Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol

September 25, 2013

Beverly Hills DUI Sports News Update – Todd Helton of the Colorado Rockies Pleads Guilty to DUI charges

Time for your Beverly Hills DUI celebrity arrest fix…

Back in February, Rockies star Todd Helton whacked into a curve with his black Ford F-150 truck. Witnesses called police to report the likely-DUI driver.

In early May, Helton wound up in court and pled guilty to DUI charges stemming from that night. He told the judge: “I am very regretful to be here… I’ve taken many steps to prevent this from happening again.” The judge gave the major leaguer a minor league sentence: 24 hours of community service, a year probation, $1224 in fees, and a fine of $400.

Here’s how the events of Helton’s arrest unfolded, according to reports.

A witness saw Helton’s Ford weaving all over the road and called police at around 2 a.m. While officers were on their way, Helton hit a median and stopped at a Conoco Gas Station on the corner of Colorado Boulevard and 128th avenue. When police arrived to a strange sight: the truck was idling, empty, with the driver’s door open.

The baseball great soon emerged from the gas station with chewing tobacco and Lotto tickets… and dressed in camouflage. Officer Ty Deichert described the scene: “I could immediately smell a strong odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage coming from this person, and he was unsteady on his feet. The male’s eyes were also bloodshot and watery…I asked the male where he was coming from, and he stated something about getting his truck washed.”

Helton later tested to have a BAC of 0.12% – that’s 1.5 times the Beverly Hills DUI limit of 0.08%, per California vehicle Code Section 23152.

Was Your Beverly Hills DUI Arrest One of the Most Embarrassing Moments of Your Life?

That Helton was dressed in camouflage seems absurd. The detail humanizes him, but it was probably a hugely embarrassing moment. When you’re a celebrity, you need to protect your brand. That logic applies to all of us, in a sense. You want to be seen in a certain light by your colleagues, by your family, by your friends, by society. When you got arrested for Beverly Hills DUI, odds are that you were “at your worst” — or at least close to that.

To deal with this complex issue strategically, get in touch with a Beverly Hills DUI attorney at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Attorney Kraut is an ex-prosecutor, who spent over 14 years at the service of the city, putting criminal defendants behind bars. He’s also roundly liked and respected in the local legal community.

September 23, 2013

Ironic Burbank DUI Stories: Woman Celebrates End of DUI Restrictions By Getting Arrested for, Wait for It…

by Michael Kraut

Getting arrested for driving under the influence in Burbank is a monstrously embarrassing and challenging experience.

You probably don’t want to think about the assortment of punishments that prosecutors can seek, such as extensive jail time, weeks of compulsory alcohol school, mandatory IID installation in your car, fines and fees, intensely restrictive probation terms, and, of course, the suspension of your California drivers license for a year. And that’s just if you committed a minor crime — one that did not involve injuries, other charges, or a past criminal history!

You can obviously understand why someone would want to celebrate the lifting of such restrictions – the finalizing of a Burbank DUI case. Unfortunately, some people take such celebrations too far.

The results can be quite ironic.

Consider, for instance, what happened to Riverside Illinois resident Erin James, a 58-year-old woman on the verge of getting her driver license back — a court suspended it back for a 2012 DUI. But James got ahead of herself, according to CBS Chicago. Riverside police pulled her over for speeding at around 2 a.m., the night of the end of her suspension. The officer suspected that she was DUI, and he put her through the paces of field sobriety test. She failed and later tested to have a BAC of 0.15%. (For those of you keeping score, that’s nearly twice the Burbank DUI limit of 0.08%.)

The bad news did not end there, for James.

After checking her driver’s license, police found that it was suspended in 2012. James also did not have a mandated interlock ignition device (IID) in her car, which was supposed to stop her from driving while under the influence.

Police handcuffed and arrested the woman and hit her with the charge of felony aggravated driving under the influence of alcohol. A very serious charge. As you probably already know, a felony can be punished with a jail sentence in excess of a year. Convicted felons permanently lose many rights that most people take for granted, such as the right to vote in elections. Plus convicted felons often struggle to get loans, secure housing, find employment, et cetera.

Depending on the nature of your Burbank DUI charge, you, too, may face a felony, particularly if you hurt someone else while behind the wheel. The California Vehicle Code has actually a special section just for injury DUIs – 23153(a) and 23153(b). This CVC section is very similar to 23152 (the standard DUI misdemeanor), except that it elevates what would normally be misdemeanors to felonies.

