News, Prevention, & Studies

San Diego Drunk Driving Crash Results in 6 Year Prison Term

March 14, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

DUI and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated convictions resulted in a six year prison sentence for San Diego resident, Anthony Guarino, on March 11th, according to 10news.com. He was convicted of these drunk driving charges in January 2011, after his lawyers unsuccessfully argued that the accident that killed Marc Durham was actually caused by a “microsleep” episode due to his severe sleep apnea, not drunk driving.

Gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated is punishable by imprisonment in state prison for four, six, or ten years, under California Penal Code (PC) 191.5(a). If the defendant has a prior PC 191.5 conviction, or two or more prior DUI convictions, the sentencing range is fifteen years-to-life in prison. The sentence imposed depends on the specific facts of the case.

The maximum sentence for all the charges in this drunk driving case was 13 years in state prison. However, the judge considered the fact that Guarino had no prior criminal record, served 20 years in the Marine Corps, was a good family man, and had good standing in the community in giving the defendant the middle term of six years instead of the maximum penalty allowed under the law.

Ignition Interlock Devices Deter Repeat Drunk Driving Arrests

March 11, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

Ignition interlock devices, or IID’s, were found to prevent repeat DUI offenders, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Re-arrest rates for alcohol-impaired driving decreased by a median of 67 percent relative to drivers with suspended licenses.”

IID’s are devices that can be installed in vehicles to prevent someone from operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) above a specified level. The driver blows into the machine, a breath sample is taken, and if the BAC is above the stated level, the car will not operate.

Currently, California courts may require a person convicted of a first DUI to install an ignition interlock device on any vehicle the person owns or operates, pursuant to Vehicle Code Section 23575. This penalty is more likely if the driver’s blood alcohol concentration was .15 percent or higher, if the offender had two or more prior moving violations, or if a chemical test was refused.

California is also conducting a pilot program under Vehicle Code Section 23700, which became effective July 1, 2010, in the Counties of Alameda, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and Tulare only. Upon conviction of any drunk driving offense in those counties, the offender is required by the Department of Motor Vehicles, DMV, to have a certified ignition interlock device installed.

With this recent CDC study showing the effectiveness of the IID programs, you can expect the California pilot program will be expanded in the future to all California counties with the hopes of preventing repeat DUI’s.

Online Sources:

CDC Says Ignition Interlocks Work In Reducing Drunk Driving: stlamerican.com
Ignition Interlocks Reduce Alcohol-Impaired Driving: cdc.gov

San Diego MADD Recognizes Deputy Sheriffs For DUI Arrests

March 9, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

The San Diego chapter of MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, gave awards to eight San Diego Sheriff’s Deputies today for their efforts in arresting drunk drivers.

The patrol area and the deputies are as follows:

Encinitas: Deputy Brenda Weibe;
Encinitas: Deputy Dave Toner;
Imperial Beach: Deputy Rob Siegfried;
Lemon Grove: Deputy Felix Santiesteban;
Poway: Deputy Aaron Meleen;
San Marcos: Deputy Tammy Bennetts;
Santee: Deputy Laura Shands; and,
Vista: Deputy Kenneth Werner.

These officers were responsible for over 700 drunk driving arrests in 2010. Deputy Toner made 187 of those DUI arrests and he will also receive the MADD California Hero Award at another MADD event in Sacramento on March 26th.

These awards were given just two weeks after it was announced that Officer Alicia Chudy of the Chula Vista Police Department would be receiving the MADD California Hero Award for her 85 DUI arrests last year.

Online Source:
Mothers Against Drunk Driving Honors Deputies:10news.com
Chula Vista Police Officer Receives MADD Award: signonsandiego.com

DUI Charges For Former MADD President!

February 28, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

hypocrite.mug.jpg Former MADD President, Debra Oberlin, 48, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence in Gainesville, Florida, on February 18th, according to gainesville.com.

She was driving erratically, swerving and crossing lanes, when she was pulled over at 1:10 a.m. Supposedly, Oberlin smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot eyes, and admitted to drinking four beers.

She took two breath tests which allegedly showed her blood alcohol content to be .234 and .239. This is almost 3 times Florida’s legal limit of .08.

Oberlin was the MADD chapter president in Gainesville for three years in the 1990’s. MADD stands for Mothers Against Drunk Driving and their mission statement, according to their website, is “to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking.” She earned this mug!!

No one is immune from drunk driving charges, not even a MADD Chapter President!! If you drink alcohol and you drive a car, you are at risk to be stopped, investigated, and charged with drunk driving.

Driving Under the Influence Charges For Major League Baseball Star

February 25, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

cabrera.bobblehead.jpg DUI is suspected after Miguel Cabrera, first baseman for the Detroit Tigers, was stopped in St. Lucie, Florida on his way to training camp on February 16th, 2011.

When approached by the cops, he picked up a bottle of Scotch whiskey and started drinking it. It is further alleged that he had an odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath, bloodshot eyes, and slurred speech, according to UPI.com. He was charged with drunk driving and resisting arrest and is scheduled to be arraigned on March 16th.

Alcohol abuse has been a problem for Cabrera in the past. In 2010, he entered an alcohol treatment facility after an domestic incident that led to his arrest and a chemical test that showed he was three times the legal limit of .08% blood alcohol content. After this recent DUI arrest, Major League Baseball’s doctors and specialists recommended he enter another treatment program.

