CDL Help — Protect Your Driving Privileges — and Your Livelihood
If you have a commercial driver's license, then your driving privileges are about more than mere convenience or transportation. Your livelihood, your lifestyle and your family depend on your ability to drive. If you are in danger of losing your Commercial Driver's License (CDL), the defense attorneys at Joyce & Bittner can help. A CDL driver should not pay a ticket or plead guilty to a traffic or criminal violation without consulting with a lawyer! There are violations that are of relatively minor consequence to a regular driver that can lead to a loss of CDL privilege if committed by a CDL operator.
Our lawyers both have more than 25 years of legal experience. Anthony M. Bittner spent almost a decade working as a criminal prosecutor in the Allegheny County Pennsylvania District Attorney's Office, while Richard J. Joyce worked the same amount of time in the Pittsburgh City Solicitor's Office. We understand that your CDL is your livelihood and we will fight to reduce your penalties or have your charges dropped entirely.
To schedule a free initial consultation with a lawyer at Joyce & Bittner, call 412-567-1229 or toll free at 866-471-9566 or contact our offices online any time. We are available 24 hours a day to respond to any emergency.
We Can Defend Against any CDL Charge
Because commercial drivers' licenses are strictly regulated, there are numerous ways to commit violations that put the license at stake. We provide defense against CDL violations of all kinds, including:
- Reckless driving
- Driving under suspension
- School bus violations
- Work zone violations
- Speeding citations
- Oversized vehicles
- Overweight vehicles
- Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol
- Unsafe lane changes
- Failure to report an accident or leaving the scene of an accident
- Homicide by vehicle or assault by vehicle
Penalties for a traffic violation can be much more severe when committed in a commercial vehicle. In a non-commercial vehicle, an unsafe lane change may lead to a $25 fine, but in a commercial vehicle, the same violation could cause your license to be suspended. In addition, many serious traffic offenses, even if committed while driving a non-commercial vehicle (your own car for example), can result in a loss of your CDL.
Drunk Driving Convictions and Your CDL
A drunk driving conviction can be devastating to someone that depends on his or her CDL to make a living. Normally, you are not considered to be driving while intoxicated unless you have a blood alcohol level of .08, however if you are driving a commercial vehicle the threshold for drunk driving is lowered to .04. Furthermore, as a commercial driver, you will lose your commercial drivers license or CDL if you are convicted of DUI or accept the "accelerated rehabilitative disposition" (ARD) program for a driving under the influence charge, even if the DUI was committed while you operated a personal vehicle. Two or more such major violations can result in a lifetime ban on holding a CDL.
Defense for all citations and charges while in a commercial vehicle are essential to your present and future livelihood. You may face a lengthy license suspension, or you may be banned from operating a commercial vehicle ever again. To discuss CDL defense with a lawyer at Joyce & Bittner, call 412-567-1229 or toll free at 866-471-9566 or contact our Pittsburgh law office online. We are always ready to respond to your legal needs.
