DUI Blog

You have three options when it comes to DUI defense: representing yourself, using a public defender, or hiring an experienced DUI attorney. Is representing yourself a good idea in some cases, such as when you can’t afford a lawyer? What can a public defender do to help your case? Your final option, hiring an experienced California DUI attorney, also has many common questions. This guide answers these questions and offers some key tips on defending a California DUI.

Representing Yourself
Unless you’re an experienced DUI lawyer, there are rare if any moments where you should represent yourself in a California DUI case. Why? You won’t know the first thing to do. You won’t understand how to present your case, how to call witnesses, what your legal options are, if you should accept plea bargains, not to mention how to construct your defense. If you are a DUI lawyer, you can effectively handle your case. If you aren’t, you need to hire a California DUI lawyer.

Public Defender
Public defenders, while a better option than representing yourself, are also secondary to hiring an experienced California DUI lawyer. This is because they simply do not have the time to handle your case effectively. It’s also because once you get one, you have no other options. You can’t just fire your public defender and get a new one.

Public defenders don’t have the time to handle your case, do not have the resources to help you win, and are not chosen by you (instead chosen at random). In some cases, you may make too much money to hire a California public defender anyways. But the final option is the best in any case.

Hiring a Professional California DUI Lawyer
While hiring your own lawyer is the best step, there may be some problems. If you hire one for a cheap fee, they could spend about as much time as your public defender. They could accept any plea bargain the prosecution offers so they can move on to their next case. Yes, this is a business, and unfortunately it’s not cheap to win. However, consider the penalties involved if you plead guilty to a California DUI or if you lose. Your license will be suspended, you will be fined, you will likely face jail time, and you’ll be  on probation. Depending on how much you want to avoid these penalties, you can likely see how paying more can lead to better results. You don’t want a cheap doctor to operate on your heart, and you should be willing to pay a lawyer to help you win.

If you want to win your case, you will have to pay for it. And winning is not necessarily “winning.” Your DUI lawyer will be trying to at the least lessen your penalties. If this is your second or third DUI, where you potentially face felony charges, this is quite important. Even for first time California DUI offenders, winning sometimes means negotiating. In some cases, you can beat the charges entirely.

The point of all this is to help you consider your options. While you may have to use a public defender, if at all possible at least query some experienced California DUI lawyers. And never represent yourself.

Getting pulled over after drinking is a scary event which occurs frequently n California.  Depending on the nature of the case, there are many common facts you need to know. This guide focuses on exactly what happens before, during, and after a California DUI arrest.

Why the Officer Pulled You Over
Typically the arrest is made after either breaking a driving law or acting erratically. If you are speeding, run a red light, or never stop at a stop sign, you can be pulled over on a basic charge. In some cases, the officer may already have suspicion you’re drinking and driving. In other cases, the officer may be suspicious after pulling over and simply observing your speech and other actions.

What Tests Are Made
You will be given an on-site breathalyzer test by the officer. If you test over the legal limit for alcohol – the same in California as all states, 0.08 or higher – you will be arrested. However, if you pass the alcohol test but are clearly under the influence of drugs or alcohol of some kind, you can still be arrested. In either case, further testing will be done, namely blood tests. Blood tests take longer, but are the best test for alcohol and/or drugs.

You Are Arrested
The officer will read you your rights and arrest you for a DUI. The officer will tell you your license will be suspended in 30 days, and take your current license away. You will be taken to jail, where you typically wait a few hours, and then be allowed to post bail.

Tests for Alcohol and Drugs
If further tests prove you were under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, the proof will be clear. Charges will almost always be made. Your arresting officer will fill out some paperwork and then the prosecution will decide whether or not to charge you.

The Charges
After reading the officer report, a California prosecuting attorney will decide whether or not to charge you. He or she can choose not to file charges, but in most cases for a positive test you will be.

Why You will Be Charged
Why did all this happen? Drinking and driving is a major problem in California and all states. Using drugs, legal ones which effect your ability to drive or legal ones, is also subject to charges. The problem is how many accidents, injuries, and deaths are related to driving under the influence. Just drinking increases your chances of being in an accident. It’s unfortunate, but those are the facts.

What You Do
It’s likely time to consider representation. Your options are to represent yourself, use a public defender, or hire a private California DUI lawyer. These are not equal options; you should almost always hire professional counsel instead of defending yourself or using a public defender. Why? A public defender has no time, and you likely lack the legal knowledge to defend yourself.

