Rights After a Maryland DUI Stop

Understanding your rights after a Maryland DUI stop could be extremely important to the outcome of your situation. While the police may try to get information from you during or immediately following an arrest for drinking while driving, you should not say something that could incriminate yourself. A skilled defense attorney could help you prepare for any line of questioning and avoid making a statement that could jeopardize your case.

Are Police Required to Give Miranda Rights?

A Maryland DUI stop is legal even if the driver was not read their Miranda rights. Law enforcement is not required to read these rights because is there is no constitutional law to have them read to a person. However, there is a constitutional right to avoid self-incrimination. Therefore, the courts decided that if law enforcement wants to ask questions to a detained individual, the police have to provide Miranda warnings before interrogation. Otherwise, any statements they make are presumably obtained unconstitutionally.

When a person is in police custody for allegedly drinking while driving, this situation is considered inherently coercive due to the power dynamics. Therefore, any statement that a person makes is not necessarily liable and may not be offered into evidence in any future DUI court proceedings.

To address that situation, the courts advise law enforcement to read someone their Miranda rights. These inform someone of their rights to remain silent, and anything they say can and will be used against them. If an individual decides to provide information after hearing and understanding these rights, these answers are reliable because the coercive nature of the situation has been addressed and acknowledged. If the police never give someone’s Miranda rights and they begin eliciting incriminating statements, these may not be used in court against them.

While law enforcement is not required to give Miranda warnings, others expect it because if the police do not, it could seriously jeopardize their case. For example, if a person is pulled over and law enforcement starts asking the driver questions about their alcohol use without reading them their rights, this could impact the viability of a case.

Additionally, if law enforcement then uses those responses as the basis for pulling the person out of the car, conducting any field sobriety tests, and effectuating an arrest, this individual may have a strong argument to have the entire arrest dismissed because those initial statements were elicited in violation of the person’s Fifth Amendment right.

Anything that comes after that has unconstitutionally appeared, leaving no evidence to support the charge. In general, the Miranda warnings are not necessary, but they should be given. If they are not, it could jeopardize the state’s case in a DUI arrest.

What are Someone’s Rights During and Following an Arrest?

In Maryland, an individual’s rights during a DUI stop are all the rights in every constitution. They have the right to remain silent. They have the right to refuse to answer questions. They have the right to refuse, participate, or submit to the standardized field sobriety tests. They do not have to balance on one leg or walk heel to toe to track a stimulus with their eyes. They have the right to refuse to submit to a breathalyzer test. Although that could have negative consequences on their driving privileges from the MVA, the state may not use this information against them in a criminal trial.

The person’s rights immediately after a DUI arrest are not answering the questions and not participating or submitting to any tests requested by law enforcement. During the arrest, there is no right to an attorney. However, if the law enforcement wants to interrogate the suspect after the arrest, the person has the right to an attorney. Law enforcement does not always try to interrogate or question somebody in a DUI arrest, but if they do, the person has a right to a lawyer with that stage of the process.

Speak with an Attorney to Learn About Rights Following a DUI Stop in Maryland

An attorney could advise you of your rights after a Maryland DUI stop. Additionally, a seasoned lawyer could ensure that any information that was obtained from you unconstitutionally is not used against you in the court of law. For help protecting your rights following drunk driving allegations, call today.