There are times when I leave a motion hearing and realize I could have presented a better case for the granting of the Defendant's motion to suppress. Usually, that sinking feeling occurs because I thought that a judge would be more aligned with my position than they turned out to be. Sometimes, it occurs as a result of just being exhausted.

A month or so ago, I had a motion hearing involving an issue that I thought was very clear. I had also picked a jury the day before for a case that was going to trial later in the week. So, I was a little distracted. I felt good about our prospects at the motion hearing; however, I just did not have the time to prepare for the hearing as I would like. That being said, I had an administrative license suspension hearing in the case and won the appeal on the issue that would be litigated at the hearing.

So, I showed up on a case that had a clear issue in it. The arresting officer thought that he had no obligation to travel outside of the county to provide my client with his requested independent test. Georgia law is clear that, after being arrested for a DUI in Georgia, a defendant has a right to an independent test after submitting to the requested state-administered blood, breath, or urine test.

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