01
Just Arrested? Start Here
You have one urgent deadline, several rights you should start using immediately, and more options than it feels like tonight. Here's exactly what to do — in order.
Read the guideCommunity Resource · 9 Guides
Longmont & Colorado DUI Defense — by a former Deputy District Attorney
The DA has a plan. So should you. Attorney Charles E. Liken Jr. — 700+ investigations for the City & County of Denver and criminal prosecution in his former role as a Deputy District Attorney — with nine plain-English guides for people recently arrested, pinpoint statutory citations, and honest answers.
Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq. — On the Legal Front Lines · Former Government Investigator, Denver Human Services · Licensed Colorado Attorney · 20+ Years in Private Practice · Former Colorado Deputy District Attorney · Colorado Court-Appointed Child and Family Investigator
Arrested within the last 7 days? Your deadline to request a DMV Express Consent hearing (§ 42-2-126, C.R.S.) may expire this week — before your first court date. Book your consultation today or start with Guide No. 1.
Start Where You Are
The questions you're Googling at 2 a.m. — answered
Written for the week after the arrest: what happens, what it costs, what's defensible, and what to do first.
02
Your License & the DMV
The criminal court can't save your license…
Read the guide03
Charges & Penalties
What you're actually charged with, what the statute really authorizes, and what typically happens…
Read the guide04
The Stop, Tests & Evidence
Roadside tests you could have refused, machines with maintenance logs, blood vials with chain-of-custody paperwork…
Read the guide05
First-Time DUI
For most people this is the first arrest of their lives…
Read the guide06
Repeat & Felony DUI
Mandatory minimums, felony exposure, and prosecutors with less patience…
Read the guide07
Marijuana & Drug DUI
Legal to use doesn't mean immune to charge…
Read the guide08
CDL, Under-21 & Professionals
Some licenses can't take the hit an ordinary driver's can. If you drive for a living, aren't 21, or hold a professional license, your DUI case has a second front — and it needs defending too.
Read the guide09
Costs, Insurance & Moving On
Fines are the smallest number on the invoice. Here's the full ledger…
Read the guideArrested? The first move is a conversation — today.
Start here: a no-charge 20-minute phone call directly with Attorney Liken.
Why LLF for DUI
Defense built on government experience
Attorney Liken has worked all three sides of the courtroom triangle:
- Government investigator — six years. More than 700 civil & criminal investigations for the Denver Department of Human Services (City & County of Denver): surveillance, evidence handling, chain of custody, detailed reports, and sworn testimony in civil, criminal & administrative proceedings. He knows how the state's file was built — because building files was his job.
- Prosecutor — eighteen months. Former Deputy District Attorney in Colorado's 12th Judicial District: first-chair charging decisions, plea negotiations, and trials across six counties. He knows what makes a prosecutor reduce, dismiss, or dig in — because he made those calls himself.
- Defense counsel — twenty-plus years. Colorado private practice spanning criminal defense and family law, now focused on Longmont, Boulder County & Northern Colorado's Front Range — the same evidence instincts, turned on the state's case.
Every DUI file at LLF gets read three ways — as the investigator who built it, the prosecutor who would charge it, and the defender who has to beat it. That review looks for weak stops, broken chains of custody, and overreaching counts.
That's the firm's premise in one sentence: the state's experience, working for you.
Start with Guide No. 1 Free 20-Min Call with Attorney LikenCharles E. Liken Jr., Esq.
Former Deputy District Attorney · Gov't Investigator · DUI Defense
Common Questions
Colorado DUI — frequently asked questions
How long do I have to save my license after a Colorado DUI?
Seven days. Colorado's Express Consent law gives you just 7 days from the day you receive the notice of revocation (usually handed to you at arrest) to request a DMV hearing — miss it and the revocation takes effect automatically, no matter what happens in the criminal case. This deadline runs separately from court and is easy to miss.
What are the penalties for a first-offense DUI in Colorado?
A first DUI can carry fines, license points, possible jail, alcohol education, and public-service hours, with harsher mandatory penalties if your BAC was 0.15 or higher, which flags you as a persistent drunk driver. The DMV consequences run on a separate track from the court case.
What is the difference between DUI and DWAI?
DWAI (driving while ability impaired) is the lesser charge and generally applies at a BAC between 0.05 and 0.08, while DUI applies at 0.08 or above or on proof of actual impairment. DWAI carries lighter penalties, and the difference is sometimes a point of negotiation.
Can I refuse the breath or blood test?
You can, but under Express Consent a refusal triggers an automatic license revocation and a persistent-drunk-driver designation — often a worse license outcome than the test itself. A refusal can still be challenged, but it changes the DMV strategy.
Is a DUI ever a felony in Colorado?
Usually a DUI is a misdemeanor, but a DUI after three or more prior qualifying convictions is a class 4 felony, and a DUI that seriously injures or kills someone is generally charged as a separate felony (vehicular assault or vehicular homicide). Prior out-of-state convictions can count. Repeat and felony exposure make early legal advice especially important.
Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq.
Attorney & Counselor at Law
Say nothing. We'll do the talking.
No-charge 20-minute phone call directly with Attorney Liken. It starts your defense today.
Directly with Attorney LikenStrictly ConfidentialFormer Colorado Deputy District Attorney30+ Years in the Legal Field