San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys report that the founder of a University City laser eye-surgery clinic pleaded guilty Thursday to misdemeanor charges stemming from an assault on his then-girlfriend and having a prescription illegally written for him under another name.

Manoj Motwani, 40, faces a maximum of two years in jail, but agreed, as part of his probation, to complete a 52-week domestic violence program, enroll in a drug diversion program, make restitution to the victim and pay $8,000 to a shelter for battered women.

Formal sentencing is set for Feb. 24 before Judge Kathleen Lewis.

Motwani, who founded the Alpha Laser Center in 1999, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery on a significant other and attempting to pass a false prescription as genuine.

In an unrelated case, Motwani pleaded guilty earlier this week to a misdemeanor DUI charge.

Motwani became embroiled in a dispute with his girlfriend, Antonia Quast, while driving northbound on Interstate 5 through Bay Park in the early morning hours of Oct. 28, 2007.

When the altercation became physical, the defendant stopped his vehicle on the side of the road, and the fight continued until a passerby intervened, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Motwani fled and Quest was left with bruises, a bloody nose and a torn- off fingernail, authorities said.

During the investigation, Quast showed CHP officers a bottle of the anti- depressant Lexapro that had another person's name on it, according to Deputy District Attorney Lucy Weismantel.

The woman told authorities that Motwani used an alias when he wrote a prescription to himself, the prosecutor said.

Motwani's previous criminal defense attorney, James Dicks, said Quast assaulted Motwani and earlier that evening had attacked a woman. A counselor had suggested low doses of Lexapro for the defendant.


San Diego County DUI, DMV & Drunk Driving Defense Survey to find out your best strategy and to protect your driving privileges in California.

San Diego California DUI Lawyer information provided by a top San Diego California Drunk Driving Attorney for those accused of a San Diego California DUI.



Hassle-free San Diego California DUI help for San Diego California DUI court and San Diego California DMV. Complete San Diego California DUI Help to save your California license or other license.



San Diego DUI Attorney Rick Mueller is a Premier San Diego California Drunk Driving Lawyer, San Diego California DUI & San Diego California DMV Defense Attorney with over 24 years of experience. Known as the San Diego California DUI - DMV Guru, San Diego California DUI Lawyer Rick Mueller dedicates 100% of his San Diego DUI law practice to aggressively defending those accused of San Diego Driving Under the Influence.



San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended indicated to the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was very good.

The DUI cop prepared a report already - here's your chance. Please complete a San Diego California DUI Evaluation for your best San Diego California DUI defense attorney strategy and to vigorously protect your important driving privilege, as has been done for many good people.

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers report a Merced California Police Officer is facing charges for suspicion of a California DUI - driving under the influence.

Detective Hector Ortiz was off duty when a California Highway Patrol Officer pulled him over on January 10th. Ortiz was booked into jail after a California DUI breath test found his blood alcohol content to be above the legal limit.

The detective was placed on leave -- but returned to work for the first time Tuesday. Detective Ortiz is set to appear in court for the California drunk driving charge.

How can you find a qualified San Diego California DUI Lawyer ?



Various types of lawyers handle San Diego drunk driving cases, including public defenders, general practitioners, criminal defense lawyers, and DUI Specialist attorneys.



A San Diego County public defender is a California attorney provided at little or no cost to provide defense services to people who financially are unable to hire a private San Diego lawyer. Most San Diego County Districts generally do not offer public defenders services unless you are unemployed, significantly under-employed and/or have no assets.



Some excellent questions to begin asking when searching for a California DUI lawyer are:



What are his or her California DUI attorney's qualifications?



Is he or she a Specialist member of the California DUI Lawyers Association?



Is he or she a member of the National College for DUI Defense?



Whether or not you ultimately end up hiring a California DUI Specialist attorney, it is a smart idea to speak to a California DUI Specialist lawyer in this highly complex field.


Or try a Free California DUI Evaluation at http://www.sandiegodrunkdrivingattorney.net/survey.html .





San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent.

Click on below sites for more information or to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer who can help:

San Diego DUI defense attorneys are asked about a San Diego DMV / DUI Hearing. A San Diego DUI / DMV hearing for a possible license suspension is like a mini-DUI trial without a jury, but with much different San Diego DMV rules, San Diego DMV laws and San Diego DMV procedures. The San Diego DUI / DMV hearing is presided over by a Driver Safety Officer (DMV hearing officer) rather than a real judge, an employee of the DMV not trained in law who acts as both prosecutor and judge. As unfair as it is, she or he can legally object to your evidence, rule on her or his own objection, dually engage your San Diego DUI / DMV lawyer, and admit or not admit either party's evidence.



An overworked San Diego Driver Safety Officer offers evidence in the form of documents and/or witnesses. The Driver Safety Officer offers the San Diego drunk driving / DUI police report, DMV records, San Diego DUI alcohol reports and the important San Diego DUI officer's sworn statement entitled a "DS 367." With no Fifth Amendment right at the hearing, your San Diego DUI / DMV attorney usually will not want you to be present at the hearing since the Driver Safety Officer can call you as a witness and force you to testify against yourself if you ill-advisedly appear. <

A reasonable San Diego DUI lawyer's defenses at an APS hearing are specialized and technical, more so than in criminal court. Frequent San Diego DUI / DMV proof problems - as well as legal, procedural and bureaucratic obstacles - are possible grounds for setting aside the suspension.




Due to the peculiar nature of San Diego DUI / DMV hearings and the absence of an independent San Diego DUI judge to offer some protection, you are strongly advised not to try to represent yourself. Because these are not San Diego DUI criminal proceedings, San Diego County public defenders are unavailable.




A San Diego DUI / DMV attorney has just 10 CALENDAR DAYS after the DUI arrest to call the San Diego DMV Driver Safety Office to timely demand a hearing. You waive your right to a hearing after the 10 day deadline is up. The San Diego DMV may not be able to schedule a hearing before your 30-day temporary license expires. Your San Diego DUI / DMV lawyer will request a Notice of Stay of the 30-day temporary license until a San Diego DMV hearing is provided and a San Diego DMV decision is actually rendered.

Click on below to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer who can help with DMV:San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf .

Donald Bartell's section (Chapter 10) "Attacking Widmark Calculations" is available on the web at http://www.jamespublishing.com/articles_forms/DrunkDriving/attacking_ widmark_calc.htm and is where one can find California DUI criminal defense attorney Don Bartell article. This is the entire 9th and 10th chapters of Don's and Ann D. Imobersteg's book Attacking and Defending Drunk Driving Tests published by James Publishing.

One must contact the author directly. Don practices law throughout California with an office in Riverside County and his e-mail is djbartel@pacbell.net; his telephone number is (951) 788-2230.

California DUI criminal defense attorneys like this book, especially for its discussion of the Widmark formula (Chapter 9) and for its complete layout on how to cross-examine a toxicologist who is using it for retrograde extrapolation (Chapter 10). The authors include the cross-examination step by step, question by question.

Often everything that California DUI criminal defense attorney Don Bartell says may happen during a D.A.'s expert testimony can happen in a California DUI criminal defense attorney's trial: (1) the toxicologist did not use the actual Widmark formula but a truncated version that assumed a given alcohol level for beer, wine and spirits the truncated version is easier to calculate but assumes much more - especially when it comes to the quantity of a drink and the amount of alcohol in beer and wine; (2) the D.A.'s expert never actually read Widmark's book and the D.A.'s expert says he or she couldn't because it was in German (so give D.A.'s expert the English translation of that book); (3) all of the D.A.'s expert factors were based on estimates and not observation of any fact; (4) the D.A.'s expert couldn't say what the averages that D.A.'s expert used to dump numbers into the formula were based on; (5)D.A.'s expert wasn't able to say what the famous R constant represented ; (6) the accused's weight (denominator in the truncated version of the formula) was pulled from the drivers license and wasn't her actual weight at the time (i.e. the California DUI arresting officer didn't ask the accused how much the accused weighed when the accused was arrested; (7) the D.A.'s expert used a burnoff rate (e.g. of 0.02) per hour even though that wasn't Widmark's average burnoff rate. The D.A.'s expert rounds up so that the D.A.'s expert math would be simpler; (8) The D.A.'s expert couldn't answer basic questions about Widmarks studies (that are laid out in the article) and (per Chapter 10) (9) when asked what Widmarks actual formula was, the D.A.'s expert didn't know.

At the conclusion, the state's "expert" should be asked two key questions:
(1) this is all just an educated guess isn't it?
Yes. That is all Widmark is, since it is based on average R constants and burnoff rates for men and women.
(2) If you don't know what the accused's beta factor is, and you don't know what the accused's R constant is, and you don't know how much the accused weighed on the night the accused was arrested, then you don't know how much the accused had to drink that night, do you?
Yes.

Towards the beginning of closing, look hard at the D.A.:
If the facts are against you, argue the law;
if the law is against you, argue the facts; and
if the facts and the law are against you hire an expert! The D.A. hires an expert.
The D.A. is trying to convict the accused with statistics rather than facts. There's an old quote: "There are lies, damn lies, and statistics."

The purpose of an expert is to get the jury to stop thinking; jurors look at a complicated formula and say they don't understand it, but it sure looks impressive with all those numbers, division signs, beta factors, r constants, etc.. So if this expert says the accused is guilty we guess the accused must be? Instead, Jurors need to read the CALCRIM jury instruction that the jurors should use their common sense in deciding whether he or she is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. They shouldn't get lazy and rely on the D.A.'s so-called state expert.