California, the largest state in the United States, also has the most DUI arrests every year. In 2008 and 2009, over 200,000 DUI arrests were made. So that gives us an average of 200,000 California DUI charges every year. The numbers can be high because of the population of California, but it’s clear that California law and California officers know how to find drunk drivers.

For Los Angeles drivers, it could lead to some substantial penalties. What is your best option for defense? That’s easy: hiring a Los Angeles DUI lawyer to represent you in court. Let’s find out why.

Educate You On Laws
You may have no idea of where to start. You drank some, got behind the wheel, an officer pulled you over for speeding, and then he or she smelled alcohol on your breath. You failed the sobriety test, and were charged with drinking and driving. That’s one common scenario: Los Angeles police officers have many other ways to pull you over. What a lawyer can do is explain what happens next – how you should answer questions, how you should plead, what you did wrong,and what the laws says the penalties are.

Save You Time and Money
The best assets a lawyer gives is saving you time and money. If you are completely unaware of California DUI laws, and want more than a refresher than some articles might give, an experienced Los Angeles DUI lawyer can explain how best to handle this case. In most instances, you save time in and out court – you need not worry about further mistakes.

Now, you may be thinking a Los Angeles DUI lawyer costs you money, does not save you any. True, no lawyer is free, and some charge higher than others. However, think beyond the monetary value – the fines given for a first time or multiple DUI offender. If you’re working, how much money would you lose by being in jail for weeks or months? Or consider the value you’d put in simply not going to jail; many times, you would put a number on there higher than the lawyer fee.

If the Arrest was Wrong
Another advantage of a Los Angeles DUI lawyer is to have the case thrown out. For one, officers do make mistakes. Sometimes they fail to correctly arrest you. In other cases, they fail to file the correct documentation, or do not appear in court. There are many ways an arrest can go wrong. If there were clear errors, the case can be thrown out.

Lower Penalties
In most Los Angeles DUI cases, charges are made. It’s not always possible to win. Usually the breathalyzer test seals the deal. However, at the least a strong defense can lessen the penalties. You can expect a high fine, license suspension for a year if not years, and some time in jail. If your lawyer provides an effective defense, all these penalties can be lowered. If you were drinking and were pulled over, even if you plead guilty does not mean you will get the full penalties.

Give You a Second Chance
Perhaps the biggest change laws give is to offer second chances. Even if you’re a multiple California DUI offender, you can still get a second chance. An experienced lawyer can help in getting that second chance. We all make mistakes, but without proper legal representation, sometimes the penalties can seem to ruin your life. An effective defense can lower penalties, if not eliminate them, and within some time you will be able to drive again.

The state of California, like all states, is tough on DUI offenses, even for the 1st time offenders. The laws are straightforward.

DUI California Penalties for 1st Time Offenders
-Jail time of 96 hours to 6 months
-Fine of $390 to $1,000
-License Suspension for 6 months
-Also must complete Driving Under the Influence Program

The more DUI arrests you get, the stiffer the penalties and the higher the chances of both extended jail time and suspension of license for extended periods. If you get another DUI after you first offense, you typically get penalized the most if it’s within  10 years of your previous California DUI.

DUI Penalties for 2nd Offense
-Jail time of 90 days to 1 year
-Fine from $390 to $1,000
-License suspension of 2 years

After that, technically the fines are the same, but the jail time and license suspensions go even higher. So should you fight these charges or bargain? The best route is to use a professional California DUI attorney who can help you make these decisions. With possible jail time and the effect of losing your license pending, it doesn’t hurt to try.

Trials for California DUI
A DUI attorney should be honest with you about your chances. For one, if you face a jury who believes you are guilty of a DUI, you need to plea bargain. If you lie about this and try to fight it, it really hurts your chances with the jury. Typically, the blood alcohol level tester is involved; if you have a blood alcohol level over 0.08%, you can expect trouble with a jury. California juries, like most, will consider that the proof they need.

However, most DUI attorneys in California have experience in handling juries, mainly because you have a better chance in front of a jury than a judge. Many judges are used to being lied to, which can make it difficult for you to fight the case.

The blood alcohol level may not always be a bad thing. If you can prove the blood alcohol level was close to the limit, you have better standing. If your blood alcohol level was tested to be very high, much higher than the legal limit, you won’t have much chance.

Hiring a California DUI Lawyer
These decisions should be made by more than individuals and families. No two cases are the same. While it’s sometimes best to put the case in front of a jury, you might in fact get a judge will to hear your arguments. Therefore, hiring a California DUI lawyer with the experience needed to fight your case is the logical final step. If you cannot afford a DUI lawyer, ask the judge for help and they will refer you to a lawyer to handle your case.