Criminal Law

Reality Series Actress Shayne Lamas Arrested at California DUI Checkpoint

Posted on November 16, 2009
Shayne Lamas, the former ?Bachelor? winner and star of the new reality series ?Leave it to Lamas? was arrested Saturday night at a DUI checkpoint in Venice, California. Shortly thereafter, she personally issued the following statement- "Early Saturday morning, after consuming one drink, I willingly drove through a mandatory check point on my way home with complete confidence of passing...

2005 California Fatal Hit and Run DUI Offender Pleads Guilty

Posted on November 13, 2009
42-year-old Youn Lee will be sentenced on December 7, 2009 for California Vehicle Code 191.5a gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. The sentence is based on a fatal hit and run DUI that Lee was involved in more than 4 years ago. He plead guilty to the charge on Tuesday...

Former Actress / Video Star Tawny Kitaen Arrested for DUI

Posted on September 30, 2009
Tawny Kitaen, the former actress, most commonly known for her sultry appearances in Whitesnake music videos from the 80?s, was arrested in California Saturday on suspicion of DUI. Although not too many details were released, the Newport Beach police reported that she was arrested at about 3 p...

The Extreme Range of California DUI Penalties

Posted on September 29, 2009
Prosecutors and Judges have an enormous amount of discretion when it comes to imposing California DUI penalties. If you?re sentenced for a DUI, your punishment can range anywhere from spending no time in jail to spending up to ten years in the California State Prison, depending on whether (1) it?s your first, second, or subsequent offense, (2) you?re charged with misdemeanor or felony DUI, (3) anyone was injured as a result of your DUI?and the list goes on and on...

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The Truth about Field Sobriety Tests

Posted on September 28, 2009
Despite common misperception, California DUI law does not require you to submit to field sobriety tests (FSTs) while under investigation for drunk driving. These tests are completely voluntary, even though the officer conducting them may conveniently forget to mention that fact?or, at best, may simply gloss right over it...

Will California DUI Offenders Soon Be Branded By a Scarlet Letter?

Posted on September 25, 2009
DUI penalties are always a hot topic. Recently, there is one area in particular receiving quite a bit of buzz. Several states, including Ohio, Minnesota, and Iowa currently require DUI offenders to display unique license plates to draw attention to their convictions...

Houston Texan Jacoby Jones Pleads Guilty to DUI

Posted on September 24, 2009
Jacoby Jones pled guilty to a DUI charge stemming from an incident last year. When arrested, Jones had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.13% and was found asleep in his car (with his foot on the brake while the car was in drive). Jones is receiving a first time DUI ?diversion? sentence which basically means that if he completes his probation terms, the case will be dismissed and the conviction erased from his record...

Child Endangerment ? A California DUI Penalty Enhancement

Posted on September 23, 2009
Last Thursday in New York, 41 year-old Melonie Lender, a middle school assistant principal, was arrested for DUI. Not only was it 6:40 in the morning, but she was on her way to work and had her 10-month old son in the backseat. In addition, Lender reportedly has two prior alcohol-related driving convictions...

Typical Testimony in a California Vehicle Code 23152a DUI Trial

Posted on September 22, 2009
It never ceases to amaze me. Before I even hear the arresting officer?s testimony in a California DUI trial, I can almost predict verbatim what he/she?s going to say? ?The defendant had red/watery eyes, slurred speech, and the odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath...

Bobby Rydell Charged with DUI

Posted on September 21, 2009
It was reported last week that the former teen idol, now 67, is facing charges for driving under the influence when his 1969 Bentley jumped a curb and swiped a pole, shrubbery, and a landscape wall outside a yoga salon in Pennsylvania. He is set to appear in court on November 19, 2009 to answer for the DUI charges...

College Students Beware...If You're Under 21 and Arrested for a California DUI, You Can and Will be Prosecuted

Posted on September 18, 2009
As summer ends and school begins, underage drinking becomes more prevalent. Students in college -- and even high school -- are returning to the party scene?which means that underage drinking will be on the rise. Underage drinking is nothing new and, for many, is the norm...

Your DNA -- Orange County's "Get out of Jail Free" Card

Posted on September 17, 2009
The Orange County District Attorney?s Office is now accepting your DNA?and, in exchange, will drop your criminal charges. According to The Los Angeles Times, which reported on this subject in today?s edition, if you are arrested for a nonviolent misdemeanor (which include most DUIs, petty theft, and trespassing) or a low-level drug possession felony and agree to give a DNA sample, the DA won?t file charges...

One for the Road?

Posted on September 16, 2009
California Vehicle Code 23152b is what?s known as the ?per se? law. This means that if your blood or breath test revealed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater, you are presumably guilty of driving under the influence. A common defense in a 23152b DUI prosecution in what?s known as the ?on the rise? defense...

Defendant?s Remorse Gets Him a Lighter Sentence

Posted on September 15, 2009
Jack Alvord, 61, was sentenced to 22 months in prison by a Portland judge when he plead guilty to DUI, reckless driving, and to third degree assault. Alvord, who was driving with a BAC of 0.30%, hit a blind man who was walking on the sidewalk (pining him between the car and a utility pole) before driving off...

California DUI Refusals...A Thing of the Past?

