California DUI Attorney

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. CHARLES P. SUBRAMANI, Defendant and Appellant
Court of Appeal of California, First Appellate District, Division Four
October 31, 1985

The defendant drove his vehicle striking broadside a vehicle injuring the driver and the passenger. Driver suffered minor injuries but passenger sustained substantial injuries. Defendant was charged as follows on V counts, felony driving under the influence and causing injury to the driver (Veh. Code, § 23153, subd. (a)); felony driving under the influence and causing injury to the passenger (§ 23153, subd. (a)); felony driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.10 percent or more and causing injury to the driver (Veh. Code, § 23153, subd. (b)); felony driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.10 percent or more and causing injury to the passenger (§ 23153, subd. (b)) and misdemeanor driving with a suspended license. Prior to trial, defendant pleaded guilty to count V. Defendant was convicted of both felony and misdemeanor driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.10 percent or more based upon one collision in which two persons were injured. The defendant challenged the judgment.

Issues:

Whether the misdemeanor drunk driving counts must be vacated?
Whether the defendant is being properly charged with more than one count from a single act of drunk driving which caused injury to more than one person?

Discussion:

This court held that the defendant could be charged only with one count of felony drunk driving (i.e., with violations of subds. (a) and (b) of § 23153); the injuries of either or both of the victims could be used as proof of the charge. Here, however, the prosecutor charged separate felony counts for each victim; that was improper. Because the felony convictions involving injury to victim Blackwell (counts II and IV) were properly charged and are supported by substantial evidence, they can stand. The misdemeanor counts (counts I and III) involving Brown are mere surplusage and therefore must be stricken.

This court held that while such dual conviction is proper, dual punishment is prohibited by Penal Code section 654. (People v. Duarte, supra, 161 Cal.App.3d at pp. 446-447.) The trial court correctly applied that principle by ordering that the execution of the sentence on one of the felonies (count IV) was to be stayed in accordance with Penal Code section 654.

Conclusion:

This court hence reversed the judgment against defendant only as to the misdemeanor convictions and affirmed the judgment in all other respects. Defendant was properly charged and convicted of felonies for both driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.10 percent or more.

Disclaimer:

These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group.  They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions.  The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content

 

Originally published here.

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Atchuthan Sriskandarajah

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Charges refiled against man in connection with 2009 death of 2-year-old
A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Joshuae Robert Preston on suspicion of murder and felony child abuse, crimes he was first charged with in 2009 after the death of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son but which were dismissed in August of that year.

Published Nov 29, 2010.
Read more: The Bakersfield Californian

Just because you got a DUI, it does not mean that you have to suffer from all the penalties. It is possible that you can have them dropped completely, or atleast have the charges against you decreased. Either way, it is beneficial to contest your DUI case and attempt to win your case.

A lot of factors can play a roll in the outcome of your DUI Case. There are a lot of good attorneys in California and Arizona that are able to have DUI cases dropped. The reason is because some times officers make mistakes when they are doing proceedures.

Here is a small list of reasons that your DUI charges can be dropped:

False reading from the Breath Alcohol Test Police officer failed to read you your Miranda Rights The Officer lacked probable cause for your arrest Your blood alcohol was rising after you were pulled over The officer did not watch you consistently for 15 minutes before giving you a Blood Alcohol breathalizer – if you burp or hiccup this can cause faulty numbers Mouth Alcohol can contaminate Breath Alcohol test results

There are a lot more reasons that you can have your DUI charges dropped for. You will have more chances of winning your DUI case if you have an experienced attorney helping you. Not only will they be able to find loopholes, but you can continue on with your life as they do the research and appear in court for you.

California laws are becoming more strict when it comes to getting a DUI, this is why it is important to defend your case. Pleading guilty will only give you all the charges that come with a DUI. There are even cases of people getting a DUI when they were not even driving their car. A person can receive a DUI if they are standing outside next to their car with the keys in their pocket. The officer can say that he or she had the intent to drive, and book them with a DUI. So fight against your DUI charges and get a consultation from a DUI attorney.

Originally published here.

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Anthony Burton

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