Concerning the R constant and beta factors that are based on averages, the jury considered an illustration that Bartell and others have used: Imagine that a tailor makes a pair of pants based on the national average for waist size, inseam, leg length, etc. and that is the only size that you are able to buy. Will you buy a pair of pants from that tailor?

A D.A.'s entire case is often based on retrograde extrapolation, and the accused's condition when cops arrived. D.A. told the jury the case was an easy conviction.

D.A.'s experts often use the abbreviated version of Widmark (California DUI criminal defense attorney Don Bartell lays out a beautiful cross-examination for this) and make a truckload of assumptions into the equation including accused's R constant, her burnoff rate, the alcohol content of the drinks and the quantity of the "drink", among others. When reviewing all assumptions and all the averages for the numbers she used in her equation, a D.A.'s expert should admit that he or she was giving the jury only an "educated guess" and has no real idea as to how many "drinks" the accused would have had to have to get to a certain BAC later.

Whether or not you ultimately end up hiring a California DUI Specialist attorney, it is a smart idea to speak to a California DUI Specialist lawyer in this highly complex field.



California DUI Evaluation at http://www.sandiegodrunkdrivingattorney.net/survey.html .





San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent.

Click on below sites & to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer who can help:

San Diego DUI & DMV defense lawyers are asked by out of state folks are on probation for DUI in California:

Zero tolerance for previous DUI offenders on probation: This new law prohibits a driver who's already on probation for a previous DUI from operating a motor vehicle with a blood-alcohol content of 0.01 percent or greater. The law requires such a driver to submit to a preliminary alcohol screening (portable breath test).

If the driver refuses to take the test -- or takes the test and the result is a blood-alcohol reading of at least 0.01 percent -- the driver's vehicle is impounded, a citation is issued and the driver's license taken away with driving privileges suspended.

Under the old law (section 13389 of the California Vehicle Code), a driver on DUI probation -- who refused to be tested, or took the test and had a blood-alcohol content of at least 0.01 -- had the driver's license taken away but was issued a 30-day temporary one. And the vehicle was not impounded, according to CHP information Officer Steve Kohler.

Alcohol-related reckless driving: This new law requires courts to order a person with a prior conviction for alcohol-related reckless driving or DUI in the previous 10 years -- who subsequently is convicted of alcohol-related reckless driving -- to participate in a licensed DUI program for at least nine months.

Ignition-interlock devices: This new law reduces the blood-alcohol content when a person is arrested from at least .20 percent to at least .15 percent. It should trigger a requirement for courts to give heightened consideration for installation of an ignition-interlock device for a first-time offender convicted of an alcohol-DUI, according to the CHP release.

"The overall safety of the motoring public is our primary concern," said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. "Not only will these new laws enhance motorist safety, many of them are a step toward ridding the roadways of drunk drivers and the tragedies they cause."

San Diego DUI Lawyers willing to assist with this new law:

San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys explain possible defenses in DUI cases.

DUI police officers got hands-on training the other night to learn how to deal with drunken drivers.

A sobriety training session was held at the Cranberry Township police department in Butler County.

Volunteers drank alcohol, then took breathalizer tests.

Officers conducted field sobriety tests.

The program is designed to help officers know what to expect during a real call.

"Everything is performed the same way, for court testimony, and to make sure that everything is done efficiently and the best way to prosecute the case," said Butler County Detective Scott Roskovski.

The volunteers are closely monitored while drinking.

San Diego DUI Defense Lawyers report Cally Bright is looking forward to meeting you if you get multiple San Diego DUI convictions.
The District Attorney's Office is assigning Bright to the South Bay Court in Chula Vista for the next two years. She will spend those two years exclusively prosecuting DUI drivers in the South County, especially repeat offenders, those involved in crashes resulting in property loss, injury or deaths.
The goal, she said at a news conference Friday, is “to prosecute these cases from start to finish, aggressively.”
At the same time, the region's law enforcement agencies – the police departments of Chula Vista, National City, Coronado and San Diego, as well as the Sheriff's Department and the California Highway Patrol – will be teaming up for extra DUI checkpoints and saturation patrols in the area, looking for DUI driver to send in Bright's direction.
They also will be conducting sweeps for DUI drivers who have failed to appear in court and have had warrants issued for their arrest.
All this is being made possible by a $525,000 grant from the state Office of Traffic Safety issued to the Chula Vista Police Department, the first such grant of its kind in San Diego County.
“This is exactly what needs to happen in our county,” said Patricia Hodgkin, executive director of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers in San Diego County.
The grant application was written by Chula Vista police Agent Rusty Rea, a veteran traffic investigator who has seen his share of vehicular tragedy.
“Your typical DUI offender may have driven under the influence 75 times in a year before we catch him,” Rea said.
The idea of using grant money to pair increased law enforcement with a full-time DUI prosecutor was pioneered a few years ago by Tulare County, in central California. Chula Vista police chief Rick Emerson said the need for a similar pairing exists in the South Bay, noting that officers generate about 800 to 900 DUI arrests annually.
“That's a significant workload on the District Attorney's Office,” Emerson said. “It's a significant workload on the courts.”
Another change: no more “catch and release” for repeat DUI offenders in Chula Vista. The city has its own jail in police headquarters, and Emerson said he plans to acquaint suspected drunken motorists with it.
“We will hold them in our facility until they can post bail, or (until) arraignment, rather than releasing (them) on citation,” the chief said.
A third leg to the grant program is education, Bright said. She plans to visit major employers and high schools in the region to try to drive home the message against driving under the influence.
“We want to shift the focus from 'think before you drive' to 'think before you drink,' ” she said.
Emerson sounded a bit skeptical on the education aspect.
“It would be nice if we could educate our way out of this problem,” he said. “We haven't been able to. People don't think they're above the .08 blood-alcohol limit and they continue to drive.”
MADD's Hodgkin sounded a similar note.
“Our question has always been, why do people drive drunk?” she said. “And the answer keeps coming back, because they can.”



SAN DIEGO DUI "EVALUATION FORM"

San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys are told that former El Dorado County Supervisor Helen Baumann has pleaded guilty to a drunken driving charge that stemmed from a June incident when she allegedly crashed through a barbed-wire and down an embankment, authorities said.

Baumann (left photo) pleaded guilty Jan. 9 to driving under the influence, with an enhancement for exceeding 0.20 blood alcohol content level, said deputy district attorney Lisette Suder. The legal limit is 0.08.

Baumann was sentenced to four years of informal probation and four days in jail, a court clerk said. Baumann can opt to complete a work program instead of serving jail time.

She is also required to comply with all "standard terms and conditions" for first-time DUI offenders, which includes attending a class, the clerk said. Baumann also has to pay a $2,376 fine.

On the night of June 6, Baumann, who was then a supervisor, allegedly lost control of her car on Latrobe Road, crashed into a barbed-wire fence and down an embankment. California Highway Patrol officers said she then drove up the embankment, crossed the road and hit another embankment.

A responding officer said Baumann smelled of alcohol and was slurring her speech.

Baumann later issued a statement apologizing for "the strain and disruption the situation has caused our law enforcement and emergency services."

Baumann left office beginning of this month, after reaching her term limit of eight years on the board.

San Diego DUI Lawyer Rick Mueller, a San Diego Drunk Driving / DWI Defense Attorney handling San Diego California DUI & DMV cases, shows how a San Diego DUI Lawyer will help you. San Diego DUI Lawyer Rick Mueller, a San Diego Drunk Driving / DWI Defense Attorney handling San Diego California DUI & DMV cases, shows how a San Diego DUI Lawyer will help you.

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers report that an unemployed drifter with a history of drunken driving convictions was ordered Wednesday to stand trial on vehicular manslaughter and DUI charges stemming from a hit-and-run crash that killed a bicyclist in Alpine.

Travis Chris Weber, 44, exhibited behavior last Dec. 2 "that shows indifference to the safety of others," Judge Lantz Lewis said at the conclusion of the defendant's daylong preliminary hearing at the El Cajon courthouse.

The judge ordered Weber to stand trial on charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and hit-and-run causing death, along with a charge related to a 1985 felony DUI conviction. Lewis dismissed two counts related to the defendant allegedly driving drunk when he was arrested two days after the fatal collision.

The crash killed Edward Costa, a 30-year-old self-employed construction worker and father of two.

California Highway Patrol Officer Michael Edwards testified that when he searched a silver Ford F-150 belonging to Weber, he found three empty half-pint bottles of vodka -- of three different brands -- in the cab and seven empty cans of beer in the bed of the vehicle.

Edwards said he questioned Weber the night he was arrested outside an Alpine bar. The defendant told him he had been on a drinking binge for five days and woke up in Campo hours after the collision and had no idea how he got there, the officer said.

"He related he did not know he had struck Edward Costa," Edwards testified.

San Diego County sheriff's Sgt. Joseph Sprecco testified that people who attended a memorial gathering of Costa's friends and family at the crash site spotted the pickup truck in the parking lot of a bar across the street.

"The damage to the vehicle was consistent with striking a bicycle and a person," Sprecco said.

CHP Officer Sid Turner said green paint from the bicycle was found on the bumper of the truck, and debris found at the scene -- specifically a broken headlight -- matched what remained on the truck.