Posted on September 14, 2009
California DUI refusals are commonplace. In fact, many California DUI defense attorneys will ?suggest? that if you are pulled over for a DUI?and can live without your license for one year?politely refuse to perform any FSTs or submit to a blood or breath test...

Canadian Man Receives Life Sentence for DUI

Posted on September 11, 2009
The Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that Roger Walsh, 57, was sentenced to life in prison for killing a woman in a wheelchair while he was DUI. Neither the fact that the woman was in a wheelchair nor the fact that she was killed is what makes this case remarkable...

California DUI Arrests Down this Labor Day

Posted on September 10, 2009
Labor Day 2009 yielded fewer California DUI arrests?and fewer DUI fatalities?compared to last year?s totals. According to the California Highway Patrol, there were about half as many DUI-related fatalities as there were during the 2008 Labor Day weekend, and arrests fell by approximately 11%...

Zero Tolerance Law in DUI Probation

Posted on August 27, 2009
Most people convicted of a California DUI get probation. This usually lasts from three to five years, and includes certain "terms and conditions." Violating the terms and conditions subjects the person to a probation violation, and possible jail time...

Riverside Imposes Jail time in 1st Offense DUI Cases

Posted on August 20, 2009
Riverside remains one of the few counties in California to impose jail time systematically for first-time DUI offenders. Those convicted of first offense DUI generally receive between six to ten days of jail. This could be served at the Robert Presley Detention Center or Southwest Detention Center, or most of the time the person could opt for work sentence instead of actual jail time...

Reducing a DUI Charge to ?Exhibition of Speed?

Posted on August 05, 2009
California Vehicle Code 23109 defines the misdemeanor crime of ?speed contests? or ?exhibition of speed.? Quite literally, this means a motorist on a highway racing against another vehicle or a timing device. We usually call this activity ?drag racing? or ?street racing...

Wet Reckless vs Dry Reckless Charge Reductions

Posted on August 03, 2009
Much of the negotiations between prosecutors and DUI defense attorneys involve reducing a DUI charge to a wet reckless or a dry reckless. Both of these reduced charges fall under California Vehicle Code 23103, the statute defining reckless driving. The difference between the two is that a ?wet reckless? is a special form of reckless driving in which the record of conviction specifies that alcohol was involved...

Orange County Man Starts Trial for DUI-Murder Charges

Posted on July 22, 2009
The DUI-Murder trial started Monday of Danny Ruiz, a Laguna Hills man accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend when he crashed into a tree with a .17 BAC. Ruiz was on probation for a prior DUI. In that case, he signed an admonition acknowledging that he could be prosecuted for murder if he were to kill someone in the future as a result of drunk driving...

New Studies to Change Policy Debate About Distracted Driving

Posted on July 21, 2009
Research released today by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) is likely to change the policy debates about distracted driving. Among other things, the research shows that drivers talking on a phone are four times as likely to crash...

Ventura County Revises DUI Policies

Posted on July 15, 2009
The Ventura County court system boasts a long-standing reputation as one of the harshest in the state, especially when it comes to DUI enforcement. The D.A.'s office refuses to plea bargain DUI cases to lesser charges. And judges impose jail time even on first offense cases with no aggravating circumstances...

To Blow or Not to Blow? That is the Question

Posted on July 14, 2009
California's implied consent law requires those lawfully arrested for DUI to submit to a blood or breath test to measure their BAC. Yet many arrestees refuse to take either test and thus get charged with a DUI with "chemical test refusal." Are "refusers" better off? It depends...

California's DUI Zero Tolerance Policy Unduly Harsh

Posted on July 13, 2009
Stated in Vehicle Code 23136, California DUI law makes it illegal for minors under 21 years of age to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol in their systems. An underage drinker who drives with even a .01 BAC faces a one-year suspension of his/her driver?s license...

California Supreme Court Allows Greater Flexibility to Challenge Breath Test Results

Posted on July 10, 2009
In People v McNeal, the California Supreme Court yesterday made it easier for those accused of DUI in the state to challenge the accuracy of breath test results. We applaud the decision. Prior to the ruling, DUI defendants were precluded at trial from introducing evidence of individual variation in the conversion of breath test results to a blood alcohol reading...

Fleeing an Accident Scene for Safety Reasons

Posted on July 09, 2009
California hit & run law requires a person involved in an accident to stop and provide identifying information to the other parties. Failure to do so may invite a felony charge under Vehicle Code 20001 if the accident caused injuries, or a misdemeanor charge under Vehicle Code 20002 if there was only property damage...

California DUI of Marijuana: No Reliable Gauge

Posted on July 08, 2009
California Vehicle Code 23152a makes it illegal to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both. The most common type of DUI drugs case prosecuted in the state is DUI of marijuana. Unlike alcohol cases, California law imposes no ?per se? limit on the amount of marijuana that can be in a driver?s body...

California Vehicle Codes 23152(a) and (b): Compared and Contrasted

Posted on July 07, 2009
Most people arrested for DUI in California get charged with two offenses: Vehicle Code 23152(a) driving under the influence, and Vehicle Code 23152(b) driving with an excessive BAC (defined as .08 or higher). Although both crimes make up California DUI law, they define separate offenses...

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