DUI

Driving Under the Influence: Alcohol/Drugs (VC 23152)

Per California DUI laws, it is illegal to drive a vehicle with blood alcohol content (BAC) percentages:

0.08% or higher―21 years old or older operating a regular passenger vehicle.

0.04% or higher―operating a commercial vehicle.

0.01% or higher―younger than 21 years old.

It is also illegal to drive a vehicle if under the influence of illegal drugs and/or medications, whether it be prescription medications or over-the-counter drugs.

When arrested for a DUI, most people believe that it will be impossible to successfully challenge DUI charges. Usually this is wrong, Our Criminal Defense attorneys have successfully represented many clients against DUI related charges.

Often equipment malfunctions can create inaccurate readings, and all forms of BAC testing are prone to error. Blood samples that were taken during your arrest can be acquired in order for us to have them tested at an independent laboratory. This procedure has often led to different results in your blood tests.

Did you know that during the roadside investigation that led to your DUI arrest the arresting officer is required to follow set of standardized procedures? Many police officers fail to follow these guidelines, making evidence gathered in the field questionable.

As you can see our team of Criminal Defense attorneys will investigate your DUI case from every angle and we will find any errors made by the police and by their testing equipment.

The Arrest

A DUI commonly begins with an officer of the law pulling you over, or at a checkpoint. If the officer suspects you to be under the influence, he will ask you to perform a series of field sobriety tests, you will also be required to blow into a handheld Breathalyzer. If you are thought to be under the influence, the officer will proceed to arrest you and you will be asked to take either a blood test or a breath test at the police station, or at a hospital.

Refusing both the breath and blood test can result in much tougher DUI penalties, often including a one year driver’s license suspension.

Normally if you are arrested for a misdemeanor DUI, you will be released a few hours after your arrest. In case of felony DUIs, you may be required to post bail in order to be released. After you are released you should be given a citation that requires you to appear in court on a certain date and you will also be given a temporary driver’s license. Your regular driver’s license is usually taken by the arresting police officer and mailed to the Department of Motor Vehicles. If you have an out-of-state driver’s license then the police officer will return your driver’s license to you when you are released.

Our DUI lawyers and DUI court

Our expert DUI lawyers will be able to attend most of the DUI court proceedings on your behalf, you will only be required to attend if there is a hearing in which you are required to testify or if the case goes to trial. DUI cases often involve multiple court dates and can run over the course of several months.

During the course of your DUI proceedings, your DUI attorney will spend their time collecting evidence in order to better negotiate with the judge and prosecutor on your behalf. Your attorney will use any evidence gathered to seek dismissal or reductions to any charges you may be facing.

If after all these proceeding, no settlement is reached then the DUI case will be set for a jury trial. Often during a trial, our DUI lawyers will be able to negotiate better deals by using the trial as an opportunity to review minor details that could have been overlooked by the District Attorney.

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Hit and Run

Hit & Run (VC 20002)

In California you may be charged with a hit and run if the following occurred if: you left the scene of an accident, failed to identify yourself to parties involved, and caused property damage.

A misdemeanor hit and run in California is concerned with property damage.
A Felony hit and run in California is concerned with injury; you may be charged with a felony if the other party sustained any injuries or death.

Penalties (VC 20002)

A misdemeanor hit and run can result in fines up to $1,000 or 6 months in county jail. Informal probation may be granted for a period of 36 months. Restitution fees to damages may also be imposed. The DMV will also count this as 2 points on your driving record.
A felony hit and run can result in fines up to a staggering $10,000. In most cases, a prison sentence of 3 years will be imposed. If death or serious injury occurs, the prison sentence could be raised to up to 4 years. A felony hit and run is considered a “wobbler” giving the prosecutor the discretion to consider the charge as a misdemeanor or felony.

What Is a Hit and Run Accident?

A hit and run accident is any accident in which a driver intentionally leaves the scene without providing contact information.

Examples of hit and run accidents include:

A car hits you and speeds off.
A driver hits your unattended parked car and leaves no contact information or way of collecting damages.

