Driving Under the Influence

December 16, 2013

Glendale DUI Debacle: Did DUI Firefighter Nearly Kill a Motorcyclist?

Picture in your mind someone who’s been charged with driving under the influence in Glendale. Odds are, you’ll conjure up a stereotype, like:

• A recidivist alcoholic;
• A college student at UCLA or USC who got busted after a night of partying;
• A debouched celebrity who’s been in and out of rehab.

Odds are, you did not picture a firefighter on a rescue mission.

But disturbing new reports from the San Francisco Chronicle suggest that DUI driving may actually be common among Bay Area firefighters.

Two fire chiefs and a battalion chief may be on the verge of suspension, after a firefighter drove DUI in a fire truck and slammed into a motorcyclist at the intersection of Howard Street and 5th Street. Michael Quinn, a lower level firefighter, allegedly had been drinking at a bar before he hopped into his truck to respond to what turned out to be a false alarm.

During the rescue mission, the fire truck smashed into motorcyclist, Jack Frazier, and catapulted him into a fire hydrant. Frazier broke many bones and suffered a collapsed lung. Amazingly (and fortunately) he survived the crash, but he’s still struggling and in pain from his injuries.

After the crash, the firefighter’s blood alcohol concentration level was measured; it came back at 0.13 percent. That’s just 0.03% percent shy of double the California (and Glendale DUI) limit of 0.08%. Other firefighters involved in the crash tested negative for DUI and drug consumption.

Frazier’s attorney pointed out that, while the firefighter “made an incredible … egregious mistake,” the problem of firefighter DUI driving appears to be “systematic.”

What can we take away from all this?

1. First of all, if you’ve been arrested for driving DUI in Glendale, appreciate that you’re not the only “ordinarily upstanding citizen” who’s ever been charged with a similar crime.
2. Secondly, use the incident as a wake up call. Strive to understand what’s going in your life that may have motivated you to act carelessly (if you did indeed act carelessly).
3. Third, if you have not already done so, take time to connect with a DUI defense attorney to construct your defense. Mr. Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers is an experienced, respected Glendale DUI defense lawyer; he and his team can help you put together a sound, results-focused case.

December 2, 2013

Pasadena DUI Sports News: Evan Rodriguez (of the Chicago Bears) Nearly Twice the Legal Limit (0.17%)

by Michael Kraut

The story of Chicago Bears’ fullback Evan Rodriguez may be an important cautionary tale for Pasadena DUI defendants.

On May 31, Illinois State Police stopped Rodriguez on the Kennedy Expressway (early in the morning) and tested him to have a BAC of 0.17%. For those of you keeping score, that’s nearly twice the legal limit for Glendale DUI of 0.08%, as set forth in California Penal Code Section 23152. Coach Phil Emery chastised Rodriguez early in the off season, when the fullback got into a scrape with police in Miami Beach. Police cited him for speeding and improper lane usage on I-90. Taken in context with his March arrest for resisting a police officer, the situation doesn’t auger too well for Rodriguez.

If you were arrested for extreme DUI in Pasadena (more than twice the legal BAC limit), you could be subjected to extra penalties, including extra jail time and very restrictive probation terms.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Cook County, a 53-year-old grandma got convicted of her seventh DUI on May 30th. The woman went drinking before she picked up her one-year-old grandchild from a local daycare. A jury convicted her of a special kind of crime – a Class X felony – and she faces up to 30 years behind bars.

According to news reports, police arrested Jenkins in April 2012, after she picked up her granddaughter at the Community Child Care Center of Palatine Township. Daycare workers were concerned. They thought she had been drinking. They saw her stumbling. After she hit another car while leaving the daycare, workers called the police, who stopped her on Quentin Road and subjected her to a field sobriety test.

Her breathalyzer tests were not sufficient to provide a reading, but witnesses at the daycare believed that she had been under the influence. In his closing statement, a prosecuting attorney told jurors, “the assistant director came out and pled for the defendant not to drive away, that she would call a cab. The defendant told her to go to hell.”

