Don’t Let A DWI Ruin The Rest Of Your Life: Hire an Experienced Waco DWI Attorney

In an instant, your whole future can change for the worst. One minute, you are out having a good time - celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or special occasion, or just enjoying a night out with friends - the next thing you know, your car has been towed, and you are suddenly a criminal defendant because of a DWI.

Just as shocking as it was to see the jail door slam shut behind you, a conviction closes other doors. Your license will be taken away for a period of time, so you will have to rely on others to drive you and your family around. Your personal, work, and family life have been thrown into turmoil.

One thing is for sure - if you've been arrested for DWI in Waco or McLennan County or any of the surrounding counties (Bell, Falls, Bosque, and Hill Counties), there is no time to waste. You need to contact an experienced Waco DWI attorney immediately. Fortunately, with a highly skilled lawyer on your side, this story’s ending could be better than its beginning.

Free DWI Case Evaluation With Our Experienced Waco DWI Attorney

If You Would Like A Free No Strings Attached Evaluation Of Your Case, Click "Do I Have A Defense?" To Fill Out Our Form

attorney Reaves National College for DUI Defense badge

Hiring a good DWI attorney versus an excellent one can be the difference between a conviction and winning your case. There are a lot of lawyers out there who claim to be DWI lawyers, but few of them have the special training and experience necessary to successfully defend a DWI case.

Everyone knows they need to hire a good lawyer, but most people don’t know what to look for when hiring a criminal defense lawyer. This is especially important when it comes to hiring a Waco DWI attorney to defend a driving while intoxicated case. Just because a lawyer handles criminal cases doesn’t mean they have the special training and education necessary to handle this type of case. That’s why board-certified DWI attorney Walter Reaves has written a free consumer guide to arm you with the truth and to provide you with the information you need prior to speaking to any lawyer about your case.

There are two national online lawyer rating services. Walter Reaves not only has the highest ratings on both of them, but his ratings are also perfect! Mr. Reaves was rated Preeminent 5.0 out of 5.0 AV by Martindale-Hubbell, their highest rating for legal ability and ethical standards. He has also been rated "Superb 10.0 out of 10" by Avvo.com.

Mr. Reaves is one of the very few lawyers in the Waco, Texas, area who is board-certified in both Criminal Law and Criminal Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Board certification ensures that a lawyer has experience and competence in a certain area and requires recommendations from both lawyers and the judges they appear before as well as passing a comprehensive exam to demonstrate they have the knowledge required to be considered a specialist.

As a solo practitioner who works daily in courtrooms throughout Central Texas in McLennan, Bell, Hill, Falls, and Bosque Counties, Mr. Reaves demonstrates how energetic and experienced legal representation can always make a difference in the outcomes of driving offenses and other serious criminal offenses. He has devoted his entire career to representing the citizen accused and brings over 35 years of litigation experience to fight for your legal rights.

Cases We Handle

Criminal Defense

A good defense lawyer is essential to a successful resolution of your criminal case. When your life and freedom are on the line, you don't have ti...

DWI

A DWI charge in Texas can turn your life upside down. How might a DWI conviction affect your future? Is it possible to be found “not guilt...

Expunction & Nondisclosure

Not every mark on your criminal record has to be permanent. Certain qualified individuals can petition for expunction or an order of nondisclosure to ...

Appeals and Post-conviction

Once you are convicted you still have options. Convictions can be appealed, and if that fails a writ of habeas corpus can be pursued. Few lawyers hand...

For Lawyers Only

This section of our site is designed specifically as a place to put information that is important - and useful - to other criminal defense lawyer...

Our Results

You Never Know What's Important to a Jury

Winning an ALR hearing

DWI Case Dismissed in Waco Because of Invalid Traffic Stop

The Truth Is DWI Law Is Complex. An Excellent Waco DWI Attorney Knows The Law And The Science Behind These Types of Charges

The aggressive defense of this type of charge can involve more legal defenses and technical defenses than most serious felony cases, like robbery and murder. The law is constantly changing, and new techniques are consistently being developed to successfully defend DWI cases.

Unfortunately, most lawyers view DWI cases as "routine". They mistakenly believe all they have to do is look at the prosecutor's file, review the video, and negotiate a plea - which is often the standard plea made in every case.

DWI is different from most other cases because not only do you have to know the law, you have to know the science and procedures used for testing. This is not taught in most general continuing education courses for lawyers! You have to seek out special training and work with experts across the country to be a truly effective DWI lawyer.

