Can They Really Take My License? :

If this is your first DUI in Court and DMV (at least in the last ten years), then, in most cases, regardless of what happens in court, the DMV will attempt to suspend your license for four months as soon as your pink 30-day temporary license expires (see below). We can convert most of this suspension into a restricted non-commercial license so you can drive to, from, and during your employment. The suspension increases to one year if you refused to take a blood or breath test, or if you were under 21 years old at the time of the arrest. If you were a commercial license holder, then you will lose your commercial privileges for one year.

In addition, a criminal court conviction will result in a separate suspension for six months. This separate suspension increases to ten months if (1) your blood alcohol concentration was at or above .20%, or (2) you refused to take a blood or breath test. The DMV and court suspensions run together, and the court suspension is avoidable if you have the information to properly accomplish the required tasks. The court suspension increases to one year if there were injuries caused by the DUI driving.

All court and DMV suspensions can be challenged. Contact your attorney as soon as possible so that he/she can begin the necessary process to restore your license and to eliminate or reduce the suspensions to the least amount of time possible.

If you have one or more prior suspensions for a DUI or alcohol-related “Wet” reckless driving in the last ten years, then the DMV will attempt to suspend your license for one year with no possibility of a hardship exception. That suspension increases to two years if you have one prior and refused to take a blood or breath test during this latest arrest, or three years if you have two priors and refused the tests. In addition a court conviction results in a two-year suspension if you have one prior, a three-year revocation if you have two priors, and a four-year revocation if you have three priors. The period of revocation is even greater if there were injuries caused by the DUI driving. If you have a commercial license then your commercial privileges would be revoked for life after your second DUI. These suspensions can and should be vigorously analyzed and litigated at a DMV hearing, if possible. Your attorney can show you how to cut most court suspensions in half and get a work license at the earliest opportunity.

DMV – Beware Of The 10-Day Rule :

During your arrest, the police officer is supposed to take your California picture license (they are not allowed to take an out-of state license) and hand you a pink 8-1/2" x 11" temporary license from DMV which is entitled:

Assuming you were validly licensed at the time of arrest, then this license is a 30-day temporary license with full driving privileges. Once you hire an attorney, the very first thing he/she should do is contact DMV to schedule a hearing in order to preserve your opportunity to challenge the DMV suspensions outlined above. The actual contacting of DMV must occur within the first ten days following your receipt of the temporary license. In some cases, we will be able to get a hearing by contacting DMV even after the ten-day period.

The DMV may not be able to give you an in-person hearing within the 30-day period following your arrest. By acting promptly, we are able to extend the thirty-day license for as long as it is necessary to acquire and litigate a DMV hearing designed to fight the taking of your license. This explanation is not clearly set forth in your temporary license although it is referred to under “HEARING INFORMATION” on the front of your temporary license.

Important Issues To Look For In your Case :

• Did the police officer actually see you driving? Did you consume alcohol after driving, but before the officer contacted you? Did the police officer have a good or valid reason to stop your car or make contact with you?
• Did the police officer tell you why he/she was stopping you? Do you agree with his/her reasons?
• When the police officer attempted to stop you i.e. using flashing lights, etc., did you respond immediately? Did you respond in a manner that is consistent with someone who is driving in a sober condition? Did you pull off the road in a safe manner, i.e. not striking any objects, no erratic movements, etc.?
• Did the police officer tell you or ask you to do field sobriety tests (FST's)? Did the police officer tell you that there is absolutely no legal requirement whatsoever for you to do field sobriety tests (with the exception of the PAS - Portable Alcohol Test for those under twenty-one). Did he tell you that you could refuse to take these tests? Did he/she tell you that if you did not perform these tests satisfactorily, he/she could later testify against you in a court or DMV hearing? Did the police officer tell you that if you refused to take any field sobriety tests that he/she may not have enough information to arrest you and may have to let you go on your way? Did he/she fully explain and demonstrate each test?
• Did you pass your FST’s, e.g., recite the alphabet, walk the line, stand on one foot, finger count, finger to nose, hand slap, follow the pen with your eyes?
• Did the police officer give you your Miranda Rights, e.g., ”You have the right to remain silent. You have a right to speak to an attorney before answering any questions” once you were in custody?
• Did you take a portable alcohol test (commonly referred to as a P.A.S. test)? Did the police officer tell you that, unless you were under 21 years of age, you are under no legal requirement whatsoever to take a P.A.S. test? Did the police officer tell you that if the P.A.S. test was .08% or more that he/she could use that test against you in court and at a DMV hearing?
• How much time occurred between (1) when you initially were pulled over by the police officer and (2) when you actually took a breath, blood or urine test at a police station/hospital? Did your alcohol level increase from the time of the driving to the time of the test?
• If you took a breath test, did the police officer constantly observe you for 15 minutes immediately preceding the actual test (to insure that there was no burping, coughing etc.)? After taking the breath test, were you told that you also had a right to take a confirming blood test (because the breath test does not save a sample for later testing by your attorney)?