Whether your Burbank DUI arrest was “ironic” or not, or “newsworthy” or not, you have a lot of work to do, legally speaking and otherwise. You want to forge an effective, appropriate, responsible Burbank DUI defense, but you’re not sure exactly how to start the process.

Get in touch with the reputable, results-focused team here at Burbank’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut is an ex-prosecutor who has a long, successful track record of helping defendants like you meet their charges effectively and smartly.

September 18, 2013

Los Angeles DUI Crackdown Nets Over 1,500 Arrests in Two-Week Period

by Michael Kraut

Over 100 anti-Los Angeles DUI operations throughout the county led to over 1,500 arrests in a 13 day span stretching from August 16th through Labor Day weekend.

The Sheriff’s Department said that the total number of arrestees – 1,546 – was up over last year’s numbers (1418). Police coordinated 100 different agencies throughout the Southland to deal with the problem of late summer DUI driving.

Per the Sheriff’s Department: “this Labor Day holiday weekend, extra DUI saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints were deployed in multiple cities in Los Angeles County.” Some of the cities where these DUI checkpoints took place include: Inglewood, Pasadena, Redondo Beach, Vernon, East Los Angeles, Santa Fe Springs, West Valley Area, 77 Street Area, Malibu, Norwalk, Pomona, St. Gabriel, Whittier, El Monte, Long Beach, Torrance, Antelope Valley, West Los Angeles, Rampart Area, Northeast Area, Devonshire.

September 16, 2013

John Clark Gable, Son of Screen Icon Clark Gable, Charged With DUI Malibu. He Allegedly Hit 6 Cars and Left the Scene!

by Michael Kraut

Not every celebrity Malibu DUI story is as crazy as Mel Gibson or Nick Nolte’s.

But strange stuff seems to happen out there on PCH – often involving the most legendary icons of Tinsel Town. To wit, John Clark Gable – son of “old school” film star Clack Gable – was recently charged with DUI in Malibu and hit and run for some crazy driving he did back in April.

Gable netted two misdemeanor charges, after he slammed into six (count them – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) parked cars on PCH. Law enforcement officials believe that Gable hadn’t consumed alcohol; rather, they think he was under the influence of prescription medications when he passed out behind the wheel.

So what happened?

The story is actually more sobering – and sad – than the tabloid headlines would suggest.

The 52-year-old had been driving his Ford pickup truck while (possibly) on prescription pain medications to deal with a mountain bike related leg injury. Police tested his blood alcohol concentration after the wreck. But his BAC was significantly under the 0.08% cut-off for Southern California DUI. Police representatives also told TMZ, flat out, that they did not believe Gable had consumed alcohol.

But a more major medical problem could have caused the event – an aneurism.

Gable has a history of brain aneurisms –scary incidents in which the blood vessels in the brain balloon. He had one in 2006 and then another in 2009 — problems which required surgery to correct. Aneurisms, particularly un-ruptured ones, don’t necessarily cause fainting, although they can create tunnel vision and induce seizures due to pressure from the build up of blood.

Gable is due in court on September 30th to face charges. If convicted, he could face jail time, loss of his license, and many other punishments.

One big takeaway here is that defendants often make bad situations worse by leaving the scene, fighting with officers, or engaging in aggressive or dangerous conduct, during or after a stop.

But even if you tried to evade officers at a DUI checkpoint or racked up a hit and run charge, all is not lost. You can advocate for yourself smartly by connecting with a seasoned Los Angeles DUI defense attorney, like Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut is a Harvard Law School educated ex-prosecutor with decades of experience with these types of cases.

September 11, 2013

Man Loses Control of Bowels After DUI Arrest: Los Angeles Blogosphere Weighs In

by Michael Kraut

What’s a Burbank DUI worst-case scenario?

Your Burbank DUI arrest was probably pretty rough. In fact, it’s hard to imagine how it could have gone any worse. Whether police pulled you over on Olive, after you attended a cast party of a WB show; or you crashed into a cop car on the 101, your situation was pretty embarrassing and possibly painful and scary.

But could it have been worse?

Consider your Burbank DUI arrest in light of what happened to a 21-year-old man from Boulder, who was recently arrested on 11th Street near an area called University Hill. Police found the man vomiting all over himself at around 2 in the morning. But that’s not all. Apparently, he also defecated on himself. The officers’ report said: “he told [the officers] it was because he was scared.” The 21-year-old faces a variety of unpleasant charges, including obstructing a police officer, violating a protection order, DUI, and DUI per se.

Hopefully, that puts your Burbank DUI charge in context.

