Driving under the influence is one of the most serious public safety issues in California. According to the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), DUI-related crashes claimed the lives of 1,479 people in 2022, which was almost a 2% rise from 2021. These accidents made up about one-third of all traffic fatalities in California. The state also has one of the highest DUI arrest rates nationwide. To curb this problem, California lawmakers have enacted strict penalties for DUI offenses that might include fines, license restrictions, and even jail time.
If you or a loved one is arrested for DUI, you do not have to fight the charges alone. Our skilled criminal defense lawyers at San Diego DUI Attorney can help. Contact us today to speak to one of our Eucalyptus Hills DUI attorneys.
The Definition of DUI
In California, driving under the influence, or DUI, means operating a vehicle while impaired by alcohol, drugs, or a combination of both. The state’s DUI laws cover both drugs and alcohol, without making any distinctions between legal and illegal substances. If anything affects your ability to drive, whether it is prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, or even marijuana, whether for medical or recreational use, you might face a DUI charge.
DUI is charged under California Vehicle Code (VC) 23152:
- It is illegal for anyone under the influence of alcohol to drive
- It is illegal for anyone to operate a vehicle if their blood alcohol content (BAC) is 0.08% or higher
Vehicle Code 23152(a) makes it illegal to drive while drunk. You can still face charges for DUI even if your BAC is under 0.08%. What really matters is whether you are too impaired to drive safely.
According to California VC 23152(b), it is illegal to drive an automobile if your BAC is 0.08% or higher. Usually, driving under the influence is treated as a misdemeanor, and the consequences become tougher each time you are convicted.
If your breath or blood test shows a BAC of 0.08% or higher, you will face charges for drunk driving under VC 23152(a) and for driving with a BAC of at least 0.08% under VC 23152(b). But even if the court convicts you of both charges, it will only count as one DUI conviction.
The prosecution needs to establish the following to show that you are guilty of DUI under VC 23152(a):
- You operated a motor vehicle
- You were under the influence of drugs or alcohol while driving
The prosecution must demonstrate these elements to prove you are guilty under VC 23152(b):
- You operated a motor vehicle
- Your blood alcohol content was 0.08% or more
Driving Under the Influence of Drugs (DUID)
In California, a drug is any substance, other than alcohol, that can change how your muscles, nervous system, or brain work, and can make it hard for you to drive safely. Drugs can include:
- Illegal drugs like cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine
- Prescription medications, even if they do not make the user feel “high”
- Legal drugs, such as marijuana
- Over-the-counter medications, including antihistamines and cold medicines
California has two laws that make it illegal to drive while under the influence of drugs:
- VC 23152(f), which prohibits drivers from driving under the influence of drugs
- VC 23152(g), which prohibits motorists from driving under the combined influence of drugs and alcohol
Experts still have not agreed on the exact amount of drugs in a person’s bloodstream that would make them unfit to drive. Because of this, California has not set a legal limit for drugs, meaning any traces of drugs in your blood could lead to DUI charges. It does not matter if the drug was prescribed. If it affects your ability to drive, you could face prosecution for DUID.
Also, under California’s DUID laws, you cannot drive if you are addicted to any drug (unless you are receiving treatment in a recognized program).
Penalties for DUI Offenses
A DUI counts as a priorable offense, which means if you have had previous DUI convictions, they can lead to harsher penalties for future DUI offenses. The “look back period” is ten years, so any DUI convictions from the last ten years will impact the penalties for a new DUI. Below is how California DUI laws increase penalties for consecutive DUI offenses:
1st DUI Offense Penalties
A first-time DUI offense is a misdemeanor. If convicted, you could face:
- 3 to 5 years of unsupervised probation
- Fines between $390 and $1,000
- Your license will be suspended for six months. But you can still drive if you have an ignition interlock device
- You need to finish a 3- or 9-month drug or alcohol treatment program (AB541 class)
The court could also order you to spend 48 hours to 6 months in a county jail, but sometimes judges will skip jail time if you meet the other requirements
2nd DUI Offense Penalties
A second DUI offense is also a misdemeanor offense. You could face:
- 3 to 5 years of misdemeanor probation
- A jail term of ninety-six hours to a year
- Fines from $390 – $1,000, not counting other legal costs that can add up to thousands
- Your driver’s license will be suspended for two years. However, you can still drive without restrictions when you install an IID in your vehicle for a year
- You will have to attend DUI school. You need to complete an 18- or 30-month treatment program, known as an SB 38 class
3rd DUI Offense Penalties
The courts charge a third DUI offense as a misdemeanor. This offense carries the following penalties:
- 3 to 5 years of misdemeanor probation
- 120 days to a year in jail
- You can expect to pay fines of between $390 and $1,000, plus other legal costs and fees
- You need to finish a 30-month alcohol or drug treatment program approved by the court
- Your license will be suspended for 3 years. To have it back, you will have to install an IID in your vehicle for 2 years
Also, a third DUI automatically labels you as a repeat traffic offender for 3 years.
