Carl Barkemeyer - Baton Rouge, LA

Carl Barkemeyer is a Louisiana criminal defense attorney whose practice focuses on representing people arrested for DWI. He is the founder of Barkemeyer Law Firm, a Louisiana law firm focused on DWI defense, with offices serving clients throughout the state.

For more than 20 years, Carl has represented people accused of driving while intoxicated and has developed extensive experience with the legal, practical, and driver's-license issues that can follow a DWI arrest in Louisiana.

DWI cases can involve much more than simply appearing in criminal court. An arrest may create separate issues involving a driver's license, an administrative suspension, chemical testing, employment, professional licensing, insurance, ignition interlock requirements, and other consequences. Carl's practice is built around understanding these different aspects of a Louisiana DWI case and helping clients understand what actually matters in their particular situation.

Carl represents clients facing DWI charges throughout Louisiana. His experience includes first-offense DWI, second and subsequent DWI offenses, felony DWI, DWI involving accidents, DWI with child endangerment allegations, breath-test cases, blood-test cases, chemical-test refusals, drug-related DWI allegations, and other circumstances that can make a DWI case more complicated.

Every DWI case is different. The appropriate defense depends upon the circumstances of the arrest and the evidence available in the particular case.

Depending upon the facts, issues may include the reason for the traffic stop, the officer's observations, statements allegedly made by the driver, field sobriety testing, body-camera or dash-camera recordings, breath testing, blood testing, chemical-test procedures, the circumstances surrounding an alleged refusal, and whether the State can prove the elements of the offense.

Carl believes DWI cases should be evaluated based upon the actual evidence rather than assumptions about what happened simply because an arrest was made.

One of the most confusing parts of a Louisiana DWI arrest is that the criminal case may not be the only proceeding the driver faces.

A DWI arrest can also create administrative driver's-license consequences. These issues may arise because of an alleged refusal to submit to chemical testing or because of the results of a breath or blood test.

Louisiana law provides deadlines for challenging certain administrative license suspensions. Missing an applicable deadline can affect a person's ability to contest the suspension through the administrative process.

Carl has extensive experience dealing with the driver's-license issues associated with Louisiana DWI arrests, including administrative hearings, suspensions, hardship licenses, ignition interlock requirements, chemical-test refusals, and related Office of Motor Vehicles matters.

He considers the driver's-license side of the case an important part of DWI representation rather than treating it as an afterthought.

Chemical testing is often an important part of a Louisiana DWI case, but the existence of a breath or blood test does not eliminate the need to examine the surrounding evidence.

Carl represents clients in cases involving breath-alcohol testing, blood testing, and alleged refusals to submit to chemical testing. The issues that may require consideration depend upon the type of testing involved, the procedures used, the circumstances under which the sample was obtained, and the other evidence in the case.

Refusal cases can present their own issues. A person accused of refusing chemical testing may face both criminal-case considerations and separate driver's-license consequences.

Rather than assuming that every breath-test, blood-test, or refusal case is the same, Carl evaluates the evidence and circumstances involved in the individual arrest.

Field sobriety tests are frequently used during Louisiana DWI investigations. Carl has substantial experience reviewing field sobriety testing and comparing an officer's written description of a person's performance with other available evidence.

Police body-camera and dash-camera recordings can also provide important information. Video may show the driving behavior, the interaction between the officer and driver, the instructions given during field sobriety testing, the driver's actual performance, statements made during the investigation, and other circumstances surrounding the arrest.

Video evidence does not automatically help either the prosecution or the defense. Its significance depends upon what it actually shows.

Carl believes the complete evidence should be examined before conclusions are reached about the strength or weakness of a DWI case.

For many clients, a first DWI arrest is their first significant interaction with the criminal justice system.

They may be concerned about jail, their driver's license, employment, insurance, ignition interlock requirements, court appearances, and whether a DWI will remain on their record.

Carl and Barkemeyer Law Firm regularly represent clients charged with first-offense DWI and help them understand both the immediate issues and the longer-term consequences that may need to be considered.

The objective is not simply to tell a client what the statute says. It is to explain what the process means for that particular client and determine the appropriate strategy based upon the evidence and circumstances.

Prior DWI convictions can substantially change the potential consequences of a new DWI charge.

Carl has experience representing clients accused of repeat DWI offenses, including cases in which the prosecution alleges prior convictions that could increase the penalties or classification of the new charge.

These cases can require careful examination of the alleged predicate offenses as well as the evidence relating to the current arrest.

Felony DWI allegations are particularly serious and require experienced legal representation. Carl and Barkemeyer Law Firm represent clients facing felony DWI charges and other enhanced DWI allegations throughout Louisiana.

Some DWI cases involve automobile accidents, injuries, child passengers, or other circumstances that can increase the seriousness of the situation.