For more context, let’s look to the town of York, Pennsylvania, where a woman from Newberry Township just got arrested for DUI – her second of the week and third DUI since July 5th!

24 year-old Anna Elizabeth Spittler hit a car on Interstate 83 and left the scene. According to reports, two people suffered injuries in the crash. Ms. Spittler faces a variety of citations and charges, including violating the controlled substances law, hit and run and DUI. According to one of the victims, Spittler’s car approached rapidly from behind. It swerved at the last second and smashed into the rear of his driver side, forcing his vehicle into a spin that sent it down an embankment.

A local newspaper report details the rest of the story “the [Pennsylvania] trooper found a Volvo parked in the right shoulder of I-83 about a mile away … police found a card with Spittler’s name on it, an unmarked pill bottle and open bottle of Smirnoff in the car.”

Spittler later confessed to driving under the influence and hitting the vehicle and leaving. She said that she thought she hit a guardrail.

It sounds like a very unfortunate situation, although Spittler was very lucky that no one got seriously hurt or killed in the crash (or in her previous two DUI incidences).

What You Can Learn from These Stories about Your Burbank DUI Defense
No driver is perfect. For every crazy/sad/unbelievable DUI story out there, there’s always one that’s crazier/sadder/weirder.

The key is not to dwell on the past but rather to acknowledge the present and look forward to the future. An experienced Burbank DUI defense attorney, like Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers, can help you make an effective plan of action. Mr. Kraut is an ex-prosecutor who amassed a 99-plus percent success rate at jury trials as a prosecutor. He has the connections and wherewithal to create excellent defenses.

September 9, 2013

Will Lamar Odom’s Los Angeles DUI Break Up His Marriage with Khloe Kardashian?

by Michael Kraut

It’s been less than a week since Lamar Odom’s Los Angeles DUI sent the blogosphere and twittersphere into a reporting frenzy.

But, already, celebrity reporters and pundits are speculating on how Odom’s DUI will impact his marriage to reality star Khloe Kardashian. The 29 year-old Khloe has not been keeping quiet over her marital displeasures. She confessed over Twitter: “As much as I wish I were made of steel … I am not.” She then tweeted: “I’m pretty damn close to it though, hehe.”

Odom and Kardashian went home in different cars on Friday, August 30th, after Odom’s Los Angeles DUI arrest. Photographers have not seen Lamar or Khloe together, although one intrepid paparazzo saw Odom renting DVDs at a blockbuster in Calabasas.

The 33-year-old NBA superstar has been embroiled by private life problems, including an accident on the 101, before his August 30th DUI. Radar Online reports that Odom got kicked out of the house and had to retreat to his bachelor pad. Sources told Radar Online that the ex-Laker/Clipper “was on his way back to his bachelor pad in downtown, Los Angeles… Khloe… was [pretty likely] asleep and had no clue he left.” Radar Online also reported that Odom got kicked out of the couple’s mansion in Tarzana because he had an affair.

A California Highway Patrol spokesperson described additional details about Odom’s DUI arrest: “Lamar Odom was driving 50 miles per hour on the 101 freeway. He was driving in a serpentine manner, which is pretty bad… Across all lanes on the freeway. I’m surprised he wasn’t rear ended.”

Since Odom refused to take a chemical test for DUI (such as a Los Angeles DUI blood, breath or urine test), his license was automatically suspended for a full year. Bad decisions can compound themselves – that’s why it’s useful to speak to a Los Angeles DUI defense lawyer ASAP.

As Odom and others arrested for driving under the influence of Southern California can attest, situations can easily go from bad to worse. During of times of turmoil, it’s useful to turn to people with experience to get through your crisis.

That’s why so many defendants have had such good experiences working with attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut is a seasoned, battletested ex-prosecutor (Harvard Law School educated) who regularly serves as a commentator for ABC News, the Los Angeles Times, and other big media to discuss news stories about DUI in Los Angeles and elsewhere.

September 7, 2013

Sordid Southern California DUI Case – Sheriff’s Deputy “Sold His Badge” to Bust Three Men for “Dirty DUIs”?

by Michael Kraut

Most Southern California DUI arrests are fairly straightforward. For instance, maybe a police officer stopped you at a checkpoint on Westwood Boulevard after a UCLA game. Or maybe you got into a fender bender on Vermont near USC and got busted after you punted your field sobriety tests.

But some DUI stories are intense, enigmatic… almost worthy of their own mini series.

File in that second category the story of Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Deputy Stephen Tanabe!