4th DUI Offense Penalties
A fourth DUI within ten years since your first results in a felony or misdemeanor, based on your case and past record.
For a fourth DUI, you might face:
- Jail time of 180 days to a year for a misdemeanor, or 16 months to three years for a felony
- You will need to complete 30 months in DUI School
- Fines of between $390 and $1,000
- Your driver’s license will be suspended for four years. To have your license back, you will have to use a device called an IID in your vehicle for 3 years
Like with a third DUI, having a fourth DUI charge marks you as a repeat traffic offender for 3 years.
Penalties for Driving Under the Influence of Drugs
Driving under the influence of drugs (DUID) is typically treated as a misdemeanor. The penalties for a misdemeanor DUI related to drugs are similar to those for driving under the influence of alcohol.
DUI penalties may include:
- Three to five years of probation for DUI
- A fine, which can be approximately $1,800 for your first offense
- Attendance in DUI school
- Suspension of your driver’s license
- Possible jail time
Felony DUID Charges
Prosecutors can charge a DUID as a felony if:
- It is your fourth or more DUI offense
- You have even one previous felony DUI
- The DUID resulted in injury to someone else
Felony DUID could lead to:
- Up to 3 years in county jail (or four years if someone was injured)
- A fine of a maximum of $1,000 or $5,000 if someone sustained an injury
DUI Causing Death or Injury
If you cause a non-fatal drunk driving accident that injures someone, you could be charged with either a misdemeanor or a felony, based on your situation or past criminal record.
For misdemeanor penalties, you could face:
- A three to five-year probation term
- 5 days to a year in county jail
- Fines between $390 and $5,000
- A three-, eighteen-, or thirty-month drug or alcohol program
- A one-year suspension of your driver’s license, but you might still drive your vehicle with an Ignition Interlock Device
For felony penalties, you could face:
- Sixteen months to ten years in prison
- An extra one to six years behind bars if more people are hurt or injuries are severe
- Fines from $1,015 – $5,000
- An eighteen- to thirty-month drug or alcohol program
- Three years of being labeled a repeat traffic offender
- A five-year suspension of your driver’s license, though you might still drive with an Ignition Interlock Device
If your drunk driving led to someone’s death, the penalties will depend on the crime you are convicted of:
- For Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated under Penal Code 191.5(b), the prosecutor needs to show that you caused a deadly DUI accident while driving drunk and with ordinary recklessness. This charge is a misdemeanor, and you could face:
- Up to a year in jail and a fine of up to a thousand dollars
- A felony charge of sixteen months, two years, or four years in prison and a fine up to $10,000
- For Gross Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated under PC 191.5(a), the prosecutor must prove that you caused a fatal crash while driving drunk and with gross recklessness. This offense is a felony that can lead to four, six, or ten years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
- For DUI Murder/Watson Murder under PC 187, the prosecutor needs to prove that you are a repeat DUI offender who had been warned about the dangers of driving while impaired and caused a fatal crash. This offense is a felony with a sentence of fifteen years to life imprisonment and a $10,000 fine.
Accident victims or their families can also sue you. Even though you win the criminal case, you can still lose in a civil lawsuit since civil courts have a lower proof standard compared to criminal courts.
If the court charges you with a felony DUI offense, any future DUIs will also be treated as felonies, regardless of how many years or months have passed or if anybody got hurt. The charges for a DUI after a felony DUI can reach up to ten thousand dollars plus a jail term of sixteen months, two years, or three years.
