Orange County DUI Lawyer Blog

DUI Roving Saturation Patrols and DUI Checkpoints have become new tools in the Orange County Sheriff's Department's efforts to crack down on drunk drivers. However, law enforcement officials believe that roving patrols are more effective than DUI checkpoints because the deputies working the roving patrols are trained specifically to identify impaired or intoxicated drivers and look specifically for signs of impairment. The California Office of Traffic Safety funds these roving patrols.

There are many organizations however that believe that the sobriety checkpoints and special patrols are becoming profitable operations for local police departments. The DUI checkpoints specifically are more likely to seize cars from unlicensed motorists than catch drunk drivers. According to the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley with California Watch, impounds at checkpoints in 2009 generated an estimated $40 million in towing fees and police fines, money that cities divide with the towing firms. In addition, the officers working the DUI checkpoints received about $30 million in overtime pay.

Whether it is a DUI checkpoint or a roving patrol, there is no doubt that arresting officers constantly make mistakes. Breathalyzers and field sobriety tests are unreliable in that the breathalyzers results are easily manipulated and the field sobriety tests are strictly subjective. Although the officers who conduct the roving saturation patrols are "trained to look for signs of impairment", they are not experts; they are human beings capable of making mistakes and misjudging.

Anyone who has been arrested for a DUI at a sobriety checkpoint or as a result of a roving saturation patrol should contact an experienced DUI Defense Attorney. A good Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney, specializing in DUI's will examine the stop, the tests administered and the details surrounding the arrest to determine whether or not the arresting agency followed proper procedures.

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In California we have what is called Sentence Enhancements. What this means is that if convicted of DUI, under certain circumstances the Court can impose a greater penalty. Those circumstances include: 1) Prior Convictions - If convicted of a DUI within the last ten years, jail time, DUI school and license suspension periods are increased. Two priors within ten years results in even further penalty increases and if you have three or more, you will be charged with felony DUI; 2) High Blood Alcohol Level: A BAC level of .15 or higher, results in an enhanced sentence; 3) Test Refusal: There are two consequences to refusing to take a chemical test. The amount of jail time is increased and the DMV will impose their administrative suspension of your driving privilege; 4) Speeding and/or Reckless Driving: At the time of arrest, a sentence enhancement will be imposed for 20 mph over the speed limit on a surface street and 30 mph over the limit on a freeway.

A conviction for DUI can carry long lasting effects on a person’s life and for that reason, it is important for anyone facing a DUI conviction, to have experienced legal representation. A good Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney, who has expertise in DUI arrests, will make every effort to have the charges reduced and/or dismissed. A key factor in choosing an attorney is to look for an attorney who is familiar with the Court in which the case is pending, as well as the other Courts in Orange County. A good relationship with the Judges, District Attorneys, Court Clerks and other personnel can influence a positive outcome and ensure that you get the best possible result.

Anyone who has been arrested for DUI, Driving Under the Influence or Drunk Driving, needs an attorney who is skilled and will gather the appropriate evidence, know how to use it intelligently and efficiently, and render the best possible outcome for their client.

Continue reading " Orange County California DUI Sentence Enhancements " »

Driving Under the Influence or DUI is considered a serious offense in California and the Prosecution pursues the penalties and punishments seriously. Recent statistics have shown that there are approximately 13,000 DUI arrests in Orange County alone.


A conviction for DUI can carry long lasting effects on a person’s life and for that reason, it is important for anyone facing a DUI conviction, to have experienced legal representation. A good Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney, who has expertise in DUI arrests, will make every effort to have the charges reduced and/or dismissed. A key factor in choosing an attorney is to look for an attorney who is familiar with the Court in which the case is pending, as well as the other Courts in Orange County. A good relationship with the Judges, District Attorneys, Court Clerks and other personnel can influence a positive outcome and ensure that you get the best possible result.

DUI, or driving under the influence, charges are typically charged as misdemeanors. However, some DUI's can be charged as felonies. A DUI that is charged as a Felony DUI, usually involves DUI manslaughter; DUI causing serious injury; 3rd DUI conviction within 10 years; and 4th DUI conviction at any time. Drunk drivers who cause injury, or DUI with injury is sometimes referred to as a "wobbler" charge, which means that it can be charged as either a felony or misdemeanor. However, prosecutors typically pursue the charge that carries the most punishment. An experienced criminal defense attorney, or DUI defense attorney, will have the knowledge and experience that is necessary to get the charge reduced to a misdemeanor. A conviction of felony DUI carries a much more serious punishment than a misdemeanor DUI. A misdemeanor first offense DUI can be punishable by up to six months in the county jail, whereas a felony DUI can carry a year or more in state prison sentence.

An experienced DUI Defense Attorney will look closely at the police report and at the conduct of the investigating officers. Specifically, any misconduct or violation of rights must be taken into consideration. Further, if a field sobriety test was performed, and this is what the arrest was based on, it should be challenged due to the fact that field sobriety tests are subjective, basically the opinion of the officer performing the test. If a roadside Breathalyzer is used, this must also be looked at carefully as the results are unreliable and there are too many ways to skew the results. The law does require that anyone being arrested for suspicion of DUI must take a chemical test. Blood or breath, at the police station, are the two choices. However, there is no legal obligation for anyone to perform a field sobriety test. If a breath test was used at the police station, the maintenance logs of the breath machine need to be examined. If blood was taken, the attorney may want to employ the services of an expert to perform a “Blood Split”, which can help determine the blood alcohol level at the time of the stop rather than at the time the blood was taken. This can sometimes result in a lower blood alcohol level.

