Updated on February 3rd, 2021 at 10:49 pm

How Your Milwaukee DUI Defense Attorney Might Raise Your Case’s Theme during Jury Questioning

An experienced Milwaukee DUI defense attorney may be able to help you construct a viable defense strategy should your DUI case go to trial. A common strategy is to develop a theme that paints a specific picture of your case rather than a scattershot approach that attacks every single element of the prosecution’s case.  It is the job of your Milwaukee DUI attorney to convince the jury that the theme issues are the most pertinent issues in your case and that your side is correct on those issues. In order to accomplish this, your attorney will begin introducing your defense theme at the earliest stage of the trial, during jury selection. Your attorney will continue to repeat the theme and reinforce its relevance throughout the trial.

Jury selection is your Milwaukee DUI defense attorney’s first chance to try to convince the individuals who will sit on the jury that your theory of the case is valid and may create reasonable doubt. This is accomplished during the initial jury questionnaires. Your DUI attorney will ask prospective jurors questions that hint at the theme and attempt to discern their biases or views toward the arguments that your attorney is planning to put forth during the trial. If your attorney wanted to defend your case on the basis of a “faulty breath machine” argument, he or she might ask questions similar to these:

  • Have you ever thought about what information you would want to be aware of before you decided to take a breath test on this specific machine?
  • Before deciding whether or not to take a breath test on the particular machine that was used, what sort of information would you want to know beforehand?
  • If you are selected to serve on this jury, would you be interested in hearing evidence related to malfunctions and flaws in the operation of this breath testing machine?
  • Do you think information related to the breath machine should be taken into account by a reasonable person when assessing whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty of the crime charged?

Your DUI attorney will pay attention to what the jurors say during their answers and how receptive they are likely to be to your theme. If you have questions about how to defend a DUI charge, contact experienced an Milwaukee DUI attorney at the law firm of Vanden Heuvel & Dineen today for a free initial consultation.