A woman testified that Weber rear-ended her about 20 minutes before the fatal collision, and that he became angry and screamed at her while they were exchanging information.

Edwards said a witness told him he saw Weber drive away quickly from the fender-bender. The witness said the pickup went into the opposing traffic lanes and then over-corrected to the embankment.

The defendant was ordered to return to court Feb. 4 to receive a trial date. He faces at least 20 years to life in prison if convicted.

San Diego California DUI Evaluation for your best San Diego California DUI defense attorney strategy and to vigorously protect your important driving privilege, as has been done for many good people who necessarily become San Diego California DUI Clients.

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers report from VISTA

San Diego DUI Traffic checkpoints in Vista netted 15 people suspected of San Diego DUI - driving under the influence in 2008, San Diego DUI officials announced Wednesday.

The five San Diego DUI checkpoints also resulted in 282 citations and 155 impounded vehicles, officials said. Sheriff's deputies issue citations for offenses such as driving without a license, driving with a suspended license, driving while uninsured and improper installation of infant car seats.

Vehicles are impounded in the cases of license violations or as a result of San Diego DUI arrest.

San Diego DUI Checkpoint locations were determined by identifying high-traffic roads that have a safe area nearby to conduct secondary screenings, San Diego DUI officials said.

The 2008 funding for the San Diego DUI checkpoints was provided by a San Diego DUI grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety. Additional San Diego DUI inspections are planned for 2009 in Vista.

Some excellent questions to begin asking when searching for a California DUI lawyer are:



What are his or her California DUI attorney's qualifications?



Is he or she a Specialist member of the California DUI Lawyers Association?



Is he or she a member of the National College for DUI Defense?



Whether or not you ultimately end up hiring a California DUI Specialist attorney, it is a smart idea to speak to a California DUI Specialist lawyer in this highly complex field.



San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent. Rick has been asked to speak again.

Click on below sites for more information or to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer who can help:

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers explain a Military Base DUI - San Diego County Federal Court:

If arrested for DUI or drunk driving at Camp Pendleton, Miramar or any military base or naval station in San Diego County, why not call San Diego County DUI Law Center's drunk driving specialist?

None of DUI lawyer Rick Mueller's United States District Court DUI or federal court drunk driving clients arrested on these bases have ever been convicted of DUI or drunk driving, except in one instance for driving with .08% BAC or more but without the penalty-enhancements including his prior conviction and refusal.

Why not hire a top drunk driving lawyer or DUI attorney who successfully gets United States District Court - federal drunk driving cases dismissed, deferred or reduced every time?

Worried about your Command? Let DUI Specialist Rick Mueller fax your Commanding Officer a Not Guilty letter, explaining how he will appear in court for you, how you enjoy the Presumption of Innocence in the civilian matter, how there is presently no evidence of guilt and how he will vigorously defend the DUI charges.

"Fortune Favors Boldness"

Click on below sites to contact a San Diego DUI Defense Lawyer who can help:

San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys may see a DUI as one drives by on a mountain highway-the crumpled wreck of a car slammed into a tree or into another car-and catch a glimpse of a driver being administered a sobriety test while paramedics load a bloodied victim into an ambulance.

If this grisly scene, though infrequently viewed, can trouble our thoughts for weeks, imagine how it affects the law-enforcement officers called repeatedly to respond to carnage on the road.

Interviews this week with five CHP members of the California Highway Patrol show the many ways in which drunk drivers, and the accidents they so often cause, affect them, stirring emotions that range from anger to compassion and sometimes causing physical injury.

Officer Mark Naylor, who investigated the July death of Molly Wolfgang, the last drunk-driving auto accident fatality on the mountain, has an extensive history with drunk-driving crashes, and was the victim of one himself.

It was when he was stationed at the CHP's San Juan Capistrano office more than three years ago that he was in a crash that caused injuries his doctors tell him will never get better, he said.

A man whose blood-alcohol content was later measured at around .3 (nearly four times the legal threshold for intoxication) was in a domestic dispute with his wife when police in Santa Ana were called, he said. When they arrived they found the man in his car, in the driveway. He attempted to drive over his wife, Naylor said, and then backed up and tried to run over some of the officers.

With that, the chase was on. The motorist sped onto the southbound San Diego Freeway. The CHP took over the high-speed chase at the junction of the 5 and 55 freeways. Meanwhile, Naylor was stationed on the Ortega Highway on-ramp in San Juan Capistrano, waiting to join the pursuit when it reached him.

But then something unexpected happened, as the driver left the freeway via the Ortega off-ramp, only to try and re-enter on the on-ramp at an estimated 90 mph.

"He swerved and rear-ended my car," Naylor recalled. The impact knocked the black-and-white off the ramp and into the iceplant on the slope adjacent to it. The gun rack and heavy-gauge metal cage separating the driver from prisoners in the back seat slammed into Naylor's head.

"I was knocked unconscious," he said. "The last thing I remember thinking was, 'This bad guy is right next to me.' I woke up in the back of the ambulance. Two days after the accident I couldn't get out of bed on my own. It was full-body pain," he said.

Naylor said he's reminded of the accident every day. "When I turn my head I get Rice Krispies," he said, referring to the cereal's slogan of "snap, crackle and pop."

The officer made regular visits to a chiropractor after the crash, but goes less frequently now, though "If I don't go for a month things really bother me." Naylor said physicians have told him the accident has brought on the early stages of osteoporosis. "I will probably never get over it," he said.

As a result, his activities have been limited. "There's a lot of things I used to do that I can't do any more, things like surfing and playing racquetball. They're too painful."

Early in his career, Naylor said, he never anticipated such an injury. "I always thought, 'that won't happen to me. I'm really safe.' Some things just happen and you can't control them," he said.

One of the toughest things for an officer is having to inform the family of a drunk-driving victim. When that duty falls on him, he said, "It makes me more compassionate toward people for their loss. It makes me appreciate my family more."

Another Officer, Ben Baker, has won two awards from the San Bernardino County affiliate of Mothers Against Drunk Driving for his aggressive enforcement of drunk-driving laws and his arrest of more than 100 drunk drivers in five years. He described one fatal accident he investigated that involved a drunk driver.

"One guy had too much to drink. He had his girlfriend on his motorcycle. They went into the forest and when they came back onto the road, his bike left the road, hit a culvert and disappeared into the trees," Baker said.

Baker, who saw the man's body, said he died immediately. "The impact was just more than he could take," he said. A passing motorist picked up the woman, but she was so drunk herself she couldn't lead officers to the accident scene. The man was finally found by an ambulance crew, whose members coincidentally knew him.

Baker said he has arrested one driver four times for drunk driving. After the third conviction he was apparently released early, because the fourth incident occurred during the time he should still have been in jail. Fourth DUI arrests are felonies, he said, so the man is likely still behind bars.

"I look at DUI the first time as a mistake," he said. "I'm willing to forgive that. When people start doing it two or three times, there's no excuse for that."

Officer Alfredo Chen, who has been at the Running Springs office all of his seven and a half years with the CHP, said many of the drunk-driving accidents he's responded to involve juveniles as passengers, so the adult drivers may be charged with child endangerment.

Chen, who also received a MADD award last year for his more than 40 DUI arrests, comes from a military background, having been in the U.S. Marine Corps for six years as an investigator. His experience helps him govern his emotional reaction to drunk-driving accidents.

"My initial response is to make sure the case is done right," he said. "It may affect me a little bit later. If there are kids or the elderly involved, it always tugs on my heartstrings."

Chen said he'd rank drunk driving as a 10 on a 1-10 scale for the seriousness of crimes. "Drivers who drive under the influence display a total disregard for their own safety and the safety of others," he said. "I take pride in finding DUIs. If we stop one, we've probably saved somebody's life."

Officer Daven Wellman, a two-year CHP veteran, said drunk drivers are often solo occupants of their cars and frequently crash into objects, like mountainsides or trees. "The drivers often say they fell asleep," he said, but to a trained officer their actual condition is obvious.

Wellman cited one fatal DUI crash he investigated. "The driver had been drinking all day at work. He and his uncle were driving south on Highway 330," he said. "They hit a family van with seven kids. The mom had a complaint of pain, and the driver's uncle died." The drunk driver, whose car was a small Honda, suffered a broken arm and leg.

As for his personal reaction to such crashes, Wellman said, it's important for officers to erect barriers between their emotions and the situation. "At the scene you have a job to do," he said.

Finally, Officer Gary Fernandez, a 13-year CHP veteran, shared an interesting personal perspective on drunk driving. Two people he'd arrested for DUI later approached him, he said, and thanked him for taking them into custody.

"For him," Fernandez said of the man, "my arrest absolutely changed his life for the better. It was the turnaround point for him. He stopped drinking."

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers at http://www.sandiegodui.com/about.html hope folks will not get into a situation such as a DUI.

San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys are told the California Highway Patrol is offering a traffic safety program for teenage drivers and their parents.

Start Smart is aimed at helping future and newly licensed teens become aware of the responsibilities of being a driver. It is also an effort to reduce the number of teen injuries and deaths resulting from traffic collisions. Traffic collisions are the leading cause of death for 15- to 20-year-olds.

The primary objective is to provide an understanding of how poor choices behind the wheel can affect the lives of many people. The program also provides information on defensive driving, traffic laws in California, dynamics of traffic collisions, tips on avoiding traffic collisions and DUI awareness.

