Everyone makes mistakes. When you are facing charges for a DUI in the Los Angeles area, you need the assistance of experienced, professional, and skilled DUI criminal defense lawyers. DUIs can be devastating for your career, your reputation, or your freedom.
Getting a DUI does not have to be the end. If you are facing heavy fines, a suspended driver’s license, or jail time, contact experienced DUI attorneys in Koreatown from Simmrin Law Group for a free consultation and case review to get the help that you deserve.
California DUI Laws
The law in California makes DUIs illegal based on your blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”). This is the percentage of your bloodstream at any given moment that is made up of alcohol. There are certain threshold amounts of alcohol that can be in your bloodstream before you are breaking the law.
This number is also based on the age of the person. It is illegal to operate a vehicle when:
- You have a BAC of 0.08% or higher for people 21 years old, or older;
- You have a BAC of 0.01% or higher for people younger than 21 years old;
- You have a BAC of 0.01% or higher and you are already on DUI probation;
- You have a BAC of 0.04% or higher and you are operating a vehicle that requires a Commercial Driver’s License (regardless of whether you have a Commercial Drivers’ License);
- You have a BAC of 0.04% or higher if you are a professional driver that is carrying passengers with you at the time of the arrest.
If you are found by a police officer to have met any of these conditions, you will be arrested, and likely charged.
Penalties for DUIs in California
DUIs in California are mostly penalized based on the number of times that you have gotten a DUI before. However, if you injure or kill someone while driving under the influence, the penalties increase substantially. In California, DUIs that do not result in injury are punished as follows:
- First Offense DUI: Up to $1,000 in fines, up to 6 months in county jail, suspension of your driver’s license for up to 10 months, and mandatory DUI education.
- Second Offense DUI: Up to $1,000 in fines, up to 1 year in county jail, suspension of your driver’s license for up to 2 years, and mandatory DUI education.
- Third Offense DUI: Up to $1,000 in fines, up to 1 year in county jail, suspension of your driver’s license for up to 3 years, and DUI education that may be ordered by the Court.
After being convicted of three DUIs, any further DUIs will be felonies instead of misdemeanors. Fourth (or more) offense DUIs can result in 2 to 3 years in either county jail or state prison, $1,000 in fines, and permanent revocation of your driver’s license.
A DUI that results in death or injury can carry extremely serious penalties, including up to $5,000 in fines, 25 years to life in state prison, permanent revocation of your driver’s license, and restitution (which means that the Court will order you to pay the victims for their damages or pay the state for their cost in prosecuting you). However, it should be noted that the penalties that are sought to punish DUIs are at the discretion of the prosecutor. Your highly skilled and experienced Koreatown DUI attorney can help you by negotiating with the prosecutor for a lighter sentence.
For a free legal consultation with a Criminal Defense lawyer serving Koreatown, call (310) 896-2723
Defense Strategies to DUIs
Your DUI lawyer in Koreatown will employ different defense strategies to try to stop you from getting convicted. These strategies can range from attacking the validity of your arrest to attacking the evidence that the prosecutor will present. Sometimes, it can be advantageous to plead guilty in exchange for much lower penalties.
One strategy that your attorney may employ is challenging the reasonableness of the traffic stop that led to your arrest. If the police did not have a sufficient reason to stop you in the first place, the arrest was illegal, and you cannot be convicted. Further, California courts have placed several limits on how police can set up sobriety checkpoints.
If the police did not follow these rules, then your arrest might have been illegal. Experienced and professional attorneys are well-versed in the law and can employ defense strategies that work best for your situation. Your DUI attorney in Koreatown will choose the best defense strategy for your case.
Guilty Pleas
Sometimes, the evidence against you might be too great, or the police’s procedure might have been too perfect, and there is simply no way to escape without some type of punishment. In this situation, your DUI lawyer in Koreatown can still help you. They are skilled enough to negotiate with prosecutors to get you a much lighter punishment in exchange for admitting guilt.
Trials are costly and time-consuming. Prosecutors usually have very high caseloads. It might therefore be in not only your’s but also the prosecution’s best interest to negotiate a guilty plea to avoid the expensive and lengthy trial process.
This can result in much lighter punishments for you so that you can get back on track more quickly. Your skilled Koreatown DUI attorney knows how to negotiate with the prosecution to ensure that pleading guilty would be advantageous for you. Your lawyer can get the best possible deal for you and will make sure that your life is not ruined by a DUI.
Koreatown DUI Lawyer Near Me (310) 896-2723
Contact a Koreatown DUI Attorney Today
A DUI can have lifelong consequences on your freedom, your career, and your reputation. The state is a massive entity with infinite resources bearing down on you to try to prosecute you for DUI. A skilled Koreatown DUI lawyer will fight for you to ensure that you do not get railroaded in court.
If you have been arrested for driving under the influence, contact a Koreatown DUI attorney as soon as possible to ensure that you are well-represented. When you need help defending against a DUI charge, contact Simmrin Law Group for a free consultation.
Call or text (310) 896-2723 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form