Los Angeles DUI

Published on: August 21, 2019

Strategies to Deal Resourcefully with the Stress of a Los Angeles DUI Arrest

Even in the best of circumstances, getting arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of DUI can be remarkably stressful. In addition to the embarrassment and stigma associated with a DUI arrest, you also may face the very real prospects of fines, license suspension, jail time, and in some cases, the possibility of getting fired or being disqualified for certain types of work.

Facing just one of these possibilities is enough to wreak havoc on your mental health; with a DUI arrest, you may face all of them. While a good attorney can help you navigate these difficult waters toward the best possible outcome, you may need to practice a bit of self-care while working through the process. Let’s explore some practical strategies and tips for managing stress in the aftermath of a DUI arrest.

Put the Event in Perspective

Published on: July 16, 2019

FAQs About California Vehicle Code Section 23572 VC (DUI with a Minor Passenger)

by Michael Kraut

A DUI conviction in California comes with some stiff penalties, even for first-time offenders. However, if you have a minor in the car at the time of your alleged DUI, you could face enhanced penalties, including mandatory jail time. The specific law detailing these penalties is California Vehicle Section Code 23572 VC, sometimes called the “DUI with a Minor Passenger Penalty Enhancement.” The ramifications can be confusing at times, so let’s unravel them by answering some of the most commonly asked questions about this law and how it may affect your sentence if you’re convicted of a DUI.

What is California Vehicle Section Code 23572 VC?

This section of the vehicle code prescribes specific additional sentencing by the courts “if any person is convicted of a violation of Section 23152 [DUI] and a minor under 14 years of age was a passenger in the vehicle at the time of the offense.” If convicted of a DUI where the law applies, it requires the courts to enforce mandatory jail time in addition to whatever sentence the judge gives for the DUI itself. The upshot is that if you had a child under age 14 in the car at the time of your DUI arrest and you are convicted, you will spend time in jail, even if it’s your first DUI offense.

Published on: June 17, 2019

What Happens if You Are Undocumented and Get a DUI?

by Michael Kraut

Being arrested, charged and/or convicted for DUI comes its own set of challenges, even if you are U.S. citizen. But for undocumented immigrants, a DUI arrest can open up a whole new set of complications. Undocumented immigrants face a certain amount of risk anytime they get behind the wheel because even a routine traffic stop can put them on the radar of government authorities. But since the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) places a higher priority on deporting undocumented people with criminal records, a DUI arrest or conviction can heighten the chances of deportation considerably.

When/How Does ICE Get Involved?

Technically, a DUI is a municipal or state offense enforced by local or state police, not by ICE. Some people might gain a false sense of security over a DUI arrest because the local police and ICE are two different departments. However, a DUI arrest and/or conviction can get the attention of ICE quicker than you might think. ICE may get involved with your case in one of three ways:

Published on: February 16, 2019

DUI and Hit-and-Run in California: Making a Bad Situation Much Worse

by Michael Kraut

Hopefully you never put yourself in a situation like the following scenario, but for the sake of discussion let’s consider it:

Suppose you’ve been out with friends for the evening. You’ve had a couple of drinks, and while you might be flirting with the legal limit, you feel in control of your senses for the time being. Against your better judgment, you decide to get behind the wheel.

Halfway home, you crash into another vehicle at an intersection you’ve passed a hundred times before. You don’t know where the other car came from, but you also don’t remember actually driving to this intersection before the crash happened. You panic. Perhaps you’ve been arrested for DUI before, and you don’t want the police asking questions. You decide visually that (probably) no one was hurt, so without getting out of the car—you drive off.

Published on: January 11, 2019

How Technology May Reshape DUI Prevention and Enforcement in the Next Decade

by Michael Kraut

Imagine that you’ve spent some time at a bar or at a party with friends. You’ve had a couple of drinks, but you don’t feel particularly tipsy—so when you leave, you get into your car thinking you’re safe to drive home. Your car, however, doesn’t seem to cooperate. Either it refuses to start, or when it starts, you can’t put it into gear. The car sends you a message, either audibly or by text, that your blood alcohol content is too high, and offers to call a taxi for you.

If you think this scenario sounds like a sci-fi movie set decades into the future, think again. The technology already exists to generate this level of DUI prevention, and within a few years we may even see cars equipped with this tech entering the mainstream. In fact, over the next ten years we may see emerging technology radically reshape the ways in which DUI is prevented and/or enforced. Let’s explore a few examples.

Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS)

Published on: December 19, 2018

A Look at DUI in Pop Culture (Part 1)

by Michael Kraut

These days, the term DUI almost always has a starkly negative connotation attached to it. In an earlier time, however, pop culture essentially winked the eye at driving under the influence. Comedians of the day would feign intoxication for a laugh or offer a sideways remark toward Dean Martin—who despite playing the “lovable drunk” for laughs, was usually holding a glass of apple juice and rarely got tipsy. It seems this “light touch” toward intoxication made its way into public attitudes toward DUI, which we generally passed off as a “fact of life.”

However, beginning in the 1980s, some elements of pop culture began going on the offensive against these permissive attitudes toward DUI, shining a light the gruesome statistics of injury and death that DUI frequently caused. As a result, public opinion has shifted dramatically, and our books, movies, songs and TV shows have begun reflecting a different view.

Even so, despite all the PSAs, ad campaigns and highway warning signs, DUI remains an ongoing issue in our world. Over this post and the next, we’ll examine DUI as reflected in popular culture then and now, looking at what our entertainment media has gotten right, where it’s missed the mark and where we might go from here.

Published on: September 14, 2018

Round Up of Wild (and Instructive) DUI Stories–Fall 2018 Edition

by Michael Kraut

“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; truth isn’t.” –Mark Twain

One of the most common tactics utilizes to try and dissuade people from DUI is to describe what could happen if someone gets behind the wheel while intoxicated. In reality, we can learn just as much (if not more) from things that actually did happen during DUI incidents. Quite often the events are completely unpredictable and frequently disastrous.

We believe these true-life stories hold lessons for us all, so let’s take a look at a recent compendium of rather crazy stories of DUI that have happened in recent memory to see what we can learn from them.

Published on: May 6, 2018

DUI Arrest—From the Officer’s Point of View

by Michael Kraut

No one especially likes to be pulled over by a cop—and for most of us, the experience can be highly intimidating, even if we feel we have nothing to worry about. We go through a litany of internal questions: Was I speeding? Is my tail light out? Did I not come to a complete stop? Was I swerving? If you had anything to drink before getting behind the wheel, these concerns can multiply: Did I drink more than I thought? What if I’m asked to take a test? Could I pass a breathalyzer?

That said, most of us think of a traffic stop or even a DUI arrest as something that is happening to us—we don’t necessarily look at it from the perspective of law enforcement. So let’s take a few minutes to explore that experience in the mind of the police officer—look at her rationale and thought process when pulling someone over, to see what insights we might gain from it.

When an Officer Decides to Pull You Over

Published on: December 11, 2017

The Many Ways a Los Angeles DUI Conviction Can Affect Your Future

by Michael Kraut

Despite California’s strict laws concerning driving under the influence, the state’s number of DUI arrests remains fairly high. According to the Annual Report of the California DUI Management Information System for 2015, there were more than 172,000 DUI arrests in 2012 alone; 73.8 percent of these were first-time offenders. Here in Los Angeles, law enforcement is known for its aggressive pursuit of DUI, with increased numbers of sobriety checkpoints. Some reports estimate as many as 100 people per day are arrested for DUI in Los Angeles County.

Moreover, year after year, the conviction rate for California DUI arrests hovers around 73-75 percent. Because three-quarters of arrests resulting in convictions, more than 120,000 California drivers a year will face long-term repercussions for their first DUI offense—and those who live in L.A. have a greater chance of being caught than in other parts of the state.

Suffice it to say you do not want a DUI conviction on your record. Let’s take a look at some of the ways a Los Angeles DUI conviction could impact your future.

Published on: November 27, 2017

DUI Around the World: Standards, Penalties and Prevention

by Michael Kraut

If you get into a car in South Africa, you might be taking your life into your own hands. According to a 2015 report by the World Health Organization (as reported in Forbes), South Africa has the most dangerous roads in the world, with 25.1 accident fatalities per 100,000 people. Furthermore, if someone dies in a vehicle accident in South Africa, there’s a 58 percent chance it was caused by someone driving under the influence.

These statistics are quite ironic considering South Africa has some of the steepest penalties for DUI offenses of anywhere else in the world. A DUI conviction can cost up to $10,000 in fines or 10 years of jail time, according to LifeSafer, and as recently as April, authorities were considering implementing a mandatory two-year prison sentence without bail for any DUI conviction. One possible reason for this dichotomy may be that the laws aren’t consistently enforced. According to a report by Voice of America, only 6 percent of DUI arrests in South Africa result in a conviction, thanks to a combination of backlogs, inefficient processing, bribery and corruption.

South Africa’s driving woes illustrate that America isn’t the only nation where DUI is an issue—although the WHO places the United States at Number 3 on its list of worst nations for DUI fatalities, only two behind South Africa a 31 percent fatality rate. The UK falls in the middle at 16 percent, while the country with the lowest DUI fatality rate (again, ironically), is China—the world’s most populous nation.