CHP Officer Anthony Pedeferri, who was critically injured by a driver under the influence of drugs, will speak at this month’s presentation. The collision killed an innocent party and left Pedeferri a paraplegic.

Smart Start classes are free and are held at the Ventura Area CHP office, 4656 Valentine Road. The next class will be at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 28.

San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent. Here's an important Free San Diego County Drunk Driving Defense Survey to find out your best strategy and to protect your driving privileges in California. http://www.sandiegoduilawyer.com/survey.html

In other news, Sgt R. Lawhead explains that the San Bernardino Police Department conducted a citywide DUI saturation patrol-program during the evening hours on Friday, January 16, 2009. This operation is part of the Police Department’s ongoing effort to address drunk driving and reduce alcohol-related injuries and fatalities. The State of California Office of Traffic Safety provided funding for this program.

A total of 74 vehicles were stopped during the eight-hour program. Officers issued 54 citations (seven of the citations were for driving without a license or with a suspended license) and eight vehicles were impounded (7 for 30-day impounds). Eighteen drivers were given field sobriety tests which resulted in three DUI arrests being made. Additionally, seven other arrests were made for various charges and outstanding warrants.


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San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers report that Diageo, the world's leading spirits, wine, and beer company, and an industry leader in promoting responsible drinking, applauds California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for signing into law five bills that are designed to crackdown on DUI offenders and to prevent minors from obtaining alcohol.


"We applaud Governor Schwarzenegger for taking this important step to help combat drunk driving and underage drinking," said Amy Elliott, Senior Director of State Government Relations, Diageo North America. "We hope other states across the country follow California's lead in working to pass legislation that punishes adults who recklessly drink and drive and helps prevent minors from obtaining alcohol. Underage drinking and drunk driving are serious problems in the state of California and to effectively combat them, we must all support legislation similar to what has been passed. We hope other organizations, such as the Marin Institute, step forward and applaud Governor Schwarzenegger's commitment to responsible drinking."


The bills, AB 421, AB 678, AB 808, and AB 1165, enable faster processing of court records in certain vehicle-related code convictions; change the definition of a "serious felony" as it relates to the crime of vehicular manslaughter; require individuals applying for a driver's license to acknowledge that, if a person is killed due to their driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, they can be charged with murder; and make it unlawful for a person on probation for a previous DUI conviction to operate a vehicle with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.01% or greater.


Additionally, AB 1658 enhances the penalties for several underage drinking laws under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, as well as penalties for persons who manufacture fake IDs and driver licenses. Specifically, the bill increases the punishment for manufacturing fake IDs and driver licenses from $500 to imprisonment in state prison or county jail for up to one year. At the same time, persons under the age of 21 who are caught attempting to purchase or consume alcohol will face increased financial penalties. First time convictions will result in a $500 penalty, up from $250, and second and subsequent violations will result in a $1,000 penalty, up from $500. These penalties will also apply to individuals and licensed establishments who are caught providing alcohol to minors.


About Diageo


Diageo (Dee-AH-Gee-O) is the world's leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines, and beer categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.

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This worry-free San Diego DUI information shows what you really need to know about California DUI Court, San Diego DMV, and how to save your license after a California DUI arrest.


San Diego DUI Lawyer Center
San Diego DUI Lawyer Center's informative blog, featuring a comprehensive summary of California DUI law and Drunk Driving news.


California DUI Lawyer
California DUI Lawyer Center's informative blog, featuring news and information on San Diego, California DUI law and Drunk Driving in Southern California!

San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was the best.






What you must do within 10 days of being arrested



10. If you need to save your driver's license or privileges, your attorney has only ten (10) calendar days to contact DMV!


Do not schedule yourself. If you contact DMV to schedule a date conflicting with your attorney's calendar, DMV will not reschedule and you may not get the attorney of your choice. There is no rush as long as your attorney contacts DMV by the 10th day from your arrest.


9. The ten (10) day time limit is computed from the Issue date of the SUSPENSION/REVOCATION ORDER AND TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE. If time is running out or you are late, contact an attorney ASAP.


8. This ADMINISTRATIVE PER SE SUSPENSION/REVOCATION ORDER AND TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE is the California DMV paper which you should have received.


7. Even if you did not receive this DMV paper, the California DMV will probably take action against your driving privileges.


6. Even if you have a license from another state, and even if the officer did not take your license, that state may also take action against your driving privileges.


5. This TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE ENDORSEMENT is valid for only thirty (30) days from the issue date.


If a DMV hearing is requested within ten (10) days, your DMV TEMPORARY will be extended & there will be a stay (delay) of any suspension until the outcome of your DMV hearing is determined.


4. Do not confuse this initial 30 day TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE with your court date!

The DMV and criminal proceedings are separate and independent. The outcome of one almost never affects the other. Sometimes the officer or the DMV paper confuses or misleads you to believe that the TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE is good "until the court date". If there are approximately thirty (30) days from your arrest date to your court date, this may just be a dangerous coincidence. There usually are months before your DMV hearing takes place.


3. There are three (3) issues at the hearing if you completed a chemical test. (See reverse side of DMV paper.)


Issues are whether the officer had probable cause to stop or contact you or whether the chemical test evidence is beatable.


2. The DMV has the burden of proof to prevail on all three (3) issues. If DMV meets the burden of proof on two (2) issues, you win!


1. All a DMV attorney has to do is knock out one (1) DMV issue to save your license & you avoid any reissue fee and/or Proof of Insurance SR-22 filing!





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San Diego DUI defense lawyers and San Diego drunk driving criminal attorneys are told the Winter Holiday DUI crackdown on drinking drivers continues in Riverside County. The first 17 days of the campaign has resulted in a large number of DUI arrests. The Riverside County “AVOID the 30” DUI Campaign, from midnight, December 12, 2008, through midnight December 29, 2008, are reporting provisional arrests of at least 365 individuals for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Tragically, there have been three DUI fatalities to report. The first two fatalities involved single vehicle motorcycle collisions, one occurring in Norco and the other in Palm Springs. The third DUI fatality occurred in Hemet, when a DUI driver struck a bicyclist.

Law enforcement officials will be conducting more anti DUI efforts countywide. So if you are gathering with family or friends – don’t drink and drive, plan for a designated driver.

All agencies will be on DUI alert and all CHP Areas throughout the state will have increased staffing during the New Year’s Holiday. “OVER THE LIMIT, UNDER ARREST” is all around the state, so if you choose to drink and drive this holiday season, expect to spend the night behind bars. Designate a driver before you celebrate. Your local police, Sheriff and the CHP encourage all motorists to help make your community safer by reporting drunk drivers – call 9-1-1.

“The public can be a big help in getting DUI suspects off the road,” said Riverside Police Department Supervisor Karen Haverkamp. “When you see a car swerving all over the road, driving much too fast or much too slow, braking for no reason, driving with no headlights at night or signaling one way and turning the other, make that call to 9-1-1.”

For more information on the holiday enforcement crackdown and enforcement schedules, visit the California Avoid Web Site at www.californiaavoid.org and the Riverside County Avoid Web Site at www.avoidthe30.org .


San Diego California DUI Evaluation for your best San Diego California DUI defense attorney strategy and to vigorously protect your important driving privilege, as has been done for many good people who necessarily become San Diego California DUI Clients.

San Diego California dui lawyers hear It's not as easy as saying cheese any more at the DMV. Now people have to take off their hats and remove anything that covers their face so recognition programs can make sure people are who they say they are.

"It has instant one-to-one facial recognition and the other person's picture will pop right up and will get you right there at the counter," said DMV Spokesperson Kevin Malone.

Workers will be able to tell instantly if previous pictures match the current one, and it will also let workers know if someone's face is also used under other identities.

"Facial recognition software behind the new licenses will help nail people that have more than one identity in the system. If you have a driver's license in one name and an ID card in another name, we are going to catch you," said Malone.

That's only half of the new safety measures being unveiled statewide at the DMV. They're also launching a whole new driver's license, "The new licenses have so many security features on them that the bad guys will not be able to counterfeit them, and it is a major new tool in combating identity theft and fraud."

But the sophisticated new ID's are not easy to make, so licenses can no longer be printed at the counter.

"Now what we are going to do is punch a hole in your old license and hand it back to you along with a paper interim driving privilege document. Then your new license will come in the mail in about 10 days," said Malone.

The new protocol took some off guard, but for people like Nathan Estimada, who recently lost his wallet, improved security is peace of mind, "I got my license stolen so I'm having to renew everything. So anything to make it safer, especially now-a-days, it is a good idea."

The new system does come at a bit of a price. To pay for the technology, the DMV is raising the cost of all ID cards by 75 cents, which will make a new driver's license cost about $22.



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San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys with breath test defenses report new allegations surrounding a Carlsbad man accused of killing a pregnant woman in a hit-and-run crash.
During Monday's arraignment, prosecutor Natalie Villaflor asked Judge Marshall Hockett to raise the bail amount for John Sudac Jr. to $2 million, arguing Sudac is a danger to the community.

"He surrendered himself so that the police didn't have to be here," argued Sudac's defense attorney Herbert Westin in court. "He has significant ties to the community, so he's not a flight risk."

The judge kept bail at $200,000.