Cabrera has not explicitly admitted to having an alcohol problem; however, he has had two alcohol related incidents that involved law enforcement within the past sixteen months. If he has a California driver’s license, the DMV could refuse to issue or renew his license if it is found that he is “incapable of safely operating a motor vehicle because of alcoholism, excessive and chronic use of alcoholic beverages, or addiction to, or habitual use of, any drug.” (California Vehicle Code Section 12806(a).)

Vista Judge Sentenced Drunk Driver For Deaths Of Two In Escondido

February 18, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

A north Escondido DUI accident lead to a guilty plea and subsquent sentencing in a Vista courtroom on February 17th, according to 10news.com.

Oscar Tinoco, 19, plead guilty to several DUI charges including drunk driving, driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher, hit-and-run, and gross vehicular manslaughter on October 13, 2010. His blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was .08 percent two hours after the collision. It was estimated that his BAC was .12 or .13 when he was actually driving.

This drunk driving accident was part of a mutiple car wreck on northbound Interstate 15, near the Gopher Canyon Road onramp at 4 a.m. on Oct. 10, 2009. A sleepy driver rear-ended a Jeep and they stopped on the right side of the road. Tinoco then drove his car into the Jeep, knocking one of the passengers off the overpass killing him. Tinoco fled as another car ran into the accident scene, hit the guardrail, went airborne, and rolled down an embankment killing the driver.

The Vista judge sentenced Tinoco to 15 years in state prison.

Online Sources:

Lakeside Woman To Stand Trial For Alleged DUI in Alpine

February 10, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

Lakeside resident, Kathleen Lucinda Sloan, 20, had a preliminary hearing in El Cajon Court on February 9th, according to 10news.com. She is accused of being under the influence of an over-the-counter medication, driving, and then crashing head-on into another motorist in Alpine on November 1st, 2010. Sergio Chan Mora, 54, of National City, was killed in the crash.

El Cajon Judge William McGrath ordered Sloan to stand trial on second degree murder and other charges on March 28th. She faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted of second degree murder.

Preliminary hearings pertain to felony cases. It is usually held within 10 days of the arraignment or when the defendant enters a plea, whichever is later. At the hearing, the prosecutor must present sufficient evidence that there is probable cause to believe a crime has been committed and this defendant comitted it.

If probable cause is shown, the judge will hold the defendant to answer in the trial court. The prosecutor then has 15 days to file the information with the trial court and within 60 days the trial will begin unless time is waived.

If the judge finds that there is not sufficient evidence, the case is dismissed. The prosecutor may refile the case as long as there has not been two dismissals unless an exception under Penal Code Section 1387 applies.

Pacific Beach DUI Arrest Rate The Highest In San Diego County

February 8, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

Pacific Beach has the highest DUI arrest rate in San Diego County, according to voiceofsandiego.org. San Diego Police made 514 drunk driving arrests in 2009 in the police beat that roughly covers the Pacific Beach neighborhood. Of those, only 26 were arrested in DUI checkpoints. In 2008, there were 594 driving under the influence arrests in this same area; however, there were no DUI checkpoints in San Diego that year.

The average police beat in San Diego had just 33 DUI arrests in 2009. The top twelve beats for DUI arrests were:

Pacific Beach: 514
East Village: 152
Core-Columbia: 151
North Park: 145
Hillcrest: 140
South Park: 131
Grantville: 104
Mission Valley East: 102
Mira Mesa: 84
Logan Heights: 82
Kearny Mesa: 80
La Jolla: 69

Temecula Alleged Drunk Driving Crash Kills Daughter, Mother Had 4 Prior DUI’s in San Diego

February 1, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

San Marcos’ former resident, Karen Faye Honeycutt, 41, was charged with second-degree murder, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, drunk driving causing great bodily injury, and other crimes in connection with a crash in Temecula that killed her nine year old daughter and injured two of her sons on January 21st, 2011, according to the North County Times.

Honeycutt’s license was suspended for a previous DUI conviction at the time of this incident. She had two previous convictions for driving on a suspended license in the past two years, as reported by 10news.com.

A sentencing enhancement was added for having prior driving under the influence (DUI) convictions in San Diego County. It is alleged that she had four convictions since 1994; however, according to Vehicle Code Section 23540, the prior DUI offenses must be within ten years of this offense to be counted as a prior for purposes of sentencing. Punishment is enhanced with every prior driving under the influence charge within that ten year period.

Honeycutt is facing 22 years to life in prison if convicted as charged.

Second Drunk Driving Conviction Lands Motley Crue Singer In Jail

January 26, 2011 | The Law Offices of Susan L. Hartman

After pleading guilty to his second driving under the influence (DUI) charge, Vince Neil, the singer of the rock band Motley Crue, will serve two weeks in jail plus two weeks of house arrest, according to news.yahoo.com.

Neil plead guilty to the misdeamenor DUI charge, stemming from an incident on June 27, 2010. His sentence will commence on February 15th, 2011, in Las Vegas. vince.neil.jpg Neil’s first DUI conviction was In 1984, when he plead guilty to driving under the influence and manslaughter after crashing in Redondo Beach, California, killing his passenger. For that DUI, Neil served twenty days in jail and paid $2.5 million in restitution to the victims.

The defense lawyer on the case commented that Neil faced six months in jail for this second DUI in Nevada. However, if Neil picked up the second misdemeanor DUI in California and that second conviction was within ten years of a first conviction in any state, he would have been exposed to one year in the county jail (California Vehicle Code Section 23540).

Online Sources:

Motley Crue Singer Gets 2 Week Jail Sentence: news.yahoo.com
Motley Crue’s Vince Neil To Serve Two-Week Jail Sentence: mtv.com