What Can an Expert Lawyer Do For Me? :

Unfortunately, sometimes a person who has been arrested for a DUI receives well intentioned but bad advice from friends and family. The advice generally goes something like this: “why get a lawyer, you know you must be guilty since you were arrested”, “my friend got a lawyer and he didn’t do much for her”, etc. It is crucial to get an expert DUI lawyer to handle your criminal and DMV case even though you may have been legally “drinking and driving”. In most cases, we can get all or some of the charges dismissed or reduced, acquire a reduction in various aspects of the final sentence and/ or often reduce or mitigate the length of the suspension of a driver’s license.

Whenever you are dealing with a charge which is more than an infraction (i.e. a speeding ticket, running a stop sign, etc.) there are severe consequences. A DUI is a criminal case -not a traffic case. If you are poor or unemployed you should seek the services of the public defender’s office. Even if you are represented by the public defender, you may still want to hire a private lawyer to handle your DMV matter (which cannot be handled by the public defender). Only an expert DUI lawyer is equipped to handle the variety of issues that are involved in the defense of a DUI case. These include proof problems involving establishing the driver’s identity, elimination of drinking subsequent to driving, search and seizure issues i.e., probable cause, articulable suspicion, etc.; pharmacology/chemistry defenses such as rising blood alcohol concentrations, retrograde extrapolation, chemical test errors and retesting of blood/urine samples.

An experienced DUI attorney can provide as successful and complete a defense as is possible under the circumstances of each case. Most defenses apply to both the criminal case and DMV and include some or all of the following work by a DUI expert:

• Handling all aspects of your case with the District Attorney, Judges and DMV Hearing Officers;
• Appear in court for you to eliminate interference with your job and normal daily routine;
• Use state of the art computer software to analyze your blood alcohol concentration during every 10 minute period of the evening in question. Remember! It is not your blood alcohol level at the time of the test which is most important but rather your earlier blood alcohol level at the time of driving;
• Utilize private forensic laboratories to retest blood samples to uncover errors in blood alcohol concentration tests, insufficient preservative or anti-coagulant levels, etc. ;
• Provide expert analysis of all aspects of your case;
• Consult and/or retain leading experts, to assist in your case, if necessary, e.g., toxicologists, pharmacologists, accident reconstruction experts;
• Reduce the status of the charges i.e. felony reduced to misdemeanor, misdemeanor reduced to infraction;
• Acquire a reduction or dismissal of one or more of the charges against you;
• Formulate a plan to have you directly involved in your case, in a manner which will be helpful in generating the best possible resolution;
• Negotiate a sentence which can include no time spent in jail whatsoever; preclude a jail sentence from interfering with your job/employment; acquiring alternatives to jail sentences such as work release, work furlough, or electronic home confinement; reduce fines and other costs that are assessed by the court and acquire long payment schedules to minimize the amount paid monthly.