Sudac is accused of driving the vehicle that hit an SUV at one in the morning last Sunday on Interstate-5. Yine Gonzalez Angeles and her unborn baby were partially ejected from the SUV and both died. Sudac fled the scene but turned himself in later that night.

Villaflor told the court, witnesses saw Sudac driving recklessly and speeding over 100 miles an hour just before the crash. She also says he destroyed evidence of his whereabouts earlier that day.

"There was a shredded Chargers ticket from the January 3rd playoff game that was found in the shredder," Villaflor says.

She adds that all voice messages, incoming and outgoing calls were erased from his cell phone but text messages remained.

"There were a text message after the Chargers game that related to 'Come up -- let's do vodka shots,'" she says.

Villaflor also told the court about a conversation one witness overheard.

"One of the witnesses believes the defendant was on his cell phone outside by the collision scene by the guard rail on his cell phone saying 'I’ve been in a horrible accident -- get me the f*** out of here,'" she says.

Silent, and guarded by about a dozen family members, Sudac left the Vista courtroom after pleading not guilty to the charges.

Sudac's defense attorney did not want to comment to the media after the arraignment. Sudac's charges include gross vehicular manslaughter and felony hit-and-run.

Prosecutor Villaflor says an additional DUI charge could be possible when the toxicology report comes back, saying marijuana was found in his vehicle.

Authorities are still looking for the passenger in Sudac's car the night of the crash.

California DUI criminal defense attorneys are told district attorneys are skeptical of proposed legislation that would keep first-time drunken driving offenders from starting their cars without breathing into an ignition interlock device.

Even first-timers with a minimum blood alcohol level of .08 would be breathing hard under the bill introduced last week by Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles.

The ignition device would replace restricted driver licenses and prevent drivers with any amount of alcohol in their system from starting their cars. It would have to be used for five months after a first offense.

If Assembly Bill 91 passes, four counties would be included in a pilot program beginning July 2010. A Central Valley county, perhaps Yuba or Sutter, could be chosen, said Feuer aide Arianna Smith.

Criteria for selecting the four counties have not been established, Smith said.

In West Virginia, where a similar bill was passed, repeat offenses by first-time offenders have declined 70 percent. In New Mexico, the decline was 60 percent, according to Feuer's office.

Assemblyman Dan Logue, R-Linda, said he supports the bill because it would save lives. But similar legislation last year died in committee when concerns arose about the cost to drivers.

For first-time offenders, the cost would be added to expenses that, according to law enforcement agencies trying to discourage drunken driving, are already approaching $10,000, including insurance increases and lost wages.

Cost is not addressed in Feuer's bill, which has the backing of California Highway Patrol Commissioner Joe Farrow and Mothers Against Drunk Driving national president Laura Dean-Mooney.

Sutter County District Attorney Carl Adams said he would not oppose the proposed program but is skeptical.

"It's definitely a good idea for multiple offenders, but is this the kind of restriction that's appropriate for someone who has suffered one conviction for DUI and has an otherwise clear record?" Adams asked.

Unanswered questions include whether the driver would have to install a device not just on his primary vehicle but also on his spouse's car or one he bought for his child, Adams said.

"Would the technology keep him from having someone else start the car and then letting him slide in and drive?" Adams said.

Yes, that would be possible without a fingerprint identification feature, said Logue — but that would be breaking the new law.

Adams questioned whether the device would be as effective as police officers looking for drivers they know should not be behind the wheel.

"It's difficult to judge the strength of technological solutions without knowing the technology," he said.

Yuba County District Attorney Pat McGrath called the concept appealing.

"After all, what better way to keep drinking drivers from actually controlling a car than to have the car itself say, "No, I'm not letting you drive," he said.

But, McGrath said, "practically speaking, we all know that interlocks can be defeated by having a friend start the car or by simply driving a car without an interlock device — and I suspect many problem drinkers would do just that."

The cost to drivers, including routine recalibration of the devices, is also a problem, he said.

Private garages would install and maintain the devices and report to the state.

"The more cynical among us would probably want to know if the legislation was sponsored by the interlock lobby," McGrath said.

"I don't think there's a silver bullet. Preventing DUIs will always depend on education, people taking to heart the saying, 'Friends don't let friends drive after drinking,' the threat of punishment and restricted or suspended licenses and technology," he said.

NEW DUI LAWS in 2009

SB1190: Allows judges to order ignition interlock devices for first-time DUI offenders with a blood alcohol level of 0.15, down from 0.20.

SB 1388: Starting in July, the Department of Motor Vehicles can require installation of an ignition interlock for anyone convicted of driving on a license suspended after a DUI conviction.
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San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers and San Diego Drunk Driving criminal defense attorneys report that the driver of a vehicle that crossed into oncoming traffic and smashed head-on into another car, causing five injuries, was arrested by California Highway patrol for alleged San Diego DUI - drunk driving.

The San Diego DUI crash took place around 7:15 p.m. Saturday on Willow Glen Drive east of Steele Canyon Road, San Diego DUI criminal lawyers are told.

The driver of a small white sedan was heading eastbound on Willow Glen Drive with no headlights illuminated and barely missed three other vehicles before colliding with a Volkswagen Beetle.

Three people, including both drivers, temporarily lost consciousness, San Diego DUI defense attorneys said. Those three and two others were taken to hospitals.


San Diego DUI Attorney Rick Mueller is a Premier San Diego California Drunk Driving Lawyer, San Diego California DUI & San Diego California DMV Defense Attorney with over 24 years of experience. Known as the San Diego California DUI - DMV Guru, San Diego California DUI Lawyer Rick Mueller dedicates 100% of his San Diego DUI law practice to aggressively defending those accused of San Diego Driving Under the Influence.



San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended indicated to the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent. Rick has been asked to speak again - at the California DUI Lawyers Association (CDLA) DUI seminar.



Simply complete the Free San Diego California DUI Evaluation for your best San Diego California DUI defense attorney strategy and to vigorously protect your important driving privilege, as has been done for many good people who necessarily become San Diego California DUI Clients.







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San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers and San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys report Charles Barkley is taking a leave of absence from the broadcast booth.

The announcement by Turner Sports came yesterday, hours after police said that Barkley, the former NBA star, was legally drunk when he was arrested Dec. 31 on suspicion of DUI / DWI / drunk driving in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Test results show that Barkley, 45, allegedly had a blood-alcohol level at .149, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 in Arizona.

Barkley will be off the air for a minimum of several weeks, and no return date has been set, a source familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.

Barkley was stopped by a Gilbert officer working a regional DUI task force shortly after he left a popular nightclub at about 1:30 a.m. He allegedly failed field-sobriety tests but was cooperative. He was booked and released at a field-command post, and he later issued a statement saying he was disappointed he put himself in that situation.

"When I spoke with Charles, he was apologetic for the events that transpired and it was obvious he understood the significance of this situation," David Levy, the president of Turner Sports, said in a statement. "This is an important time for Charles as he deals with the legal and personal issues that confront him. Charles is a valued part of the Turner Sports organization, and we are concerned for his well-being."

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers and San Diego Drunk Driving criminal defense attorneys report in
SAN DIEGO COUNTY ---- Drunken-driving arrests plummeted this Christmas compared with last year, according to county and statewide figures released by the California Highway Patrol.

The CHP tallied just 17 such arrests in San Diego County from 6 p.m. Wednesday through 6 a.m. Friday, compared with 76 DUI arrests over a similar period last year.

Statewide DUI arrests totaled 409 for the period, down from 973 a year ago.

The CHP investigates crashes on all freeways and in unincorporated areas. It conducts "maximum enforcement" efforts over holidays, aimed at taking impaired drivers off the road.

CHP Sgt. Lew Hall of the department's Oceanside office said he was surprised about the drop in arrests. His office had amassed 15 DUI arrests from Wednesday night through 6 a.m. Saturday, he said.

Heavy rain on Christmas Eve may have kept drivers off the road during the holiday period, he said.

Along with arrests, traffic-related fatalities also declined during the Christmas period, the CHP said. None was reported in San Diego County, down from one the year before. Throughout California, 11 people were killed in car crashes, down from 13 in 2007.

Figures for fatalities are compiled from all law enforcement agencies, not just the CHP.

No bicyclists and no motorcyclists were killed during the period.

The CHP's maximum enforcement effort continues through Sunday night, noted Hall, of the Oceanside office.

"With the weather cleared up, we may be a little more busy," he said.


San Diego DUI Attorney Specialist Rick Mueller is a Top-Rated San Diego County Drunk Driving, DUI & DMV Defense attorney with over 24 years of experience. <

San Diego Drunk Driving criminal defense lawyer Rick Mueller dedicates 100% of his law practice to aggressively defending those accused of driving under the influence of alcohol. He has successfully saved the driving privileges of many clients in the past year alone.

San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf .
Complete the important Free San Diego County Drunk Driving Defense Survey to find out your best strategy and to protect your driving privileges in California.
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San Diego DUI defense lawyers and San Diego DUI criminal attorneys are told that ten years ago, Linda Davis' 19-year-old son was struck and killed in west Santa Rosa by a DUI driver. Just one day before the anniversary, her mother, Beverly Rick, was killed in a collision with a car driven by 52-year-old Rosanne Starr Webb, who also died.

Webb had a long history of drunken-driving convictions and was wanted for failing to appear in court to answer a DUI charge. The role of alcohol in the crash is still under investigation.

