First Offense Alameda County DUI

First offense Alameda County Driving Under the Influence arrests usually initiate two separate cases. The first case is the DUI criminal case which will be prosecuted by the Alameda County District Attorney's office in one of the four Alameda County Courthouses. The Alameda County District Attorney will almost always charge a person arrested for driving under the influence with two separate criminal violations following a DUI arrest made by a California Highway Patrol officer, local Police Officer, or Alameda County Deputy Sheriff.

The first DUI charge is for driving under the influence of alcohol, medication or drugs in violation of California Vehicle Code Section 23152, subdivision (a). The second DUI charge is for driving with a blood alcohol level (BAC) at or above the legal limit of 0.08 percent in violation of Vehicle Code Section 23152, subdivision (b). If an arrest involved an accident resulting in an injury to a person other than the driver arrested for DUI, a more serious felony driving under the influence case may be charged alleging violations of California Vehicle Code Section 23153, subdivision (a) and 23153, subdivision (b).

The second DUI case is a California Department of Motor Vehicles license suspension action, in which the DMV will attempt to suspend the driving privilege of the person arrested for a first offense DUI for a minimum of four (4) months. Drivers arrested for driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher in Alameda County have only 10 days from the date of the DUI arrest to request a DMV administrative per se (APS) hearing. If a DMV hearing is not requested within ten (10) days of the arrest, any California driver's license will be suspended thirty (30) days from the date of the arrest.

If the person arrested in Alameda County for DUI has an out of state driver license, the privilege of that person to drive within the State of California will be suspended indefinitely thirty (30) days from the date of the arrest and will usually not be restored until a California DUI school is completed. Additionally, a driving suspension imposed by the California Department of Motor Vehicles for a DUI will usually lead to an additional case being initiated by the state which issued an out of state driver's license.

California DMV hearings are complicated and should only be handled by a lawyer who specializes in DUI cases and California DMV cases. All DMV hearings stemming from arrests made in Alameda County are handled at the Oakland Driver Safety Office. To suspend a driver's license, the California Department of Motor Vehicles must prove by a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not) that the police had reasonable cause to believe a violation of California Vehicle Code Section 23152 or Vehicle Code Section 23153 was committed, that the arrest (and detention) was lawful, and that the driver had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 percent or greater at the time of driving. California DMV administrative hearings can be won, but typically only by an attorney with specialized knowledge of the DMV hearing process, the type of evidence presented and familiarity with the available defenses.

A person accused of driving under the influence of alcohol, medication or drugs in Alameda County faces the possibility of jail, large fines, driver’s license suspension, mandatory DUI classes, mandatory ignition interlock device installation and maintenance, and other consequences. For that reason, it is imperative that a qualified Alameda County DUI lawyer handle your case.

If you or someone you know has been or may be accused of driving under the influence, or driving with a blood alcohol level at or above the legal limit in Alameda County, please read the information contained in this website and call the office and discuss your case with Robert Tayac. If you prefer, you may submit a confidential case questionnaire which will receive a prompt response.