"I refused the breath test - what do I do?" - it is not necessarily a bad thing. What you must do before almost anything is file a petition with the Secretary of State (SOS). At the same time, your lawyer should be investigating both ends of the blood evidence that is most likely in the possession of the police. Mike Nichols: "start with the stop. What that means is you should first analyze the reason why the officer detained you - were you behind the wheel and operating? Was there something wrong with your driving? Analyze every step of the evidence-gathering process, then turn to the evidence at the lab. Do they have the right to analyze your blood? What about the blood analysis itself? Often, contamination is present during collection, handling or during the analysis itself and the technicians in the lab refuse to admit basic scientific principles. In Michigan, we are at a crucial point in time. There is no PhD level supervisor at the forensic sciences division of the Michigan State Police Lab. The state appears to be trying to save money by promoting under-qualified people who will happily step into a role in which they are dangerous. The reason why I say that is because they may say what they need to say on the witness stand in order to satisfy their bosses. Their bosses are the administrators at the Michigan State Police." Mike Nichols successfully litigated an "uncertainty" challenge to the blood analysis at the Michigan State Police lab. Since then, the lab has been working to try to change the way it analyzes blood. The question is: are they doing it right? We will help determine that answer. Elsewhere on this page you will find a step-by-step guide to finding your defense. Download your "OWI Defense Guide" and call 517.432.9000.
© Michael J. Nichols 2011
"The breath test says I am over the legal limit? Does that mean I have no hope?" - You do if you hire the right law firm. There are several sources of "uncertainty" or variability in a breath test. Uncertainty is defined as the inability of a system to measure the "true value" of the thing to be measured (this is known as the measurand). Variability is defined as the difference from the true value to the estimate made by the measuring system - such as a breath test. Some sources of variability are based on the simple basic concept of an instrument's inability to measure something perfectly true time after time (instrument bias). Some sources are based on the differences from person to person. For example, the Michigan datamaster instrument assumes that every person has a particular breath-to-blood comparison (known as the "partition ratio") of 2100 parts of breath to 1 part of blood. It also assumes that everyone's breath is 37 degrees centigrade when it leaves the mouth. Some sources of variability are based on the manner in which the sample is collected and analyzed. Sometimes the breath test's approximation is just wrong because it does not make sense compared with all the other evidence in the case. Call 517.432.9000 and see if hope awaits on the other end of the call.
© Michael J. Nichols 2011
"My kid was arrested for drunk driving - what do I do?" - The last thing that you should do is throw your child on the mercy of the court and give up on him or her. "So many times I represent kids in college who are charged with an offense. So often they feel disappointment because they let their parents down," says Mike Nichols. The Nichols Law Firm is located about 1 mile from the Michigan State University campus. "We have a breadth of experience helping young adults litigate their cases, protect their rights and understand the lessons to be learned," Nichols says. Nichols added: "Remember, it may also be that a person accused of a crime is absolutely not guilty and needs to have his or her day in court." Mike Nichols is a litigator. Mike Nichols was named "SuperLawyer" by Thomson Reuters West in Criminal/DUI for a reason. Call 517.432.9000 and find out why.
© Michael J. Nichols 2011