Five days later, Santa Rosa police responded to another major-injury collision after 35-year-old Mike Tweedie of Santa Rosa flipped his pickup several times and struck two girls waiting at a bus stop with their father.

Tweedie, who has three DUI convictions and is suspected of driving under the influence Saturday, fled the scene, police said, and was arrested later at a nearby apartment.

DUI convictions were not enough to keep Webb or Tweedie off the road, and local law enforcement officials say there are thousands of others driving with multiple convictions. Unless a drunken driver injures or kills someone, they are likely back on the road within days of their hearing.

And if, like Webb, they fail to complete their court-ordered sentence, the warrant for their arrest may go unserved because police agencies concentrate on violent criminals.

“It’s a scary world, and nobody is really monitoring what’s going on out there,” said Davis, angry at the personal toll impaired drivers have taken on her family. “This woman had absolutely no business behind the wheel of a car.”

Neither the DMV nor the Department of Justice maintains statistics on how many DUI collisions involving injuries or deaths in California involve a driver with prior drunken-driving convictions. But traffic sergeants said finding prior DUI convictions on a suspect is common.

In Sonoma County, of 3,468 drunken-driving arrests in 2007, 3,300 people were convicted of the charges, Sonoma County District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua said. Figures for 2008 are not yet available.

Most convictions statewide and locally were for first offenses, earning the driver two days in jail. But approximately 28percent of drivers convicted of drunken driving statewide are being convicted for a second, third or even fourth time, according to DMV records.

That adds up to 42,849 drivers statewide in 2006, the most recent year for which the DMV has figures. Applying that percentage to Sonoma County, approximately 900 drivers convicted of a DUI offense are likely multiple offenders.

And each year hundreds of warrants are issued for drivers who fail to show up to court or complete court-ordered sentences. In 2007, 308 warrants were issued for DUI-related arrests.

“It’s pretty inherent to say they are a risk to all of us,” said Sgt. Ken Savano of the Petaluma Police Department’s traffic division. “And a lot of our drunk drivers have priors.”

Tweedie, 35, is expected to enter a plea on charges of drunken and reckless driving and hit-and-run on Friday. He appeared in court for arraignment Tuesday, but did not enter a plea. He was being held in lieu of $190,000 bail.

Like Webb, Tweedie has a lengthy history with the Sonoma County courts on DUI charges. He was convicted of DUI three times in the county, according to court records, and completed the county’s DUI education program after each incident before the latest crash, which could place him in state prison for up to 10 years, attorneys said.

“Aggressive prosecution is our best way of tackling repeat offenders,” Passalacqua said. In 2008, Sonoma County had a 97percent conviction rate for drunken-driving offenses, he said. Still, unless you injure someone, judges are sentencing offenders to DUI education programs and, eventually, the offenders are back on the road.

One repeat offender, Robert James Feenan of Santa Rosa, has 12 DUI convictions in Sonoma County.

In August, Judge Elliot Daum sentenced Feenan, 49, to one year in county jail and three years’ probation for his 12th DUI, a felony, when he was arrested with a 0.23percent blood-alcohol level.

Feenan pleaded no contest and admitted seven prior DUI convictions dating to 1990, those admissable in court. But his full criminal record showed four more since 1983.

Daum suspended a four-year prison term for Feenan and required him to get alcohol treatment. If Feenan violates probation, he could be required to serve the entire prison term.

According to Feenan’s sentencing report, probation officers recommended the aggravated term of four years in prison — three years for the June 2008 arrest and a one-year enhancement for his 11th DUI, in December 2003.

Because of their age, the previous 10 DUIs had dropped off the “prior” list for Feenan. Until recently, only DUIs within seven years could be counted as prior convictions. Now, they remain eligible to count as priors for 10 years.

Since 1983, shortly before Feenan turned 24, the longest stint he has gone without a DUI was four years between 1999 and 2003, when he was in prison for a total of 27 months.

In 1999, he was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison for his 10th DUI. But jail time has been brief, largely because he has not injured others on the roadway.

In March 2005, Kathryn Black, 43, was struck and killed while bicycling along Mark West Springs Road by Joseph Lynchard. Lynchard, with six previous DUI convictions, was drunk at the time of the crash. He was also convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.

On Jan. 6, 2006, Marian Tumbaga, 39, was killed when Arnold Anthony Silva’s Chevrolet Suburban rammed her Ford Escort from behind on northbound 101 near Shiloh Road, forcing it off the highway.

Silva had five prior DUI convictions when he was convicted of felony drunken driving and second-degree murder and sentenced to 43 years to life in prison.

“There are many tools out there to make sure that repeat offenses don’t happen,” Passalacqua said. “But it’s ultimately the responsibility of the person to turn his or her life around.”

Some repeat offenders, like Webb, failed to appear for a mandatory jail term ranging from two days for a first offense to 120 days for a third offense. Others didn’t pay a fine, and some never appeared for their court date.

But serving warrants for DUI offenses takes grant money to pay for officer overtime, Savano and Santa Rosa traffic Sgt. Doug Schlief said.

“Typically, people with a DUI warrant aren’t real easy to find,” Savano said.

Officers frequently knock on doors of friends and relatives without result, he said.

“It can be difficult and take a lot of time to just track down one person,” he said. “We’ll do everything we can to try and find them, but it’s difficult.”

Until money from a two-year Office of Traffic Safety grant dried up in October, Santa Rosa police officers conducted regular DUI warrant sweeps.

The department also maintained a hot list of drivers with multiple drunken-driving convictions. Officers, armed with the descriptions of vehicles those people drove, kept a lookout for offenders’ vehicles. But this program is no longer in place.

Petaluma, still working with grant money, has a similar list and continues to actively search for those wanted on warrants and monitor those with multiple DUI convictions.

Savano said these efforts have reduced drunken driving from being the third most-frequent cause of traffic collisions in Petaluma to the fifth.

San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent. Rick has been asked to speak again - at the California DUI Lawyers Association (CDLA) DUI seminar.



Complete the important Free San Diego County Drunk Driving Defense Survey to find out your best strategy and to protect your driving privileges in California.

San Diego County's Specialist in DUI and DMV Law
A three-week countywide law enforcement operation to catch drunken drivers resulted in 430 arrests, Riverside County authorities said Tuesday. The county's ``Avoid the 30'' DUI enforcement campaign, which began Dec. 12 and ended New Year's Day, included multiple saturation traffic patrols and sobriety checkpoints, according to Riverside police Traffic Bureau Administrator Karen Haverkamp.

The campaign -- named for the 30 participating law enforcement agencies in Riverside County, including the sheriff's department and California Highway Patrol -- was funded via a $701,983 state grant, which will cover the cost of continued countywide anti-DUI operations through January 2011, Haverkamp said.

There were three fatal DUI-related collisions during the campaign. Two motorcyclists -- one in Norco, the other in Palm Springs -- were killed, and a bicyclist died in Hemet when an allegedly intoxicated driver plowed through a red light and struck him.

Haverkamp said 17 DUI checkpoints and nearly two-dozen coordinated saturation patrols throughout the county helped snare the 430 suspected drunken or drug-impaired drivers.


San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf

The plastic surgeon who operated on Kanye West's mother before she died has been sentenced to a year in jail for drunken driving.

Dr. Jan Adams pleaded no contest to misdemeanor drunken driving last year.

Authorities say his Jaguar was spotted early June 26 traveling the wrong way on Interstate 680 near Cordelia. Adams' blood alcohol level was .20 percent.

Solano County Court Commissioner Ray Wieser sentenced the 54-year-old surgeon, author and TV personality Monday. He'll get credit for eight days he previously was jailed.

Adams performed breast reduction, tummy tuck and liposuction on Donda West a day before she died in 2007. An autopsy blamed heart disease coupled with complications from the surgery.

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What you must do within 10 days of being arrested for a San Diego DUI

10. If you need to save your driver's license or privileges, your San Diego DUI attorney has only ten (10) calendar days to contact DMV!



Do not schedule yourself. If you contact DMV to schedule a date conflicting with your San Diego DUI ttorney's calendar, DMV will not reschedule and you may not get the San Diego DUI attorney of your choice. There is no rush as long as your San Diego DUI attorney contacts DMV by the 10th day from your San Diego DUI arrest.



9. The ten (10) day time limit is computed from the Issue date of the SUSPENSION/REVOCATION ORDER AND TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE. If time is running out or you are late, contact a San Diego DUI attorney ASAP.



8. This ADMINISTRATIVE PER SE SUSPENSION/REVOCATION ORDER AND TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE is the California DMV paper which you should have received.



7. Even if you did not receive this DMV paper, the California DMV will probably take action against your driving privileges.



6. Even if you have a license from another state, and even if the officer did not take your license, that state may also take action against your driving privileges.



5. This TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE ENDORSEMENT is valid for only thirty (30) days from the issue date.



If a DMV hearing is requested within ten (10) days, your DMV TEMPORARY will be extended & there will be a stay (delay) of any suspension until the outcome of your DMV hearing is determined.



4. Do not confuse this initial 30 day TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE with your court date!

The DMV and criminal proceedings are separate and independent. The outcome of one almost never affects the other. Sometimes the officer or the DMV paper confuses or misleads you to believe that the TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSE is good "until the court date". If there are approximately thirty (30) days from your arrest date to your court date, this may just be a dangerous coincidence. There usually are months before your DMV hearing takes place.



