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Wednesday, November 13, 2013
By Michael Nichols
Categories: Michael J. Nichols, Drunk-Driving, OWI
Recently Mike Nichols fought for clients in several Michigan counties including Allegan, Osceola and Ingham (Meridian Township) over whether police properly stopped the citizen-drivers who were then arrested on suspicion of drunk driving charges. Nichols says that the Michigan Vehicle Code is often misunderstood by police officers themselves. He says “MCL 257.642 says the driver must maintain the lane as is reasonably practicable. It is not necessarily valid to pull over a driver just because they appear to be weaving in their lane or even touching the lane lines.”
The Michigan Vehicle Code is lengthy and a web of different rules that every driver must follow. Nichols says “it is never reasonable for an officer to make a mistake of the law that he is supposed to enforce when he is pulling over a driver or detaining a citizen.”
It is not common for a court to grant motions to suppress or exclude evidence just based on Nichols’ experience. However, that does not mean your motion to dismiss will absolutely fail -- because the judge just might be persuaded that your rights were violated and the “exclusionary rule” should be used to keep the government from using evidence against you. If you plead guilty – you will never have the answer to that question!
Mike Nichols became a lawyer in large part because of his love for the constitution. He now takes pride in defending the constitution one case at a time. For the lawyer who is committed to results, call Mike Nichols at 517.432.9000 or mnichols@nicholslaw.net