Anyone who has been arrested for DUI, Driving Under the Influence or Drunk Driving, needs an attorney who is skilled and will gather the appropriate evidence, know how to use it intelligently and efficiently, and render the best possible outcome for their client.

Continue reading " Defending A DUI Charge in Orange County, California " »

DUI, or driving under the influence, charges are typically charged as misdemeanors. However, some DUI's can be charged as felonies. A DUI that is charged as a Felony DUI, usually involves DUI manslaughter; DUI causing serious injury; 3rd DUI conviction within 10 years; and 4th DUI conviction at any time. Drunk drivers who cause injury, or DUI with injury is sometimes referred to as a "wobbler" charge, which means that it can be charged as either a felony or misdemeanor. However, prosecutors typically pursue the charge that carries the most punishment. An experienced drunk driving defense attorney, or DUI defense attorney, will have the knowledge and experience that is necessary to get the charge reduced to a misdemeanor.

A conviction of felony DUI carries a much more serious punishment than a misdemeanor DUI. A misdemeanor first offense DUI can be punishable by up to six months in the county jail, whereas a felony DUI can carry a year or more in state prison sentence.

Anyone charged with misdemeanor DUI or Felony DUI, should seek to hire an experienced DUI Defense Attorney, specializing in Drunk Driving Defense. An experienced Orange County, CA DUI defense lawyer should aggressively pursue and develop a strategy to defend your felony (or misdemeanor) DUI case and work to minimize all the negative consequences.

Continue reading " Felony DUI Laws in California " »

Orange County Sheriff's Department conducted "roving saturation patrols," on Friday in Lake Forest, Mission Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita. Four were arrested in Lake Forest, two in Mission Viejo and one on route to one of the targeted cities. All were arrested on suspicion of drunken driving. According to the Orange County Sheriff's Department, the revolving patrols are more effective than DUI checkpoints because the deputies look specifically for signs of impaired drivers whereas checkpoints are more for public awareness.

DUI, or driving under the influence, charges are typically charged as misdemeanors. However, some DUI's can be charged as felonies. A DUI that is charged as a Felony DUI, usually involves DUI manslaughter; DUI causing serious injury; 3rd DUI conviction within 10 years; and 4th DUI conviction at any time. Drunk drivers who cause injury, or DUI with injury is sometimes referred to as a "wobbler" charge, which means that it can be charged as either a felony or misdemeanor. However, prosecutors typically pursue the charge that carries the most punishment. An experienced drunk driving defense attorney, or DUI defense attorney, will have the knowledge and experience that is necessary to get the charge reduced to a misdemeanor.

A conviction of felony DUI carries a much more serious punishment than a misdemeanor DUI. A misdemeanor first offense DUI can be punishable by up to six months in the county jail, whereas a felony DUI can carry a year or more in state prison sentence.
A good Orange County California DUI Defense Attorney will be familiar with the variety of defenses available to someone who is being charged with DUI or Felony DUI. Some of the obvious legal defenses to felony DUI are challenging the underlying DUI. The appearance of being under the influence can be the same as fatigue and/or certain types of illnesses. Challenging the validity of the breath or blood test results and challenging police procedures and/or police misconduct. Other defenses might be that your negligence was not the actual cause of the injuries, but that there was something other than your intoxication or negligence that caused the accident and/or injuries.

Anyone charged with misdemeanor DUI or Felony DUI, should seek to hire an experienced DUI Defense Attorney, specializing in Drunk Driving Defense. An experienced Orange County, CA DUI defense lawyer should aggressively pursue and develop a strategy to defend your felony (or misdemeanor) DUI case and work to minimize all the negative consequences.

Continue reading " 7 Arrested in Orange County Cities for DUI " »

DUI Checkpoints, also known as, Sobriety Checkpoints, are roadblocks, set up temporarily on public streets, to catch drunk drivers and to cite others for Vehicle Code violations. The police departments conducting these checkpoints must adhere to strict guidelines, which have been established by the Courts. Anyone who is arrested for DUI, at a sobriety checkpoint, should contact an experienced Orange County California DUI attorney to determine whether the checkpoint was conducted according to the guidelines. If the police department conducting the checkpoint did not follow the guidelines properly, the checkpoint is determined to be unlawful and any evidence obtained during the arrest may not be admissible in Court.

The guidelines for conducting a DUI Checkpoint are as follows: 1) The establishment and location of the checkpoints must be decided by supervisory police officers, not officers in the field; 2) Police must use a neutral mathematical formula, such as every driver or every third, fifth, or tenth driver to determine who to stop; 3) Proper lighting, warning signs and signals, and clearly identifiable official vehicles are required; 4) The location chosen must be most effective in actually stopping drunk drivers, such as roads which have a high incidence of alcohol-related accidents and arrests; 5) The time and duration of sobriety checkpoints are also important; 6) High visibility is required so that the drivers can easily see the nature of the roadblock; 7) Each motorist stopped should be detained only long enough for the officer to question the driver briefly and to look for signs of intoxication; and 8) Sobriety checkpoints must be announced to the public in advance.

The Supreme Court has also stated that motorists who want to avoid a roadblock may do so and not be subjected to being detained merely because they attempted to avoid the roadblock. The motorist must have committed a vehicle code violation or displayed obvious signs of intoxication for there to be probable cause to pull the motorist over.

Anyone who is arrested at a DUI checkpoint in Orange County should contact an experienced Orange County DUI Criminal Defense Attorney to determine whether or not their Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures, were violated.

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