Sunday, March 23, 2014

DUI Arrest: Child In The Car Means Jail



DUI Attorney in Orange County





California
Penal Code Section 23572 mandates jail time for any person who is convicted of
a
DUI and they were driving with a child under the age of
14 years old in the vehicle. The jail time is MANDATORY and an Orange County
judge MUST impose jail time even for a first-offense DUI. Even in cases where
there is no bad driving and the driver has a relatively low blood-alcohol
concentration, if the driver is convicted of the DUI, the enhancement must be
imposed. That’s why it is so important to consult with an
Orange County DUI Lawyer if you are charged with this enhancement.
To prove the
enhancement the District Attorney need only show that there was a minor in the
car at the time of driving and that the minor was under 14-years old. So in
cases where the enhancement is charged
Orange County DUI lawyers will attack the underlying charge of DUI. If your DUI Lawyer in Orange County can successfully attack the underlying DUI charge and
get it dismissed or reduced to a
wet reckless, then the enhancement cannot be
applied. If the driver’s blood-alcohol is low enough, then your
DUI Attorney can present a “rising” defense. This is a great way to
leverage a wet reckless deal.






The length of
jail time that must be imposed when the Vehicle Code Section 23572 enhancement
is charged depends on whether the driver has any prior DUIs within the previous
ten years. For a first-offense DUI—where the driver has no prior convictions
for DUI within the previous 10 years—the judge must impose 48 hours of actual
jail time. Moreover,
Orange County DUI Attorneys will tell you that the enhancement
time is added on to any punishment that is imposed for the underlying DUI
conviction. If a driver has a prior DUI conviction within 10 years, then the
court must sentence the driver to an additional 10 days in the ORANGE COUNTYJAIL on top of the jail sentence that will be handed down for the underlying
DUI conviction. Where a driver has two priors within 10 years then the court
must sentence the driver to 30 days of additional jail time. Three priors
within 10 years will result in an additional 90 days in the Orange County jail.
There is
also a separate charge of child endangerment that the Orange County District
Attorney can file for having any minor in your car if you are driving drunk.
Penal Code Section 273a. This section makes it a crime to wilfully place a
minor in a position where their health or welfare are endangered. This separate
crime can be filed as a misdemeanor or a felony and applies to any minor under
the age of 18-years old. If it is filed as a misdemeanor it carries up to six
months in the Orange County jail. A felony conviction of child endangerment
carries up to six years in prison. Although the prosecutor retains the
discretion to file as either a felony or a misdemeanor, your criminal defense lawyer can petition the judge to reduce a felony filing to a misdemeanor.






If you face
charges for DUI, DUI drugs, or child endangerment, call The Law Offices of EJ
Stopyro at (949) 559-5500 for a free and confidential consultation with an
experienced criminal defense attorney. You can also visit our website at
www.EJEsquire.com. Our main office is at
32072 Camino Capistrano, 2nd floor, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675,
but we have office locations throughout Orange County for client meetings.
DUI Attorneys in Orange County



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