You’ve been charged with DUI in Florida, and the first question on your mind is probably: “Can I get this dismissed?” It’s the question we hear most often at Bozanic Law when clients walk into our Fort Lauderdale office after a DUI arrest.

The honest answer is this: it depends entirely on the specific facts of your case. But dismissals do happen, and so do reductions to lesser charges like reckless driving. Which outcome is realistic in your case depends on what the evidence actually shows and where the State’s proof is weak.

Here’s what you need to know about your chances and what actually affects whether your DUI gets dismissed.

Yes, DUI Cases Can Be Dismissed—Here’s How

Under Florida Statute § 316.193, you can be charged with DUI if you’re driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or higher, or if you’re impaired by alcohol or drugs to the extent that your normal faculties are affected.

But just because you were arrested doesn’t mean the prosecution has a solid case. DUI arrests involve multiple steps—the traffic stop, field sobriety tests, breathalyzer administration, and evidence collection. Each step must follow strict legal procedures.

Reasons DUI Cases Get Dismissed

When police or prosecutors make mistakes, those errors can become grounds to suppress evidence, challenge the arrest, or move for dismissal.

• Illegal Traffic Stop: Police need reasonable suspicion to pull you over. If they stopped you without a valid reason, everything that happened after the stop can be suppressed. No valid stop means no valid arrest.
• No Probable Cause for Arrest: Even if the stop was legal, the officer must have probable cause to believe you were impaired before arresting you. If the evidence doesn’t support impairment, we can challenge the arrest itself.
• Breathalyzer Problems: Breath testing machines must be properly maintained, calibrated every month, and operated by trained personnel following specific protocols. If maintenance logs show gaps, the results may be inadmissible.
• Blood Test Violations: Blood draws must follow strict chain-of-custody procedures. If the blood wasn’t properly stored, if the lab made errors, or if the person drawing blood wasn’t qualified, the results can be challenged or thrown out.
• Improper Field Sobriety Tests: Officers must administer standardized field sobriety tests according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) guidelines. If they deviated from the protocol, the results are unreliable.
• Miranda Violations: If police questioned you without reading your Miranda rights and used those statements against you, we can get those statements suppressed.
• Missing or Contradictory Evidence: Body cam footage that contradicts the police report. Dash cam video showing you weren’t driving erratically. Witnesses who saw something different than what the officer claimed. All of these can lead to dismissal.

First-time offenders typically have better chances of favorable outcomes than repeat offenders. Prosecutors are more willing to negotiate on first offenses, and judges are more sympathetic.

Reduction to Reckless Driving

Even when outright dismissal isn’t likely, we can often negotiate a reduction from DUI to reckless driving. This is sometimes called a “wet reckless” because it involves alcohol but isn’t technically a DUI conviction.

Why this matters:

A reckless driving conviction carries much lighter penalties than DUI:

• No mandatory license suspension
• Lower fines
• Less or no jail time
• No ignition interlock device requirement
• Doesn’t count as a prior DUI if you’re arrested again (though it can be considered)
• Less severe impact on insurance and employment

Prosecutors agree to reckless driving reductions when they recognize problems with their DUI case, but don’t want to dismiss it entirely. Maybe the breathalyzer result is questionable. Maybe there’s conflicting evidence. Rather than risk losing at trial, they’ll offer a plea to the lesser charge.

What We Look for When Evaluating Your Case

When you come to us with a DUI charge, we conduct a thorough investigation to find every possible weakness in the prosecution’s case. Here’s what we examine:

• The police report: We read it line by line looking for inconsistencies, exaggerations, and conclusions that aren’t supported by the facts. Officers often describe “bloodshot eyes” and “odor of alcohol” in every DUI report—even when video evidence shows otherwise.
• All video footage: We request dash cam, body cam, and any surveillance footage from the area. Video often tells a very different story than the police report.
• Breathalyzer maintenance records: We subpoena the maintenance and calibration logs for the specific machine used in your case. We check for missed calibrations, error codes, and whether the operator was properly trained.
• Your medical history: Certain medical conditions—diabetes, GERD, acid reflux, hypoglycemia—can cause false positives on breath tests or symptoms that mimic intoxication. We work with medical professionals to show alternative explanations for what the officer observed.
• Witness statements: If anyone was with you before the arrest or saw what happened, their testimony can corroborate your version of events and contradict the officer’s claims.
• The officer’s training and history: We research the arresting officer’s background, training certifications, and prior cases. Officers who’ve been disciplined or who have poor training records make less credible witnesses.
• Timeline issues: We reconstruct the timeline of events. How long between your last drink and the breath test? Was the 20-minute observation period actually followed? Did your BAC peak after you stopped driving?

This investigation takes time and resources. But it’s how we find the defenses that lead to dismissals and favorable outcomes.

Not Every Case Gets Dismissed

We need to be honest with you: not every DUI case results in dismissal. If you were driving erratically, failed field sobriety tests badly, blew a 0.15% on a properly maintained breathalyzer, and the arrest was captured clearly on video, dismissal is unlikely.

But even in strong prosecution cases, we can often negotiate favorable outcomes:

• Reduced charges to reckless driving
• Withheld adjudication (no formal conviction on your record)
• Reduced penalties like shorter license suspensions or no jail time
• Entry into diversion programs for first-time offenders

The worst thing you can do is assume your case is hopeless and plead guilty without a fight. Prosecutors count on defendants giving up. We make them prove every element of their case.

Time Is Critical—Don’t Wait

The sooner you hire an attorney, the better your chances of a favorable outcome. Evidence disappears. Witnesses forget details. Video footage gets deleted after a certain period. Police reports become harder to challenge as time passes.

Keep in mind that your driver license runs on a separate track from your criminal case. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles handles that administrative process itself, on its own timeline and its own short deadline that begins running the day of your arrest. It is worth looking into immediately, because that clock does not pause while the criminal case plays out.

Talk to a Fort Lauderdale DUI Lawyer

Zeljka Bozanic is a former prosecutor and a Board Certified criminal trial lawyer. She knows how the State builds a DUI case because she used to build them, and she knows where they come apart.

If you are facing a DUI charge in Ft. Lauderdale, Broward County or Miami, Miami-Dade County, our DUI defense team will review every detail of your arrest, identify the weaknesses in the State’s case, and build the strongest defense available to you. Whether that means fighting for dismissal, negotiating a reduction, or taking your case to trial, we will be with you at every step.

Consultations are free and we are available 24/7. Contact Bozanic Law today.

No panic — call Bozanic!