Articles Posted in DUI Penalties

The penalties for a San Diego DUI conviction can be very harsh. For example, even if you are a first-time offender, you could be sentenced to up to one year in jail, five years on probation, a fine of $1,000, and participation in a nine-month mandatory drug and alcohol education program. The judge may also require that you install an ignition interlock system on your car, in which case you can drive without restriction. Otherwise, your license could be suspended for up to ten months.

Given the serious nature of these penalties, many people facing a DUI charge are interested in learning what they can do to reduce the charges or penalties they may face upon a conviction. Of course, not every DUI case results in a conviction; however, it is still a good idea to hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.

While driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol places others in significant danger, there has been a shift towards an increased understanding of why people get behind the wheel while intoxicated. Rather than view these offenses in isolation, courts are now more willing to consider that a DUI defendant suffers from addiction, and that their addiction played a role in their commission of the offense. That being the case, one of the things that can help mitigate against a hefty DUI sentence is to seek drug or alcohol treatment while the case is pending.

In a recent California appellate decision, the appellate court considered the denial of a motion to suppress in a case involving felony DUI within 10 years of three prior DUI convictions in exchange for formal probation and dismissal of an enhancement and other charges. The DUI arose when a police officer saw the defendant’s vehicle travel into a field. He came up in his patrol car and directed his spotlight to the front of the defendant’s vehicle.

The defendant left his vehicle and tried to talk on a cell phone. The officer came up and asked what he was doing there. He smelled alcohol within moments of talking to the defendant and saw the defendant became nervous when providing responses to questions.

Later, the defendant identified himself, but the patrol officer suspected this identification was false and put him in handcuffs. The defendant gave his true name, and through a records check, the patrol officer learned his license had been suspended and he was on probation for prior DUIs. The defendant refused a chemical breath test, which was a condition of his probation. He refused a second time, and was then arrested and taken to the hospital for a blood draw, which revealed his blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was .093.

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Sometimes drunk driving leads to someone’s death. In that case, you may face multiple charges on top of any DUI charges that apply. In a recent California appellate decision, the defendant appealed a conviction for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and challenged the lower court’s denial of probation, among other things.

The prosecutor filed a three county felony complaint charging the defendant with a gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under section 191.5(a), DUI causing injury under Vehicle Code section 23153(a), and driving with a measurable blood alcohol concentration (BAC) triggering injury under Vehicle Code section 23153(b). With regard to these two other counts, it was alleged the defendant personally caused great bodily injury, that his BAC was at least 0.15% or greater, and proximately caused bodily injury or death to more than one person.

The defendant pled guilty and admitted the truth of the enhancement allegations. The factual grounds for the plea was that he had knowingly and unlawfully killed someone without malice aforethought while drunk driving and the killing was the result of an illegal act that was not a felony, which resulted in death. He also admitted his blood alcohol was .15 or greater.

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