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Manslaughter

Voluntary Manslaughter:

When you kill another person during a sudden quarrel or in the heat of passion, you may be charged under Penal Code 192(a), California’s voluntary manslaughter law. The difference between voluntary manslaughter and first-degree murder is the absence of malice, since the killing is done spontaneously in a voluntary case. If convicted, you may face 3 to 11 years in the California State Prison.

Overview of California Voluntary Manslaughter Laws

Homicide, the unlawful killing of a human being, may result in a criminal charge of murder or manslaughter. In a murder case, the prosecutor must establish the defendant’s “malice aforethought,” which refers to the defendant’s intentions, decisions, and planning related to the homicide. Malice may be shown through deliberate planning or participation in reckless, dangerous activity. When an individual commits a homicide without malice, the state might charge the defendant with manslaughter instead of murder. The difference between murder and voluntary manslaughter often focuses on the defendant’s state of mind at the time of homicide.

California state laws define three types of manslaughter: voluntary, involuntary, and vehicular. For a voluntary manslaughter charge, the prosecutor must show that the defendant committed homicide during a sudden quarrel or while in the heat of passion. The events and circumstances surrounding the homicide — the quarrel or provocation –establish a lack of malice that would otherwise result in a murder charge. The prosecutor must still show that the defendant had the intent to inflict severe bodily injury or death on the victim in order to prove voluntary manslaughter.

Acts that qualify as provocation depend on the circumstances surrounding the homicide. Some common acts of provocation include mutual combat in which both the defendant and victim equally participated, murder of a family member, or adultery committed by the defendant’s spouse.

If a period of time has passed between the act of provocation and the homicide, California laws provide the prosecutor with the basis for a murder charge rather than a manslaughter charge. State laws require a murder charge if the defendant had a sufficient “cooling period.” If the defendant committed the homicide after the cooling period, the prosecutor may be able to show that the defendant had enough time to premeditate or plan the killing.

Involuntary Manslaughter:

You can be charged under Penal Code 192(b) PC California’s involuntary manslaughter law when you kill another person without malice or intent to kill, but with conscious disregard for human life. If convicted under PC 192(b), you may face two to four years in the California State Prison.

Overview of California Involuntary Manslaughter Laws

Homicide, the unlawful killing of a human being, may result in a criminal charge of murder or manslaughter. California state laws include separate definitions for voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, and vehicular manslaughter. Involuntary manslaughter most commonly refers to unintentional homicides that occur during the commission of non-felony crimes or reckless conduct during lawful activities. In California, vehicular homicide and involuntary manslaughter are separate crimes with distinct definitions and punishments.

Homicide during the commission of a felony often results in a murder charge rather than a manslaughter charge. When a killing occurred during the commission of a crime that is not a felony, the prosecutor must prove that the defendant had a criminal intent to commit the underlying unlawful act. If the defendant did not intend to engage in the crime that resulted in homicide, the state may be unable to prove involuntary manslaughter. The defendant may be able to establish a lack of intent by showing a reasonable mistake or lack of knowledge.

An involuntary manslaughter can also happen during lawful activities that occur recklessly, carelessly, or unreasonably. A prosecutor might prosecute a defendant for a homicide that occurred due to the defendant’s careless behavior related to what would otherwise be a lawful activity.

May 5, 2015May 7, 2015

Vehicular Manslaughter

California’s vehicular manslaughter laws (PC 191.5 & 192) punish acts of driving that kill another person when the driver drives in an unlawful way, with or without gross negligence, or drives during the commission of a lawful act which might produce death in an unlawful manner, or knowingly causes the accident for financial gain. Vehicular manslaughter is known as a “wobbler”. If convicted under a felony vehicular manslaughter, you may face two to ten years in state prison. If convicted under a misdemeanor, you may face up to one year in county jail.

In the state of California, depending on the degree of recklessness and whether alcohol was involved, a person could be charged with progressively more serious offenses: vehicular manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, or second-degree murder. In any of these cases, the prosecution must prove that the driver committed some wrongful act (which could be a felony, a misdemeanor, an infraction, or a lawful act that might cause death) and that the wrongful act caused the collision and the death of the victim. Murder charges are usually reserved for the most egregious cases, such as a convicted DUI offender who drives recklessly while intoxicated and thereby causes a fatal collision.