Each year, the Arizona Legislature seems to propose tougher sanctions on DUI drivers. Past increases in the severity of the laws have ranger from adding weeks to jail sentences to adding years to the time a person must have an ignition interlock device following a drunk driving conviction.

Now, there are new proposals, which, if voted into law, would either eliminate or cut in half the time a first offense Arizona DUI convict must spend with an ignition interlock breath test device in their vehicle.

Part of the justification for the proposed law appears to be that the death rate, which is usually high in Arizona, has decreased. Any intelligent person must wonder about that logic. If deaths have decreased then, assuming that is viewed as a good thing, why change the law? Eliminating the need for interlock devices couldn't possibly save lives. If something isn't broken, you don't fix it... right?

Could it be that, as the DUI death toll decreases (for whatever reason), politicians can use it less as a hot button issue?

Many argue that doing this will allow them to isolate whether the unit was responsible for any part of the decreased death-rate. Others would argue that it may directly cause tragedy. For better or worse, Tucson will be without DUI officers a few nights a week starting early december.

His BAC registered at .174, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08.

At the risk of calling Simon and Garfunkel narrow-minded, there are an infinite number of ways to leave your lover, and there are just as many ways to get a drunk driving conviction on your record and go to jail.

It does not take an incompetent DUI attorney to ruin your case. You can do that for yourself. So the first failsafe way to lose your case is to not hire or seek the advice of an attorney. When you are charged with a crime as serious as this, there is simply no excuse for not consulting with an expert.

You are in a vulnerable state. You are stressed. And you should be, because if you don't make the right moves, you could go to jail and get branded as a criminal. And that would totally suck. Because of your vulnerability, the second surefire way to unsuccessfully defend your case is to present yourself to an attorney, the court or the prosecutor in a vulnerable state. Wait a second. Hold on. I can hear you now. There are many types of vulnerability. The type I advise against in this situation is ignorance. You see, the less you know the more likely you are to get a bad lawyer, accept bad advice, get a bad plea bargain or a bad verdict. The cure for this vulnerability is to do your homework. Get your head out of the sand. Right now. And start reading about the laws and procedures when your case will be heard (if you are illiterate and somebody is reading this to you, I don't know what to tell you... because the quality of educational videos on the subject is worse than the conditions of the nastiest cell block in San Quentin... sorry).

Getting a DUI sucks. Cops suck. Prosecutors suck. Lawyers suck. Judges suck. Jailers are thugs. Alcohol counselors are pussies. If you agree with any or all of the (totally general and typically false) assertions directly above, they congratulations, you're a natural at the third way to make sure you get incarceration enervation (not a spa treatment). All you have to do is stick with that attitude and be a terrible actor. Your feelings will show and you will get screwed.

Lawyers are lying, cheating, blood-sucking douche-bags, and there's no reason to tell my lawyer, who I resent for too many reasons to articulate (yeah, that's it), the truth. If you identify with that statement, just stick with it. Hire a lawyer, but withhold information about your case or your past. Make the lawyer earn her fees. Make her think on her feet. No reason to tell her you are wanted for sodomy in South Dakota, or that you have 5 other drunk driving charges pending in three other jurisdictions. The best thing about withholding this sort of information from your attorney is that you will get screwed in court. Probably hugely. Probably painfully. And the best thing is, while you are sitting in jail or having trouble getting a job, you have your very own personal scapegoat. What use is an attorney who doesn't have enough information to help you? That's it. An excuse to postpone self-reflection.

There are so many ways that you and your lawyer can f-up your case it's crazy. If you need a conviction in your life to help you work through some issues, any of the above will typically work.

For the astute reader who noticed that there are only four items listed, we need your help. Please let us know your favorite ways to ensure failure in defending a DUI case by commenting below. We will pick the best one and add it to this post (and give you full credit).

Then you did everything you could to make it right. You hired a DUI lawyer. You wrote out your version of events. You showed up in court.

Things may not have turned out as bad as they could have, but you are still going to jail.

Here's what you need to know to survive in jail, and why you need to prepare yourself.

Vic is the only Mississippi DUI Attorney who is board certified by the National College for DUI Defense. He also served as Dean of the College from 2001 to 2002.

Vic is the only attorney in MS who owns an Intoxilyzer 8000 machine and who is also a DOT permit holder to operate the machine.

Many consider Vic to be the best DUI attorney in the State.

Mr Leininger focus his practice 100% on DUI Law, and related injury and death cases.

He is a former prosecutor and former counsel to the Kansas Highway Patrol. He is one of the few defense lawyers in the world to have completed training as a Drug Recognition Expert.

Brian frequently lectures to other defense attorneys on a state and national level on DUI and DUID (drug) cases.

Mike will be the representative for the following areas starting on May 1, 2010:

Middlesex County Massachusetts DUI Lawyer
Essex County Massachusetts DUI Lawyer

We also announce the availability of the following slots:

Barnstable County DUI Lawyers
Berkshire County DUI Lawyers
Bristol County DUI Lawyers
Dukes County DUI Lawyers
Franklin County DUI Lawyers
Hampden County DUI Lawyers
Hampshire County DUI Lawyers
Nantucket DUI Lawyers
Norfolk County DUI Lawyers
Plymouth County DUI Lawyers
Suffolk County DUI Lawyers

For those on the waiting list for any of these Massachusetts Counties, I will contact you early next month. In the meantime, if you are interested, please feel free to give me a call at 480-951-3200.

Local News | No DUI charge for son of 'Deadliest Catch' captain | Seattle Times Newspaper: "The son of a recently deceased 'Deadliest Catch' fish boat captain won't be charged with drunken driving or hit-and-run following his arrest in Seattle last month.

Instead, the King County Prosecutor's Office says it will charge Jake Harris with reckless driving and driving with a suspended license."

Local News | State schools superintendent Randy Dorn charged with DUI | Seattle Times Newspaper: "State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn has been charged with one count of driving under the influence.

Aaron Walls, prosecutor for the city of Orting in Pierce County, said he decided to file the charge after reviewing police reports and other evidence, which he said he received at the end of the day Tuesday.

Walls declined to provide more details, saying he would not discuss a pending case."

DUI arrests are common amongst educators, but much more rare among high-profile administrators.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer: MLB: "Former New York Mets and Yankees pitcher Dwight Gooden was reportedly arrested for driving under the influence following an automobile accident in New Jersey on Wednesday morning.

According to a police press release provided to The Star-Ledger in Newark, Gooden was involved in a two-vehicle accident around 8:50 a.m. (et) in his hometown of Franklin Lakes. After police investigated, the 45-year-old Gooden was charged with being under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance, endangering the welfare of a child, driving while under the influence of drugs, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident and reckless driving, among other charges."

Suspected DUI Driver May Have Been Driving As Fast As 150 MPH - Traffic News Story - KIRO Seattle: "The state patrol arrested a man on suspicion of DUI and reckless driving after he was seen driving at an extremely high rate of speed on the 520 floating bridge Saturday, a state patrol spokesman said.

Police said the 24-year-old Bellevue man in a BMW M6 was seen driving eastbound at more than 135 mph on the bridge between Seattle and Medina at about 1 a.m."

The 520 bridge is bad enough without this. This guy could give even the drunkest of drunk drivers a bad name.

The forum will be moderated by Amy Morell and is now open for questions and comments.

I am also pleased that Mr. Taylor, who is the nation's most prolific DUI Author has become an active contributor to the DUI News and DUI Forums on the site.