol consumption. As a result, the WSP will be out in force du...
In early July, specialty retail stores across Washington State will begin selling marijuana for recreational use. In preparation for the event, the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) is launching a campaign to remind drivers that while recreational marijuana use may be legal, driving und...
Earlier this year, Justin Bieber was arrested for driving under the influence after being caught in an alleged drag race in Miami Beach. At the time of arrest, Bieber tested positive for marijuana, reports TMZ. It was no secret that Bieber's attorneys were looking to reach a plea deal with Miami...
A Tacoma man allegedly rear-ended another driver, proceeded to yell at the other driver, before driving to a nearby gas station to steal money and doughnuts, reports the United Press International. If these sound like the acts of a man whose drunk or high, the Tacoma police reportedly thought the...
There is something to be said about twin siblings. They can usually finish each other's sentences, read each other's emotions, and apparently get arrested for drunk driving within hours of each other. Early Saturday morning, Connecticut police arrested twin sister Kathleen Murphy for drunk drivi...
The summer is boating season here in the Seattle area. As a result, boaters should be aware that Washington has boating under the influence (BUI) laws similar to driving under the influence (DUI) laws. Under the Washington statutes, it is illegal for an individual to operate a boat while under t...
A Minnesota woman was arrested for a DUI and Jell-O may play a key role in the prosecutor's case, reports Complex.com. After police spotted Cathy Sanchez erratically driving, they pulled her over and observed the woman's slurred words and strong stench of alcohol. However, the most pointed piece ...
Cowan Kirk Kattenhorn is known throughout Washington and the nation for representing all of its clients with commitment, creativity and compassion. We recognize how devastating a DUI charge can be, particularly when our clients learn how incredibly tough Washington's DUI laws have become, even for a first-time offender.
If you need a DUI defense attorney in Seattle, Bellevue, or King County, contact us today to find out why respect for our clients, a passion for justice, and our commitment to winning have earned each of us the highest honor a member of the bar can receive from our colleagues – their referrals.