Are You Facing DUI Charges in Los Angeles?
If you have been charged with drunk driving in Los Angeles, it is important you act quickly. You should contact an experienced DUI attorney in Los Angeles to ease your mind, and to protect your interests. Not only are your driving privileges in immediate danger, your DUI can be costly and even inhibit your freedom.
Misdemeanor – Most first DUI offensives are treated as misdemeanors, but that doesn’t mean penalties can’t be severe. A first-time misdemeanor DUI carries a maximum punishment of 6 months in jail; multiple offense misdemeanor DUI convictions can mean up to a year in jail. Fines and penalties can reach into the thousands of dollars and lengthy driving suspensions are possible.
Felony – If this is your fourth or more DUI violation within a span of 10 years, you will be facing felony charges. You should also know that even in cases of a first offense, you can still be charged with a felony if someone other than the driver is injured or killed as a result.
Whether you are facing a felony or a misdemeanor DUI, it is vital you seek Los Angeles DUI lawyers to help work your way through your best options.
What Are the Next Steps in Facing Los Angeles DUI Charges?
Request a DMV Hearing: You only have ten calendar days from the date of your arrest to request a DMV hearing. Remember, these are ten calendar days not ten business days. This DMV hearing is critical to prevent an automatic license suspension.
When you consider that this suspension can be from four months to a lifetime revocation of driving privileges (depending on circumstances), it is absolutely in your best interest to contact The Kavinoky Law Firm—top criminal defense attorneys in Los Angeles with the experience to act quickly and appropriately. This is not a meeting you should schedule on your own. The right Los Angeles DUI lawyer can determine how to best proceed with your DMV hearing and increase the chances of avoiding or minimizing suspension.
Will Your License Be Suspended? You probably had your license taken during your arrest, and were given a Notice of Administrative Per Se Action and Temporary License. This provides you unrestricted driving privileges for 30 days. Once your DMV hearing is scheduled and the DMV evidence obtained, your lawyer will begin to plan for the hearing, with the goal of avoiding the suspension. We can carefully examine all of the evidence, helping to formulate the perfect plan of attack. Since the DMV hearing will almost never take place within the first 30 days following the arrest, we will ensure that a “stay of suspension” is in place, will which allow you drive in a full, unrestricted fashion until and unless the DMV says otherwise.
Your Los Angeles DUI Creates Two Separate Proceedings
DUIs in Los Angeles will result in a DMV hearing and a separate court case.
In the DMV hearing, your driving privileges are at stake. Whether that hearing is best to occur in person, or telephonically, involves tactical decisions based on the unique issues in your case. This is not an area where clients are served by a blanket policy; there are tactical reasons for your lawyer to prefer that the hearing take place via the telephone versus being scheduled in person. Ultimately, this decision should be guided by what offers the client the greatest opportunity for success.
What happens at the hearing stays at the DMV; the result there has no impact on the outcome of the court case.
In the criminal court case, there is a lot more at stake. Drunk driving is a criminal charge. That means a conviction could result in jail time, large fines and penalties, license suspension, probation, mandatory classes and/or public service./
In Los Angeles County, a DUI conviction will also lead to an in-car breathalyzer system (called an ignition interlock device or IID). Since this ignition interlock device can be avoided by obtaining an outcome that is anything other than a DUI, an experienced Los Angeles DUI lawyer serving as your defense attorney is strongly suggested.
You don’t have to plead guilty!
There are settlements that may be available to you in your drunk driving case. In the right situation with the proper Los Angeles DUI Defense Lawyers, a drunk driving case could be reduced to an alcohol-related reckless driving (sometimes called a “wet reckless”); a non-alcohol related reckless driving, exhibition of speed, or even a simple moving violation.
The Four Pillars the prosecution typically uses to build the case against you includes:
- Driving Patterns
- Physical Signs and Symptoms
- The Field Sobriety Test Performance
- Chemical Test Results (or refusal to test, which prosecutors will try to use to show “consciousness of guilt”)
Many are surprised to learn that there are more than 50 reasons why a Breathalyzer or blood test may be giving false readings. Finding a DUI lawyer Los Angeles counts on for knowing these reasons is very important to your case. Just because some machine reports something doesn’t mean it’s accurate.
There is Help!
While you are likely experiencing stress and anxiety over your Los Angeles DUI, there is hope. The right legal team will help uncover facts in your case that aren’t always obvious. They may even be able to get your case dismissed. The top criminal defense lawyers in Los Angeles you come to rely on for DUI and criminal defense cases are just a click or phone call away!
Who We Are
The Kavinoky Law Firm started No Cuffs as an online resource for those facing DUI and other criminal charges. We believe individuals should have access to legal resources to help defend themselves properly. We proudly serve the Los Angeles, California region with DUI defense strategies, domestic violence cases, drug crimes, thefts and other criminal charges.
Rather than just worry, take the steps necessary to move your case to a successful conclusion. Visit our website and chat online live with a representative, fill out our online form or call us now for a free consultation at 1-800- No-Cuffs!