Carl has represented clients in DWI matters involving accidents and related allegations. These cases may involve evidence beyond that found in a routine traffic-stop DWI case, including accident investigations, witness statements, medical evidence, video recordings, blood testing, and other records.

When additional allegations arise from the same incident, the entire situation must be evaluated rather than looking at the DWI charge in isolation.

A DWI arrest can have consequences beyond the courtroom.

Clients frequently have concerns about how a DWI could affect their employment, professional license, commercial driver's license, security-related credentials, insurance, or ability to drive for work.

Carl has represented professionals, business owners, commercial drivers, students, out-of-state drivers, and others whose individual circumstances make the collateral consequences of a DWI particularly important.

These concerns should be identified early so they can be considered as part of the overall representation.

Carl also represents people who live outside Louisiana but are arrested for DWI while traveling through or visiting the state.

An out-of-state DWI arrest can be especially confusing because the criminal case occurs in Louisiana while the driver's license may have been issued by another state.

Barkemeyer Law Firm helps out-of-state clients understand the Louisiana court process and the Louisiana proceedings arising from the arrest. When appropriate, the firm also helps clients understand which issues may need to be addressed with their home state's licensing authority.

Barkemeyer Law Firm represents DWI clients throughout Louisiana.

The firm maintains offices in multiple areas of the state and handles DWI cases arising in courts across Louisiana. Carl has spent more than two decades working within Louisiana's criminal justice system and dealing with the practical differences that can exist among jurisdictions.

Although Louisiana's DWI statutes apply statewide, every case occurs in a particular court with its own prosecutors, judges, procedures, scheduling practices, and local considerations.

Carl believes understanding both Louisiana DWI law and the practical court process is important when advising a client about a case.

Barkemeyer Law Firm maintains a Baton Rouge office and represents clients arrested for DWI in Baton Rouge and East Baton Rouge Parish.

DWI cases in the Baton Rouge area may be handled in different courts depending upon where the arrest occurred and the nature of the charge. The firm represents clients in the courts that handle DWI matters in the Baton Rouge area and assists clients with the related driver's-license and administrative issues that can accompany an arrest.

The firm's Baton Rouge practice is part of Barkemeyer Law Firm's broader statewide focus on Louisiana DWI defense.

Carl and Barkemeyer Law Firm also have substantial experience representing people arrested for DWI in Shreveport, Bossier City, and throughout Northwest Louisiana.

The firm handles DWI cases in Caddo Parish, Bossier Parish, and surrounding areas and represents clients dealing with both the criminal charge and the driver's-license consequences associated with an arrest.

In addition to Baton Rouge and Northwest Louisiana, Barkemeyer Law Firm represents DWI clients in communities throughout Louisiana.

The firm's practice includes DWI representation in areas such as Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe, Covington and the Northshore, New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana, and surrounding parishes.

The firm's multiple Louisiana locations allow Barkemeyer Law Firm to maintain a statewide DWI practice while providing information and representation relevant to the particular area in which a client was arrested.

Carl is also the author of DWI: Practical Information for the Accused and Attorneys in Louisiana.

His work as an author reflects the same approach he uses in his practice: making complicated Louisiana DWI issues understandable and practical.

Over the course of his career, Carl has written extensively about Louisiana DWI law and related issues, including DWI penalties, driver's-license suspensions, administrative hearings, chemical testing, refusals, field sobriety testing, court procedures, and the practical consequences of a DWI arrest.

Barkemeyer Law Firm's website also provides extensive educational information for people trying to understand the Louisiana DWI process.

People arrested for DWI frequently encounter an enormous amount of information online. Some of it is useful. Some is outdated, based upon another state's law, or simply does not apply to the facts of their case.

Carl's approach is to identify the issues that actually matter.

That means reviewing the circumstances of the arrest, examining the available evidence, identifying applicable legal and driver's-license issues, explaining realistic options, and developing a strategy appropriate for the individual case.

Not every possible defense applies to every DWI arrest. Carl believes clients are better served by focusing on the facts and evidence of their particular case rather than relying upon generalized assumptions about DWI defense.

Carl founded Barkemeyer Law Firm to provide criminal-defense representation in Louisiana and has increasingly concentrated the firm's work on DWI defense.

Today, the firm's focus is representing people accused of DWI and helping them navigate the criminal, driver's-license, and practical consequences that can follow an arrest.

Barkemeyer Law Firm's attorneys and staff work together so that clients have the resources of a law firm behind their representation rather than relying solely upon one individual.

Carl's experience and knowledge help shape the firm's approach to Louisiana DWI representation, while the firm's attorneys handle cases for clients throughout the state.

If you have been arrested for DWI in Louisiana, Barkemeyer Law Firm can review the circumstances of the arrest, explain the court and driver's-license processes, and discuss the issues that may be relevant to your case.

The firm represents clients charged with DWI throughout Louisiana, including Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Bossier City, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe, Covington, the New Orleans area, and surrounding communities.