How to Challenge DUI Charges In Eucalyptus Hills
A Eucalyptus Hills defense attorney can use several defenses and factors to challenge your charges, including:
- The police did not have a good reason to pull you over
- The breath testing machine was faulty
- The arresting officer gave wrong instructions for performing your field sobriety tests or messed up the scoring
- The blood samples became contaminated
- You had a medical issue that had symptoms similar to intoxication (like a seizure)
- The blood sample from the DUI stop was destroyed during lab processing
- The police did not have enough reason to arrest you
- You have a condition like gastroesophageal reflux disease that causes backflow of stomach contents, including alcohol, into the esophagus and mouth
- Your high BAC was because of rising levels of blood alcohol, and your BAC was at the legal limit when you were driving
Stating that you did not intend to drive drunk will not help your case since DUI is considered a “general intent” offense, not a “specific intent” offense.
Pleading to Dry or Wet Reckless
Sometimes, your defense can get the prosecutors to lower your DUI charge in California to any one of these reckless driving charges:
- Wet reckless – In California, “wet reckless” is a plea bargain in a DUI case where the defendant pleads guilty to reckless driving instead of the original DUI charge. The “wet” part indicates that the reckless driving was influenced by alcohol or other drugs, or
- Dry reckless – In California, a “dry reckless” refers to a reckless driving charge under Vehicle Code Section 23103, where alcohol or drugs are not involved
If you admit guilt to a wet reckless charge and later receive another DUI, that wet reckless will count as an “aggravating factor.”
Sleeping DUIs
If the traffic police find you sleeping in a car’s driver’s seat with the engine running, they will likely detain you for drunk driving if they think:
- You are impaired, or
- Your blood alcohol concentration is over the legal limit
If you slept at the same spot but with the vehicle’s engine turned off, or if you are in the passenger seat with the car running, some officers might still arrest you because they believe you were driving the car.
If you are found sleeping in a car’s backseat with the engine off, you might have a good chance of avoiding DUI charges—unless there is proof that you were driving while drunk before parking and sleeping to help you “sober up.”
Receiving a DUI Charge While Serving Your DUI Probation
If the police arrest you for another DUI in California while you are still on probation for another previous one, the judge might terminate your probation and send you to county jail to complete your sentence. Even so, you can request a hearing to suspend your probation term. You can show that you:
- Deserve another chance, or
- Did not perpetrate another DUI
At the same time, the California Department of Motor Vehicles will suspend your driver’s license if you receive a DUI charge while serving a probation for a past DUI.
California DUI Laws for Bicycles, E-Scooters, and Boats
California has the following DUI laws for e-scooters, boats, and bicycles:
Electric or Motorized Bikes
In Eucalyptus Hills, the DUI laws for motorcycles and cars also extend to most electric or motorized bikes. So, riding an e-bike while drunk is treated the same way as driving a car drunk.
Pedal Bikes
Biking drunk using a regular bike in Eucalyptus Hills is a misdemeanor offense with $250 in fines and no jail time. You do not have to agree to a blood or breath test.
Cycling while impaired will not result in the DMV suspending your license unless you are under 21. Bikers aged thirteen to twenty will have their licenses suspended for a year or have to wait a year longer to receive them.
Motorized Scooters
If you ride a motorized scooter while drunk or high, the state could fine you a maximum of $250, but you will not go to jail or lose your driver’s license. Just like with regular bikes, you do not have to agree to a blood or breath test when you are on a motorized scooter.
Boats
In California, it is illegal to operate a boat while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or if your BAC is .08% or more. This can lead to a misdemeanor charge, with $1,000 in fines and 6 months in a local jail, but it will not affect your license. This rule also applies to other watercraft, like:
- Jet skis
- Aquaplanes
- Water skis
Find a Eucalyptus Hills DUI Lawyer Near Me
If you face DUI charges in Eucalyptus Hills, CA, you want a lawyer who has knowledge of California DUI laws and can defend your rights in court on your side. Our team of Eucalyptus Hills criminal defense attorneys at the San Diego DUI Attorney understands California’s DUI laws. With us, you can feel confident that you will have a solid legal representative with you throughout the whole process. We will help you understand your options and rights after a DUI arrest. Call our law firm today at 619-535-7150 to schedule your appointment with us.