3. There are three (3) issues at the hearing if you completed a chemical test. (See reverse side of DMV paper.)



Issues are whether the officer had probable cause to stop or contact you or whether the chemical test evidence is beatable.



2. The DMV has the burden of proof to prevail on all three (3) issues. If DMV meets the burden of proof on two (2) issues, you win!



1. All a San Diego DMV attorney has to do is knock out one (1) DMV issue to save your license & you avoid any reissue fee and/or Proof of Insurance SR-22 filing!






Click on below sites for more information or to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer

San Diego DUI defense lawyers and San Diego DMV defense attorneys report Any Charges Reported in these Press Releases are Merely Accusations and the Defendants are Presumed Innocent Unless and Until Proven Guilty.


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Cypress Police Department Targets Impaired Drivers with Checkpoint

The Cypress Police Department will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License checkpoint on Saturday, January 17, 2009, from 8:00 p.m., to 3:00 a.m., on Lincoln W/O Valley View. In an effort to reduce the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol involved crashes, DUI checkpoints are conducted to identify offenders and get them off the street, as well as educate the public on the dangers of impaired driving.

All too often, members of our community are senselessly injured or killed on local roadways by impaired drivers. This DUI/Drivers License checkpoint is an effort to reduce those tragedies, as well as insuring drivers have a valid driver’s license. A major component of these checkpoints is to increase awareness of the dangers of impaired driving and to encourage sober designated drivers.

A DUI checkpoint is a proven effective method for achieving this goal. By publicizing these enforcement and education efforts, the Cypress Police Department believes motorists can be deterred from drinking and driving.

Traffic volume and weather permitting, all vehicles may be checked and drivers who are under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs will be arrested. Our objective is to send a clear message to those who are considering driving a motor vehicle after consuming alcohol and/or drugs – Drunk Driving, Over the Limit, Under Arrest. The public is encouraged to help keep roadways safe by calling 911 if they see a suspected impaired driver.

Funding for this operation is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The Perris Police Department traffic team conducted a DUI checkpoint on January 1, between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m., at the intersection of Highway 74 and Park Street.

Approximately 2,000 cars passed through the checkpoint. Of those who passed through the checkpoint, five drivers were arrested for DUI, and 38 cars were towed for the driver being arrested, driving without a license or driving while their license status was suspended.
Retaining top San Diego drunk driving legal representation will ensure any necessary bail posting as soon as possible to reduce initial San Diego jail time.



The best San Diego DUI defense attorney will investigate all San Diego drunk driving arrests to ensure that the client’s legal rights were preserved and the San Diego county police officer following proper San Diego procedure.



If your San Diego DUI criminal lawyer identifies an illegal action or misconduct by the San Diego police officer, it could be grounds for San Diego DUI case dismissal.



However, if all proper San Diego procedures were followed - an unlikely event - your San Diego DUI attorney will nonetheless defend your San Diego drunk driving case to the most professional extent.



A first San Diego DUI / drunk driving offense is the best opportunity for your San Diego DUI defense lawyer to vigorously defend and to request a reduced San Diego DUI sentencing.



A premier San Diego DUI attorney will be one with over 24 years of experience and expertise in San Diego California drunk driving cases. Excellent San Diego court outcomes and satisfied clients will also be illustrative of the talent of your San Diego DUI / drunk driving criminal attorney.



San Diego DUI law firms provide free initial consultation to learn more about your case. To find the best San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyer.

Marines Establish Military Presence in California - DUI attorneys outraged!

Branson Hunter, writing for the Big Bear Observation Post blog, reports that the Marine Corps Air and Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) and the local California Highway Patrol will be working together over the holiday “in a joint effort to reduce accidents and drinking and driving” in San Bernardino County.

At the end of this video from CNN the Army Times denies that they will be involved in civil unrest, but that is what was on their website before the citizens of San Bernardino County cried out, at which time the MCAGCC removed it from their site.

Gary Daigneault, Talk Back Show, 107.7 F.M, discussed the ramifications of this joint effort today. Mr. Daigneault and his callers seemed to be very concerned. On its face, one may think this is a good idea. But further study of the implications of the mixing of Arm forces and the police shows it’s not a good idea. I personally agree with Mr. Daigneault and his callers. The callers mostly seemed to think that this was a very bad idea. Mr. Daigneault contacted a Constitutional Law expert, and the attorney informed him this is absolutely unconstitutional. It’s NOT permitted under the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, 8 U.S.C. § 1385. It’s also my understanding that the Constitutional Law expert said that CHP officers could be arrested since working with the Military Police is a felony.

Many of his Mr. Daigneault callers vocalized that this joint effort or mutual cooperation between the military and the CHP is going to be very intimidating. They (as I) are very concerned that CHP is going through with this action anyway. At this time, it’s not really clear what the specific role the Military Police will be taking part in. Their contribution could be to assist; or to observe; or to train; or to make a strong military presence; or to take charge of military offenders detained by the CHP? Nevertheless, whatever the Military Police capacity will be, it’s unconstitutional and it’s a felony.

I contacted the Morongo CHP office. The dispatcher said the program will be in effect tonight. When I asked where was it going to be taking place. She responded by telling me to call back tonight after 7:00 P.M. I politely protested since DUI check stops are suppose to be public. She then informed me that I had to speak with the CHP Public Affairs officer after seven. A call to the CHP Public Affairs Officer’s number after seven got a recorded message to call from 9-5 during business hours. Query: Now why was I told to call at 7:00 pm?

By the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, 20 Stat. 152, 18 U.S.C. § 1385, it was provided that “it shall NOT (emphasis added) be lawful to employ any part of the Army of the United States, as a posse comitatus, or otherwise, for the purpose of executing the laws, except in such cases and under such circumstances as such employment of said force may be expressly authorized by the Constitution or by act of Congress.” The effect of this prohibition, however, was largely nullified by a ruling of the Attorney General “that by Revised Statutes 5298 and 5300 [10 U.S.C. §§ 332, 334] the military forces, under the direction of the President, could be used to assist a marshal. 16 Ops. Atty. Gen. 162.” B. RICH, THE PRESIDENTS AND CIVIL DISORDER 196 n.21 (1941).

Its little encroachments like this that undermines the Constitution. One day you wake up, and your rights are gone. I can see numerous scenarios during those DUI check stops. To name a few: The Military Police go to the aid of the CHP to take down a civilian bad guy, a drunken teen, unruly tweakers. Will the Military Police be armed? Do they have any sort orders of engagements?

Dispatching Marines on California highways is an obvious violation of the Posse Comitatus Act (18 U.S.C. § 1385) passed on June 16, 1878. The Act prohibits members of the federal uniformed services, including military police, from working with state and local police and law enforcement.

However, since September 11, 2001, the federal government has increasingly ignored Posse Comitatus. On October 1, 2008, the U.S. Army announced its 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team will be under the day-to-day control of the Northern Command, ostensibly “on call” to respond to emergencies and disasters.

It is not explained how assisting in traffic accidents falls within the purview of Homeland Security and the military. It appears that the Marines are using this very pretense in San Bernardino County to cut down of traffic accidents, a task normally reserved for local law enforcement.

On December 1, the Washington Post reported that the “U.S. military expects to have 20,000 uniformed [rapid reaction] troops inside the United States by 2011 trained to help state and local officials respond to a nuclear terrorist attack or other domestic catastrophe, according to Pentagon officials. The Pentagon admitted that this move represented a long-planned shift in the Defense Department’s role in homeland security. Never mind the obvious violation of the Posse Comitatus Act. But the Bush administration and some in Congress have pushed for a heightened homeland military role since the middle of this decade, saying the greatest domestic threat is terrorists exploiting the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

The Marines, supposedly assisting the California Highway Patrol, is part of this effort as well and is designed by the Pentagon and Homeland Security to get citizens accustomed to seeing the military presence out there on the street. It dovetails with FEMA’s so-called Clergy Response Teams trained by the federal government to quell dissent and pacify citizens to obey the government after a declaration of martial law (see Feds Train Clergy To “Quell Dissent” During Martial Law). Hurricane Katrina played a part in this emerging long-standing plan when police and National Guard patrols forced home owners to hand over their legally owned firearms at gunpoint.

I was foaming at the mouth in my outrage that the Marines would have an armed, uniformed presence at, and assisting with, these internal checkpoints [suspicionless liberty infringemets that Justice Thomas has opined the Framers would not have tolerated], and I am even more distressed that the public is not more up in arms about the intermingling of military with civilian law enforcement for internal “order.” One sees that in Central and South American “Banana Republics,” but it is so inimical to what this Republic is all about that any president who orders or allows such should be impeached. The community needs to speak out loudly in dissent, or the silence will be deemed assent.

San Diego DUI criminal defense attorneys and San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers are told the best way to avoid a DUI conviction or DMV suspension is to not drink and drive. Purchasing a Portable Breath Tester will also assist you in determining your alcohol level before you drive. Unfortunately, the way our laws are going, even if you’ve had only a small amount of alcohol and you are not impaired, as long as you smell like alcohol your chances of being arrested are very high.

However, being arrested for DUI does not automatically result in a conviction or loss of your driver’s license. Protect your rights and save your license.Simply click here to know about military DUI reviews

If you are going to drink, then you should:

Not drive.
Avoid any type of vehicle.
Don’t assume that you can’t be arrested for Drunk Driving on private property.
Before going out removing any and all incriminating items.
Eat before starting to drink
Avoid drinking if you have a fever.
Consider taking a cab.
Have a sober friend drive.
Walk.
Get a hotel room.
Designate a Driver.
Drink at home.
Don’t drink.