The 50-year-old Tanabe stands accused of seven federal charges for his role in staging three separate DUI arrests. Tanabe allegedly worked with Christopher Butler, a private investigator. Butler worked for a string of divorced women, who wanted to make their ex-husbands look bad, so that they could have stronger positions in their divorce and custody cases.

Tanabe and his friends apparently worked with Butler to encourage these unassuming ex-husbands to consume alcohol at bars and then drive. Once the men left, waiting police officers immediately pulled them over and busted them for DUI. According to Tim Pori, Tanabe’s attorney, Butler was the real “masterful manipulator” behind the scenes. Indeed, the PI may have played a role in 9 other “dirty DUI” arrests in California on top of the ones that Tanabe allegedly participated in on November 2, 2010 and January 9 and 14, 2011.

As a reward for his participation, Tanabe apparently got a pricey Glock gun and cocaine.

Butler and Norman Wielsch, an ex-drug squad commander, are both testifying for the prosecution in Tanabe’s case to get a reduced sentence. Wielsch is serving 14 years in jail, and Butler faces an eight year prison sentence for crimes ranging from staging DUIs to extorting money from employees of an “illegal massage parlor” that the two men founded.

Tanabe, for his part, faces three wire fraud charges, three counts of extortion, and one count of “conspiring to deprive others of his honest services.”

Your Southern California DUI charges: Were you framed? Was any police misconduct involved?

Most Los Angeles DUI cases are straightforward. Most police officers are honest. They work hard to keep the community safe and protect people on the roads.

This isn’t to say that police officers don’t make mistakes (ranging from big Constitutional sized mistakes to smaller errors of process and procedure) or that the technologies they use (e.g. breathalyzers, blood tests, etcetera) are foolproof. Far from it!

But odds are high that your DUI was not “dirty.”

That said, you owe it to yourself and your family to explore all Los Angeles DUI defenses. For instance, if you blew a 0.10% on the breath test – well over the legal limit, as defined by California Vehicle Code 23152 (b) – your attorney might challenge the test results by a variety of strategies, outlined in this website.

For help, look to Attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. As a Harvard Law School educated Los Angeles DUI defense lawyer who worked for 14+ years as a prosecutor, Mr. Kraut understands how to structure and execute effective defenses.

September 6, 2013

Long Beach DUI Sports News: Terrence Mitchell and Geno Smith, 2 Promising College Football Players, Busted in Separate DUI Incidents.

by Michael Kraut

As someone who was recently stopped and arrested for DUI in Long Beach, you’re probably more sympathetic than most people when you read about sports figures and celebrities busted for DUI and driving without a license. These tabloid-like stories can teach good lessons, if you take the time to understand what happened and why.

Consider two recent DUI arrests that have shaken up the college football world.

The first involves Geno Smith, a cornerback for Alabama, who was arrested on August 18 for DUI and later released on $1,000 bond. Smith’s coach, Nick Saban, put out a statement the next day: “this is obviously not the kind of behavior we expect from our players… I don’t have all of the details at this point and will handle it appropriately once I’ve had a chance to review the information.”

Smith was a four star recruit for Alabama.

Meanwhile, more serious news out of University of South Florida, where 23-year-old Terrence Mitchell was busted by Tampa police for DUI at North 30th Street and Bougainvillea Avenue. News sources report that he blew a 0.165% and 0.171% on two breathalyzer tests – more than twice the legal limit for Long Beach DUI or DUI in Florida. On top of that, he was driving with a bad license, and he faces charges that he assaulted a firefighter (bit the man! – more on that in our next post!).

This has been difficult year, legally speaking, for the 23-year-old, who was arrested for possession of marijuana (a misdemeanor) back in March. Mitchell once had a promising career. In 2010, The Tampa Tribune named him “male athlete of the year.” As a freshman, he was an All-American.

Mitchell had been in a six-month intervention program, after his misdemeanor offense.

Lessons for Your Long Beach DUI Arrests

Fortunately for both of these young men, their DUIs did not involve serious injuries to themselves or other people – or serious property damage. Unfortunately, early DUIs can be signs of future problems.

Even if you construct an effective defense to DUI in Long Beach charges – and avoid serious jail time, intense probation, an interlocking ignition device (IID) in your vehicle, and so forth – you still face longer term issues. Recidivist offenders (repeat offenders) can be charged quite harshly, per Long Beach DUI law. For instance, if you’re convicted three times within 10 years – and your third offense would normally just be a misdemeanor – prosecutors can automatically elevate your charge to a felony. That could mean a jail sentence of over a year.

