Can you beat a DUI in Montana even if you blew a 0.08 BAC?

Under Montana DUI laws, if you blow at or above a .08 BAC, you can be found guilty of driving while under the influence of alcohol. This carries with it serious penalties, including potential jail time, the loss of your drivers license for a period of months to years, required community service time, and a period of probation. Insurance rates may also go way up, your car insurance provider may drop you, and you may face problems getting a job or a commercial drivers license because of your record of DUI. As a result of these serious penalties, many people try to beat a DUI charge if they were close to the legal limit.

To beat a DUI charge, you need to make an argument that you should not be found guilty under the law. There are several arguments you can make, but two very common ones made by those who are at or close to the legal limit are:

• An argument that your BAC at the actual time of driving was not at or above the limit. Once a person stops drinking, the level of alcohol in his blood can continue to go up for a set period of time. This means if you weren't tested right away, it is possible your BAC was actually higher at the time of the test than it was when you were driving
• An argument that there was no probable cause to test your BAC. The Constitution protects against search and seizure without probable cause, and if there was no reason for an officer to test you, any evidence he found through that test can't be considered by the court.

If you plan to try to defend yourself against DUI charges, it is important you have a lawyer on your side to help you make a convincing argument to the judge.