In itself, DUI defense is a pretty broad field that covers a lot of different types of cases. Some cases that I work on are borderline cases, where my clients have a very low level of alcohol. Other cases involved high levels of alcohol and some involve accidents.
Client David was driving on the 101 Freeway; he was involved in an accident and after the accident he pulled off of the freeway. The California Highway Patrol responded to the scene, found that there was an accident and that one of the cars was disabled on the freeway. David actually was able to drive off the freeway. They characterized that as a hit and run and conducted a DUI investigation.
David had been driving in the slow lane. In front of him there was a car and a car was burdened down with different types of recyclable materials and trash. It was either stopped on the freeway or driving very slowly. David came up on the car and before he could react or change lanes, he ended up getting involved in an accident. The accident totaled the car that he was driving.
Instead of pulling over on the side of the road immediately, he actually pulled off the freeway and drove a short distance because his car was damaged. He was found about a quarter mile from the scene of the accident.
The California Highway Patrol tracked Client David down by the debris in the road. It sounds like a serious accident, but the CHP officers decided Client David did not need medical treatment at a hospital. Client David’s vehicle was a lot larger than the other vehicle involved in the accident; although his car was totaled, Client David was actually in pretty good shape…until California Highway Patrol did a DUI investigation.
The CHP officers had him do field sobriety tests and took statements from him. They determined that he was actually under the influence at the time that he was driving. They requested that he submit to a chemical test, a breath or a blood test, and he elected not to do those tests. They actually gave him a refusal and he was charged with a DUI with the accident. Needless to say, we had to go to court to handle that.
In Some Cases, the Best Outcome of a DUI Charge Is a Reduction of Original Charges and a Mitigation of the Consequences the Client Might Have Had to Face
We were able to look into factors such as what caused the accident, how the accident played out and who was really at fault for the accident. At the end of the day, we were able to work out a deal. This isn’t the type of case where everything just gets dismissed. We were able to plead to a misdemeanor charge but it didn’t involve all of the allegations that were originally filed against David.
For this client, the best outcome was a reduction of the original charges. When we walked in on day one, he was looking at a significant amount of jail time and possibly even state prison; we walked out with no jail time at all. He just had to pay some fines, take some classes and stay out of trouble.
DUI Charges with an Accident Can Entail a Jail or Prison Sentence and Are Best Defended by an Experienced DUI Attorney
Had not Client David called me, his fate may have been the worst case scenario. We know that when we walked in on day one, the prosecutors were looking for jail time. Without my office on David’s side we would have ended up with a sentence that included serving jail time. This would have resulted in loss of his job and in creating a really difficult time for him.
The situation could have gotten worse had the case not been handled correctly. If the charges were filed as a felony instead of a misdemeanor, he could have been looking at state prison time. He would also have a felony conviction, which is something that would follow him around for the rest of his life.
By handling the case correctly in the right amount of time with the right contacts and in the right courtroom, we were able to resolve the case far more favorably.
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