For help planning what to do next, get in touch with the team at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut racked up a 99%+ record at jury trials as a prosecutor, and he maintains excellent relationships with judges, prosecutors and police officers in the Los Angeles court system.

September 2, 2013

Hollywood DUI Update on Linda Hogan’s Case: Hulk’s Ex-Wife Finally Pleads Guilty to DUI Charges

by Michael Kraut

Breaking Hollywood DUI news — Linda Hogan, ex-wife of WWE Star, Hulk Hogan — has plead guilty to charges that she drove on the influence in October 2012.

The reality star had publicly and vigorously claimed innocence, asserting that she “had only drunk one glass of champagne,” before police stopped her on the westbound 101 in her black Mercedes Benz. At the time, her BAC tested at 0.084% — just over the legal limit for Hollywood DUI (0.08%), per CVC 23152(b).

In exchange for Hogan’s guilty plea, prosecutors agreed to drop one of the two misdemeanor DUI charges against her. She also got three months of alcohol classes and three years of probation.

Hogan (whose real last name is Bollea) starred with the Hulk (a.k.a. “Terry Bollea”) in the short-lived but much gossiped-about reality show, Hulk Knows Best. Their show – and marriage – ended in 2007. Linda then commenced a relationship with a 23-year-old, Charley Hill. They briefly got engaged, but then broke it off.

One reason why Hogan’s arrest caused so much ruckus in the blogosphere is that it coincided with the release of Hulk Hogan’s sex tape on YouTube. The 59-year-old Hogan was filmed performing a sex act with Heather Clem, former wife of DJ Bubba The Love Sponge, Hulk’s best friend.

Linda expressed shock about the sex tape. She said she found it “a little twisted,” especially because the Hogans, Clem and Bubba the Love Sponge had all been close friends.

So essentially: private and public theatrics galore.

Of course, if you’ve recently been arrested for DUI in Hollywood, you‘re probably less interested with the tabloidy exploits of realty stars and wrestlers then you are with building a sound and rigorous defense. After all, Hollywood DUI charges – even first time charges – can be punished with jail time, probation, license suspension, mandatory alcohol school, compulsory interlock ignition device installation, fines, fees, and more.

To build an intelligent, energetic defense, talk to the team here at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers today. Mr. Kraut is a former prosecutor with 14 plus years experience on the “other side,” and he can adeptly represent Southern California criminal defendants.

August 28, 2013

Miguel Jontel Pimentel Arrested for DUI in Los Angeles

by Michael Kraut

Miguel Jontel Pimentel – better known just as “Miguel” – was recently arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles, according to California Highway Patrol reports.

The singer-songwriter and Grammy winner — known for singing hits like Kaleidoscope Dream and creating “Adorn” and “#Beautiful” with Mariah Carey — got pulled over in his 2013 BMW X6 in Marina Del Rey. Police stopped the 27-year-old at the intersection of Mindanao Way and Lincoln Boulevard at around 2 AM on August 12.

The police tested Miguel’s BAC at 0.10%, just a smidge above the Southern California DUI legal limit of 0.08%. The officers also said that he smelled like alcohol – one of the main symptoms of Los Angeles DUI. (Other symptoms include slurring of words; providing conflicting events of what happened; acting aggressively or inappropriately; bloodshot eyes; lack of balance; forgetfulness, etc.).

Miguel was released on a $5,000 bond later. He is due in court on September 9 to face his charges.

It’s a serious step down from winning a Grammy for best R&B song and getting nominated for Best Rap Song and Song of the Year. But Miguel’s DUI arrest shows convincingly that no one is above the law and that being famous does not protect you from making bad or dangerous decisions.

Interestingly, Miguel’s BAC readings — he allegedly blew 0.10% and 0.11% on two breath tests — were not that far over the legal limit.

Depending on the circumstances, Miguel may be able to challenge those Los Angeles DUI results. For instance: it’s unlikely, but perhaps Miguel was on a crash diet or a ketogenic (very low carb) diet, in which case metabolic byproducts from the dieting might have unduly influenced the breath results.

Alternatively, perhaps the police officers asked him to blow very hard into the machine. If you blow hard into a DUI breath test, you can elevate the results beyond your actual, legitimate levels.

A breathalyzer test can also be challenged on procedural grounds. For instance, perhaps the tests weren’t calibrated correctly.

To build a defense to your Los Angeles DUI charges, get in touch with Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers today. Mr. Kraut is an ex-prosecutor who spent years serving in role of Senior Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles – so he knows how prosecutors think, and he can use his knowledge and relationships to help you craft your defense.