Criminal defense attorney and author Walter Reaves makes a habit of attending courses on DWI law. He also regularly attends multi-day courses on the science behind these types of prosecutions. Furthermore, the State Bar of Texas trusts him to provide criminal case updates for its general practice section, including DWI cases. He is one of a limited number of attorneys and the only one in this area who is a member of the National Academy of Forensic Sciences, which produces cutting-edge scientific information about blood and breath testing.

The Politics of it Means The Odds Are Against You

In any DWI case, the deck is stacked against the defendant. Everyone has seen the different advertising campaigns against "drunk driving", So politicians want to be perceived as "tough on drunk drivers". If they're not, they’re giving their political opponents ammunition to use against them. The result has been that laws concerning driving while intoxicated have become tougher and tougher.

Politicians aren't the only ones who are influenced by public attitudes. No one wants to be seen as soft on drunk drivers, including judges and prosecutors. The greatest fear of both judges and prosecutors is to have someone who was released on a DWI case go out and get involved in an accident, causing serious injuries or even death. That means that most of the time, even the most fair-minded judge or prosecutor is going to err on the side of caution, which is to ensure that something bad doesn't happen in the future.

Given the odds, it is extremely important that you hire a Waco DWI attorney with experience, special training, and skill in these types of cases.

What You Need To Know About Me

Looking back, I was destined to become a criminal defense lawyer from the beginning. Long before I became a lawyer I had a desire to see that everyone is treated fairly and got upset over what I saw as injustice. I think that seed was first planted when I read about the way we treated other races, and the second class citizenship they had, and struggled to understand how anyone could condone that (something I still can't comprehend or understand). In my teenage years, I veered to the far left on social issues, which drove my conservative father crazy. I thought he was going to have a heart attack when I told him I wanted to work for the American Civil Liberties Union. I never did that, but around my second year in college, I realized that I wanted to go to law school so I would be able to fight for justice through the legal system.

I was fortunate to clerk for an older lawyer when I was in law school who did some criminal defense work. I quickly discovered that I loved this area of law; it gave me an opportunity to utilize my passion for justice. When I graduated from law school I didn't follow the traditional path of most criminal defense lawyers. That means I didn't go to work for a District Attorney's office; I couldn't see myself representing the State against the individual. Instead of going to the District Attorney's office, I opened my own office. My first trial was within a couple of months of being licensed. I represented a couple of skydivers who had been charged with criminal trespass after skydiving off a skyscraper. Not only did I win the case, I was mentioned in a magazine article about the case. I was hooked, and slowly started handling criminal cases, and that soon was my primary practice area. I became Board Certified in Criminal Law as soon as I could, which was after I had been in practice for 5 years. When it became available, I also became certified in Criminal Appellate law.

It's now been over 35 years; over those years I have had the privilege of helping hundreds of people who have been accused of crimes. In doing so, I’ve developed a statewide reputation by working with organizations across the State, as well as writing and speaking at continuing legal education programs. I am also one of the few lawyers in Texas with membership in the Academy of Forensic Sciences, which allows me to stay up to date on the ways science is being used in the criminal justice system.

In addition to Board certified, I also have the highest rating given by the two national ranking systems, Martindale-Hubbell, and Avvo, and in the case of the 5.0 AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell, have maintained that ranking for over 20 years.

Texas Takes These Types of Offenses Extremely Seriously

If your BAC is .08 or above, you can be arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated. If you refuse to take a blood or breath test, you will automatically lose your driver's license for 180 days. If you are convicted, punishments vary depending on whether you've had previous offenses. Your lawyer must understand both the science and mechanics of breath testing to ensure that all possible challenges are considered. Blood tests are no different, and even the analyst will admit there is a certain margin of error in the results.

That being said, being convicted of a first offense is a big deal. You could be fined up to $2,000, get anywhere from three to 180 days in jail, lose your license for up to a year, and have to pay an annual fee of $1,000 or $2,000 for three years to keep your driver's license. Additionally, if there was a child under 15 years old in the car at the time you were arrested, you could be charged with child endangerment, which carries a fine of up to $10,000. It could also land you up to two years in a state jail and cause you to lose your driver's license for 180 days.

Contact Specially-Trained And Highly Experienced Waco DWI Attorney Walter Reaves

If you've been arrested for driving while intoxicated in Waco, McLennan County, or Bell, Falls, Bosque or Hill County, contact the Law Office of Walter Reaves, P.C., at 254-296-0020 for a free consultation with our Waco DWI attorney. Don't wait - the future of you and your family is too important.

Walter Reaves [email protected]

Criminal Defense Attorney Walter Reaves has been practicing law for over 35 years.