Expert San Antonio DWI Defense Attorney

Limiting your legal involvement includes helping you keep your driver’s license, and I will tell you immediately what you can do to keep it. In Texas, a person arrested for DWI immediately has a driver’s license problem. Police give the IMPRESSION THAT YOUR LICENSE IS SUSPENDED AFTER YOUR DWI ARREST. However, THAT IS NOT TRUE. If your license was valid before the DWI arrest, it is valid AFTER the DWI arrest. It can be suspended, but if you get to a DWI lawyer within 15 days of the arrest, they can stop the suspension by requesting an ALR hearing.

The goal I have with every client arrested for DWI is a dismissal, a deferral, a rejection of the DWI altogether, or a “not guilty” verdict from a jury. The important thing to remember is it's not always easy to fight your DWI, but you can't win if you don't fight for it. San Antonio and other counties around San Antonio take a very hard line against DWI defendants, so be sure to pick the right DWI lawyer for the task. You need an experienced, knowledgeable, tough and competent lawyer to win your DWI case. I have been fighting DWI cases for over 40 years. Who you hire to win your DWI matters- Do your research! Make sure your DWI lawyer of choice is and has been dedicated to the practice of DWI Defense. Look for publications that have recognized a DWI lawyer's accomplishments- national, state and local recognition (Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers, Defender of the Year). Look for DWI appeals they have done and have changed the law in Texas. I have over 120 that you can see in google scholar in State and federal courts. Additionally, I won an appellate case that provided authority for suppression of the breath tests in Texas (Bagheri v. State). Look for organizations they are a part of (I've helped to create three lawyer organizations. I was a founding member of the National College for DUI Defense and I was the founding president of the San Antonio Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, I am also the past president of Texas DWI Lawyers Association.)  Look for jury trial competence (A recent jury trial I conducted was an intoxication manslaughter, and the jury gave my client probation. Additionally, I tried a case last week, a police officer with a .12 breath test and the jury came back with a not guilty verdict. These are both 2024 cases.). DWI and intoxication cases are difficult and involved because of the science behind blood testing and breath testing. Hire the right DWI lawyer the first time. 

As you can see on this website, I am an expert DWI lawyer. I am a DWI lawyer with over 40 years of DWI defense experience. I have never been a prosecutor, I never wanted to be, I have always been on the defense side of DWI cases.  I am a very experienced DWI lawyer with two board certifications (Texas Board of Legal Specialization in Criminal Law and the National Board of Trial Advocacy). I practice mostly in San Antonio and in the South Texas area. Although I mostly handle just DWI cases, sometimes people are charged with other criminal cases when they are arrested for a DWI, such as drug possession or unlawfully carrying a weapon.  I handle these cases for my clients as well. I have dedicated the last 30 years of my practice to focus EXCUSIVELY on DWI Defense.  I am an expert in all DWI & DUI cases and all of the criminal cases that come to me in a DWI arrest. I educate other lawyers, judges and prosecutors on the intricacies of DWI blood draw cases, breath testing, and the science behind the breath testing machine and blood draw procedure. In fact, just a few weeks ago I spoke to a public defender's office in South Texas about how they can better defend their clients in DWI cases, and I do this regularly. DWI Defense is what I am known for as a lawyer around Texas and it is my passion. This fact is documented on this website and in the cases I cited indicating my impact on the jurisprudence of this State.  I am a published DWI lawyer with over 120 appeals, and I have many published DWI and DWI related cases that have changed the law on DWI cases in Texas. These appellate cases of mine are argued in Texas courts every day. Do your research before hiring a DWI lawyer. The punishment for a DWI conviction and the future repercussions of having a DWI arrest and/or conviction on your permanent record is severe and it really is in your best interest to hire a qualified, experienced DWI Attorney. 

There may be others who are criminal defense lawyers, and they claim to be some kind of “expert.” They have a big law firm, perhaps the “largest” criminal defense law firm in Texas.  None of that matters.  What matters is whether he or she will be your lawyer, the same lawyer you hired, who will handle your DWI case to conclusion. The size of the law firm you hire does not matter. What matters is that the person representing you is an experienced and proven DWI lawyer with demonstrated involvement in DWI cases. If someone tells you they are an “expert,” you need to see their certification from the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. It is only a personal opinion for a lawyer to call himself an expert or a specialist in the field of DWI practice when he says he is an “expert.”  However, there are ONLY 776 Board Certified Criminal Law Lawyers in Texas out of approximately 100,000 lawyers, and I am one of them.  Starting with a lawyer who is giving you false references to their abilities (which is all over the internet) is a bad start.

While a DWI in Texas has always been a serious charge, it’s not the end of your world.  There are a lot of things I can do to help you after your release on a DWI charge. I don’t want to minimize your problem you have after you are arrested for a DWI because for most it is a VERY serious problem.  I just want you to know that once you sit down and talk to me about your DWI case, and a little time has passed, you will become a lot less stressed about your situation, and you will be more hopeful. There is no hopeless case. Even difficult cases can and have been won.  But DO NOT wait around to get a lawyer, you really need to get a DWI lawyer soon. You have a 15 day deadline to request an ALR (Administrative License Revocation) or you lose your right to take the arresting officer's deposition & this is a very important step in the process of defending your DWI case. 

As one of the most experienced DWI lawyers in San Antonio, I believe that in most misdemeanor DWI cases, the worst is already over in terms of your incarceration. However, if you have been arrested for a DWI-2nd or a Felony DWI you especially need an expert DWI lawyer with extensive knowledge and expertise of the Texas DWI laws and the case laws in Texas because now jail and prison is involved. In cities like New Braunfels, it is especially important because they take a very hard line in almost every DWI case.  

If your case is a repeat DWI offense, we need to take a closer review of prior cases. I need to know the date and court. In particular, I need to know about out-of-State convictions because some of them cannot be used legally in Texas (happens more often than not).  The out-of-State DWI or DUI conviction may have an effect on plea bargaining more than on the actual charge.

There may be other consequences after a DWI arrest, but if you reach out to an experienced DWI lawyer like myself, together we can do a lot to limit or eliminate them.