Profile
Attorney Rick Ryczek graduated from Georgia State University School of Law, and he began his legal career with the Rockdale County Public Defender's Office where he represented hundreds of DUI cases. In May of 2004 he started his own practice, Law Office of Richard T. Ryczek Jr. LLC, located in Lawrenceville, Georgia, where he defends those accused of DUI.
In order to provide the best legal defense to those accused of DUI, Mr. Ryczek purchased and conducts experiments on an Intoxilyzer 5000 machine to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the machine. The Intoxilyzer 5000 is the same Breathalyzer machine that Georgia police officers use.
Mr. Ryczek was selected as one of 50 lawyers from across the country to attend Gerry Spence's Trial Lawyers College. Located at Thunderhead Ranch in Wyoming, Mr. Ryczek studied trial techniques focusing on how to better connect with jurors and present his clients' cases. He is licensed to practice law within the state of Georgia.
About Richard Ryczek, Jr.
Law School: Georgia State University College of Law
Admitted: 1999, Georgia
Professional Webpage: www.goodbyedui.com
Honors and Awards:
- "Most Amazing Verdict of Not Guilty" by Defense of Drinking Drivers' Institute
- Most Amazing Jury Acquittal, Georgia Defense of Drinking Drivers Group, 2003
- Rising Star, Published in Atlanta Magazine, 2009
- Awarded DUI Lawyer of the Year by DODD, the statewide group of premier DUI Lawyers., DUI Lawyer of the Year, Defense of Drinking Drivers Institute, 2009
- Most Amazing Winning Streak, The Georgia Defense of Drinking Drivers Institute, 2011
Bar/Professional Activity:
Scholarly Lectures and Writings:
- How to Use the ALS Hearing to Limit Issues at Trial, Institute Of Continuing Legal Education, 2008
- Leprechauns, Unicorns, the Constitution and Other Figmenents of the Imagination, Georgia Association Of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2008
- Field Sobriety Tests-How to Use Them to Your Advantage, Defense Of Drinking Drivers Institute, 2008
- Cross Examination/Keeping the Cop Under Control, Institute Of Continuing Legal Education, 2009
- Speaker, Persuasive Techniques, Georgia Association Of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2011
Verdicts and Settlements:
- State v. M.G. - .11 breath test and Speeding L.S. was pulled over for speeding. As he pulled his car to the roadside, he reached in the glove compartment for his insurance and registration documents. The officer assumed he was reaching for a weapon and approached his car with his gun drawn. M.G. put his hands out of the car and eventually performed field sobriety evaluations (poorly). Mr. Ryczek argued that the officer’s actions escalated the stop into a formal arrest and the field sobriety evaluations should be excluded. The prosecutor dismissed M.G.’s DUI case. State v. D.A. - .148 breath test. A concerned citizen saw D.A. getting sick on the side of the road and called the police. A Gwinnett County DUI Task Force officer arrived and found D.A. sitting on the pavement, throwing up next to his truck. The officer said he could smell a strong odor of alcohol from over ten feet away, and that D.A. admitted to driving, slurred his speech, and couldn’t sit up without swaying. D.A. admitted he was driving, but told the officer he was sick from eating bad shrimp. D.A. was arrested for DUI and registered .148 on the breath test. Mr. Ryczek argued to the jury that D.A.’s breath sample was invalidated when D.A. got sick. The officer should have allowed D.A. to rinse out his mouth before taking the test. The jury found D.A. not guilty of DUI. State v. A.H. - Refusal A.H. was pulled over for weaving. The officer noticed that A.H. had a strong odor of alcohol and he was unsteady on his feet. The officer testified that A.H. failed field sobriety evaluations, and arrested him for DUI. A.H. also admitted to taking Xanax. A.H. declined the officer’s request to blow into the breath test. At A.H.’s trial, Mr. Ryczek convinced the judge that the State improperly charged A.H. with DUI alcohol. A.H.’s impairment could have been caused by his drug ingestion, and the State failed to charge him properly. The judge dismissed A.H.’s DUI case. State v. B.E. - Refusal B.E. was stopped at a roadblock. The officer smelled an odor of alcohol and B.E. performed poorly on field sobriety evaluations. Mr. Ryczek argued to the jury B.E. was uncoordinated, and he was unable to perform the tests to the officer’s satisfaction even when he had not been drinking. At trial, the officer made a prejudicial remark and he judge granted Mr. Ryczek’s motion for a mistrial. The jurors told the prosecutor that they would have found B.E. not guilty. The prosecutor dismissed B.E.’s DUI. State v. T.M. - .202 breath test. DUI and Endangering a Child by DUI (2 counts) A veteran officer pulled T.M. over for weaving and saw that she had two children in the back of her car. T.M. performed poorly on field sobriety evaluations, and registered high on the breath test. The officer had a long history of harassing young women. Mr. Ryczek filed a Notice of Intent to Present Similar Transactions, notifying the Court he would present evidence of the officer’s harassment to the jury. The prosecutor dismissed T.M.’s DUI case. T.M. received treatment for her alcohol problem and is currently clean and sober. State v. R.D. - .14 breath test. R.D. was pulled over while speeding north on Interstate 85. Her speech was slurred, and her she was unsteady on her feet. She performed poorly on the field sobriety evaluations, and registered .14 on the breath test. At a motion to suppress hearing, the judge suppressed R.D.’s Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test because the officer failed to administer the test as he was trained. The prosecutor dismissed R.D.’s DUI and she entered a guilty plea to Reckless Driving. See www.GoodByeDUI.com for more results
Educational Background:
- University of Georgia, 1994
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