If you are going to drive then make sure:

All your tail lamps and lights work.
Your windows are not unlawfully tinted.
You do not have a trailer ball hitch blocking your license plate.
You have both rear and front license plates.
Make sure your registration is current AND displayed.
Don’t speed.
No California stops.
Don’t throw cigarettes or trash out of your windows.
Don’t blast your stereo.
Don’t give your friends a ride - if they puke you will draw attention to your car.
Don’t drive to slow.
Make sure your lights are on.
Use your turn signals.
Don’t follow too closely.
Wait 2 hours for each drink you consumed (after your last drink) before driving.

If you find yourself on the road and you stop because you are tired or realize that you did consume too much then sleep inside your car in the back seat, with the ignition off and the keys in your pocket - completely off the roadway.

Dont dare to break the law: Get some information from DUI yahoo directory

San Diego DUI / DRIVERS LICENSE CHECKPOINT: JANUARY 3, 2009

On January 3, 2009, the Escondido Police Department conducted a DUI Sobriety / Drivers License Checkpoint in the 700 block of West Grand Avenue from 6:00 PM until 12:05 AM. The emphasis of this checkpoint was to detect intoxicated and unlicensed drivers as well as to provide a highly visible operation to deter driving under the influence.

The following activity resulted from this checkpoint:

- 1,836 vehicles entered the checkpoint eastbound on Grand Avenue
- 1,137 vehicles were screened in primary
- 122 vehicles sent to secondary (drivers who could not produce a drivers license or who were suspected of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs)
- 4 drivers were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- 2 misdemeanor criminal arrests were made
- 12 field sobriety tests were administered
- 51 vehicles were impounded at this checkpoint, 14 drivers did not have auto insurance, 13 drivers had a suspended drivers license and 39 drivers did not have a drivers license
- 63 citations were issued at this checkpoint

This checkpoint operated in conjunction Mothers against Drunk Drivers and the North County Law Enforcement Traffic Safety Council.

Drunk Driving Over the Limit Under Arrest. Report Drunk Drivers, Call 911
Submitted by
Sgt. Dana Ray
Traffic Division

To report any suspicious activities in your neighborhood, you may contact the Police Department
directly, or you may make an unidentified call on our Anonymous Tip Line at (760) 743-TIPS
(8477) or via our Web site at www.escondido.org/police.

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers and San Diego Drunk Driving crimnal defense attorneys are told that of all the things you could say to a cop with an automatic weapon after he's pulled you out of the car on the side of the highway at midnight, one guy chose: "I've had 15 beers."

And why not? This is Brazil, the land of samba in the streets, beer on the beaches and kiwis in your caipirinha, the place where festivals of debauchery last for days. Drinking isn't a source of shame here. It's part of the daily celebration.

Besides he wasn't driving. He never does. He's a lawyer; he knows there are rules, too. "I don't even have a license," he said. "He likes to drink," said the man behind the wheel that night, Bruno Mendes, 26, an accountant. "A lot."

The important question was whether Mendes had been drinking, because this is the new, more sober Brazil, at least on paper. Six months ago, the government imposed one of the strictest drunken-driving laws in the hemisphere, what people here call the "dry law." Anyone caught driving with a blood alcohol content of .02 percent or higher (compared with .08 in the United States) faces a $400 fine, loss of their license for a year, an impounded vehicle and jail time.

Many welcomed the move, with 35,000 people dying on Brazil's roads each year. Others were skeptical, including many Cariocas, as residents of Rio de Janeiro are known, who said the law was too harsh for the capital of carnival.

"The culture of Cariocas is bohemian -- they like night life, they like drinking beer," said Cesar Augusto de Castro Jr., a chief inspector with the federal highway police in Rio de Janeiro. "This law asks for a behavioral change, and it's hard to change their behavior."

The dry law, introduced in June, hit the country like a cold shower. Police swarmed the streets outside night spots in major cities, setting up sobriety-test checkpoints, handing out fines and seizing licenses. More than 5,000 people have been cited under the law, which joined a measure this year limiting the sale of alcohol along federal highways.

Critics have compared the police crackdown to terrorism. The law has been called authoritarian and unconstitutional, and the restaurant association is working to overturn it. Others have tried to adjust. The city of Sao Paulo added night bus routes to get drinkers home. The Brazilian beer maker AmBev started paying 10 percent of taxi fares for imbibers. Some bars and restaurants began driving customers home, while others strung up hammocks for revelers to sleep off their inebriation.

But it is difficult to say how well the new law is working -- or whether Brazilians' behavior has changed much.

The statistics suggest the roads are no safer than before. In the law's first five months, the number of car accidents on federal highways in Rio de Janeiro state rose 17 percent, compared with the same period in the previous year. Injuries also rose, by 32 percent, although deaths fell by 8 percent, according to police.

Across the country, the picture appeared worse. In those five months, accidents, injuries and deaths on federal highways increased over the previous five months.

Police said they were encouraged by accident figures in the initial weeks. But a problem quickly became apparent: It was difficult to enforce the law without breathalyzers.

"We don't have enough machines to do the tests," said Pedro Paulo Bahia, a spokesman for the federal highway police. "After a few months, people started to realize this."

Bahia estimated that Brazil, home to almost 200 million people, had 900 breathalyzers available. Highway police in Rio de Janeiro state have 13. Although there are plans to get thousands more devices soon, police said the shortage has hamstrung enforcement, particularly in the cities.

"The police officers would stop people and ask for money, between $200 and $400 depending on how drunk you were," said Antônio Carlos, 68, who has been a taxi driver in Rio for more than 20 years, echoing the complaints of several residents. "The corrupt police officers were getting rich."

For Carlos and his colleagues, however, the law has also been a boon. In Lapa, a Rio neighborhood known for its all-night samba clubs, taxi drivers report increases in business of up to 30 percent in the dry law era.

"I just think people are more afraid now to drink and drive," said taxi driver Vailtom Mira, 41, idling outside a Lapa bar. "The traffic is a sign of that. Before, it would take 40 minutes to go around the block here. On Friday and Saturday nights, nothing moved. Now it's easy to drive around."

At a sidewalk table nearby, Arthur Vianna, 25, said he could appreciate the new law. "I have crashed my car twice. I was drunk. Completely drunk," he said, showing off a scar on his left forearm.

"I stopped for a while drinking and driving. But after two months I did it again, I have to confess," he said. "I don't have a car anymore."

Vianna, a recent medical school graduate, said that shortly after the law went into effect, he noticed a decline in the number of car crash victims coming in to the emergency room. But lately things seem back to normal, he said.

"There is nobody checking anything anymore," said his friend, Ameusca Santos. "You have the law, but nobody's enforcing it."



San Diego California Criminal Defense Attorney Rick Mueller recently spoke at the California Attorneys For Criminal Justice annual DUI seminar in Rancho Mirage, California: http://www.cacj.org/Events/forms/DUI%20Brochure%20Final.pdf . The California criminal defense lawyers who attended informed the President of the California DUI Lawyers Association that San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorney Rick Mueller was excellent. Rick has been asked to speak again - at the California DUI Lawyers Association (CDLA) DUI seminar.


Click on below sites for more information or to contact a San Diego DUI Lawyer who can help:

San Diego DUI criminal defense lawyers and San Diego California DUI criminal defense attorneys who specialize in DMV cases note The number of holiday drunken-driving arrests in Marin held steady in Marin while figures dipped elsewhere in the Bay Area.
In a 21-day holiday DUI crackdown that ended at midnight Thursday, preliminary numbers show law enforcement officers in Marin brought in 97 DUI suspects, compared with 96 arrests last year. There were 14 traffic collisions involving a DUI driver compared with 17 such collisions the year before. No DUI fatalities were recorded either year.

The number of Marin arrests were up compared with the 2006 holiday season, when 78 arrests were recorded.

The Avoid the 13 enforcement campaign, which started Dec. 12, is named for the 13 law enforcement agencies in Marin as part of the nine-county Bay Area Regional Avoid campaign.

San Rafael police spokeswoman Margo Rohrbacher, who compiled statistics for the program, said "we certainly want to get these drunken-impaired drivers off the road.

"Though numbers are up from two years ago, we are locating some of them and taking them off the road," she said.

Among those arrested was a Bakersfield lawyer who specializes in drunken driving cases; he was arrested on suspicion of DUI on Dec. 26 in San Rafael.

In Sonoma County, officers during the holiday period registered 176 DUI arrests, down 21 percent from last year's total of 222 arrests.

DUI holiday arrests throughout the Bay Area took a similar dip; there were 2,704 arrests, a 19 percent reduction from 3,360 last year. Five people died in DUI crashes compared with three last year. Two of those deaths occurred in Solano County, two in Santa Clara County and one in Sonoma County. In 2006, there were 3,037 DUI arrests over the holidays in the Bay Area and seven fatalities.
"For the last few maximum enforcement periods there have been less arrests," said Officer Hugo Mendoza of the California Highway Patrol. "People are getting the message that it's not safe to be drinking and driving. It shows in the statistics."



San Diego DUI Lawyer - San Diego Attorney Drunk Driving / San Diego DWI Lawyer can help you beat the charge: