Over 14,000 people are arrested for DUI in Utah each year. In 2009, some 1.4 Million persons were arrested for DUI nationwide. Extrapolating the two figures (I knew that advanced algebra class in High School would come in handy some day) you see that about 1% of the nation's DUI arrests were in Utah, and comparing that to the latest US Census figures, Utah has just under 1% of the total population of the United States.
You might think that Utah is just on pace with the nation. However, Utah's legislature continues to throw in additional penalties and requirements for those convicted of a DUI. For example, the national average for a first DUI fine is $1,200, but in Utah, the mandatory minimum fine is now nearly $1,400, and as high as $1,900. Additional charges vary from one state to another, but in Utah, you will be hit with the costs of an assessment (about $150), minimum "treatment" of a Prime for Life 16 hour class (from $200 to $300), a "Victim Impact Panel" (about $45) where you sit and listen to persons who have themselves been injured by a drunk driver, or have family members who were killed or injured by a DUI driver, and depending on the court, you may have to pay for your private probation service ($50 or more per month) and all sorts of urinalysis and ETG testing (from $12 for a cheap "pee on this stick" test to the more expensive four+ panel screens, and the outrageously expensive ETG test for alcohol), and even more "educational classes" if you were really plastered.
Of course, your car insurance becomes impossibly expensive, you may not be able to get cheap life insurance or you may lose your job, not to mention the wages you lose when you go to court, classes and probation. Utah also suspends your driving priviledges for 120 days on a first offense, with no limited driving allowed (many states, like Colorado, let their drivers with a first DUI have a limited "daytime only" permit so they can keep their jobs -- but not Utah).
So when you get a DUI in Utah, do you just roll over and let the government screw you, or do you hire a lawyer? Sometimes the lawyer screws you, too, and getting double-screwed has led some people to believe that it's just easier to go plead guilty and take your lumps. But typically, you, the non-attorney type, don't have a clue how to evaluate a DUI case or look for vulnerabilities in the prosecutor's case. Many lawyers (including yours truly) don't charge for a consultation, and will give you a fair idea of what will and what could happen with your case, should you choose to fight it. So, what is a fair price for a DUI defense?
Locally, I know of attorneys who charge nearly nothing ($500 to $1,500) for a first DUI defense, and then proceed to do nothing, as well. No research, no digging, no investigation, no subpoenas for records. Just plead you out at the first hearing. You get what you pay for.
At least two attorneys charge $6,000 for a standard DUI defense. One does fantastic work, and has really made himself into the "Guru" of Utah DUI law, and earns every penny of that fee. The other guy, not so much. Nationally, a decent trial attorney that takes a DUI to a jury trial can charge, and outside of Utah actually be paid, up to $20,000 for such a case. This doesn't even include the extra costs usually necessary to have a chance of winning, like your own investigator ($1,000 or more) and expert witnesses to attack the field sobriety tests and the chemical test, breath or blood or urine. The cost of experts is usually around $500 or more to do a preliminary review and report, and depending on their specialty, between $100 and $250 per HOUR to prepare for and testify at trial. The last time I won a DUI jury trial, I had an expert testify that the breath testing procedures were not done "scientifically" and are not reliable. That client was happy he paid the extra $1,000.
Utahans are generally cheapskates and look for the lowest prices on everything, including legal representation. Unlike generic shredded wheat, a generic legal representation doesn't fill you up. It does, however, taste bad.
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