California DUI and DWI Legal Questions

You are facing some very serious problems. First, you have a DUI with property damage. Depending on the county that you were charged in you could be facing a potential jail sentence and fines of $1900. Now factor in that you did not have a license and you the DA could seek a jail sentence on that violation as well. The best thing you can do for yourself is to hire an attorney to fight the DUI charge, and for you to try to obtain a driver's license before your court date. Not to mention, that you only have 10 days to request a DMV hearing on your license (which you do not have) will be suspended. ... Read More

You need to wait until probation is over or do a motion to terminate probation early. Then file form CR-180 and CR-181. There is a fee to file the expungement that can be gotten around by filing for a fee waiver. You can do it yourself, if you were represented by a public defender they will do the expungement for free. If you hire a lawyer he will charge you for both the motion to terminate probation early and the expungement. The cost will vary by attorney.... Read More

Since this is your second DUI it's highly likely that the DA may seek jail time. While you may have several defenses due to your mental capacity, and you should hire a lawyer to raise those defenses and have your matter set for trial. Also keep in mind that you only have 10 days from the date of arrest/citation to request a DMV hearing or your license will be suspended. ... Read More

Nope. You can never get your license back (in California) until you complete the alcohol program. You should hire a lawyer to go to court to recall the warrant. A lawyer can do this without you present if the underlying charge is a misdemeanor, so it is less risky for you. Then you can finally get reinstated into the program.... Read More

You need to talk to your lawyer about your choices. First, you could be sentenced to jail time for refusing probation. Second, you still have to do the program to get your license back. You pled and judge imposed the time. That does not sound like he limited the amount of time that was being suspended. Third, you could face more than a year if there were other counts that you pled to, e.g., driving with a suspended license, child endangerment, etc. And there are other problems with this plan so you need your lawyer to go through all of this with you.. By the way, we have heard many people make this kind of bravado remark often in drug cases because they do not want to test. There are not many scenarios where it is a real bargain. But there are some where it makes sense, at least in the short term, to the client. Now, you should also discuss with your lawyer candidly why you do not want to be on probation. You have a first DUI with a high blood alcohol level (by your own assessment). this suggests that you have a problem that you need to deal with. I say this not as a social worker but as a cold hearted criminal defense lawyer. If you are not dealing with an underlying problem that puts you at risk for arrest, you are liable to be arrested again. Next time it could be a felony or, worse yet, a DUI with injury or vehicular manslaughter. If you want to be off probation so you can drink (or so you can drink and drive) you are not doing yourself a favor. You are just doing prison on the installment plan. Having said that, maybe you have a good reason to be off probation and you should discuss that with your lawyer. But a first deuce with such a high BA may also be a wake up call. Good luck with your choices in this. ... Read More

The consequences for a drug DUI are the same as those of an alcohol DUI. However, drug DUIs are much harder to prove, because there isn?t a specific concentration that the state deems as impairment. With that said, you need to hire a DUI specialist, because by yourself the prosecutor simply won't budge.... Read More