The law treats recidivist Pasadena DUI defenders very seriously. In fact, if you’re pulled over for a “standard DUI” — and you’ve already been convicted twice for DUI in the last 10 years — prosecutors can automatically elevate your charge to a felony.

This means that, instead of facing a few hours or days behind bars, you could face a half a year – or much more, particularly if you hurt someone, pulled a hit and run, resisted arrest, et cetera.

Building a strong defense against Glendale DUI charges is a challenging business, even if you have grounds to challenge the breath test or dispute the police’s version of events.

Fortunately, you don’t have to wage this battle on your own. The team here at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers is standing by to give you sensible, effective guidance. Connect with a former prosecutor and Harvard Law School educated attorney today for help to get the results you want for your Pasadena DUI case.

November 24, 2013

When Should You Accept a Plea Deal for Your Pasadena DUI Charge?

by Michael Kraut

At what point should you plead guilty to your Pasadena DUI charges?

How do you know whether to fight all the way to trial or whether to cut your losses and accept a reduced set of punishments?

Believe it or not, the answers to these questions are not clear cut. Plea bargaining a Pasadena DUI case is an art and a science… although you neglect the “science part” at your own risk.

Here are two factors to weigh heavily:

1. The opinion of an experienced successful Pasadena DUI defense attorney.

Your attorney should have lots of practical experience dealing with cases like yours. So if he or she suggests that you plead guilty to a lesser offense, consider that advice strongly. Of course, not all attorneys will always agree on the best tactics and strategies to be used. If you want a second opinion about your case, please connect with attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers today. Not only is Mr. Kraut a well regarded Pasadena DUI attorney, but he’s also a former prosecutor, so he’s spent time negotiating DUI cases on both sides.

2. What you’ll risk if you lose vs. what you’ll get if you win.

If you fight the charges tooth and nail and lose, what would the worst case outcome be? How would that be different from what would happen if you accepted a plea arrangement? Will you have to spend several more weeks in jail? Will you lose your license for a full year instead of a month or two? Weigh the pros and cons of the extreme outcomes against one another. Consider them in the context of the probabilities.

For instance, speaking frankly, your attorney might think that you’ll only have a 15% chance of prevailing at a trial. Is that risk worth it to you? Is the expense of going all the way to trial worth it? There is no one right answer for everyone.

To deal with your Pasadena DUI charges, turn to the thorough attorneys at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut is a widely respected Harvard Law School educated ex-prosecutor. He amassed a track record of over 99% success at jury trials when he was with the DA’s office.

November 13, 2013

DUI Glendale Drama: Carol Doda, Legendary Stripper, Busted in a DUI Crash

by Michael Kraut

Getting into a Glendale DUI accident is awful, whether you are a PA, a big film executive… or even a legendary stripper.

76-year-old Carol Doda – who falls into that third category – got arrested a few weeks ago, when she smashed her Acura into another vehicle on Jackson Street in Northern California, outside of 5A5 Steak Lounge.

Doda was a topless performer in the 1960’s at the Condor Club in North Beach — widely considered to be the “world’s first topless bar.” In one of her most famous acts, engineers lowered Doda topless onto a piano by guy wires, her 44D breasts available for the whole crowd to see. By the end of the 1960s, Doda also performed bottomless.

Her charm and silicon enhanced bustline made her the object of much conversation and heated debate. Today, she owns Champagne & Lace Lingerie Boutique on San Francisco’s Union Street.

Getting back to Doda’s DUI… according to police reports, the Condor Club star smelled like alcohol and confessed to drinking “a couple of drinks” at a local bar before getting behind the wheel. “Smelling like alcohol” is a hallmark symptom of DUI in Glendale (and elsewhere). Other common symptoms include bloodshot/glassy eyes, trouble following directions, sudden mood shifts, inability to understand or answer officer questions, and failure to perform to field sobriety tests, like the “stand on one leg,” “count backwards by 3’s,” and “finger to the nose” tests. Police wanted to give Doda a field sobriety test, but they feared that she might slip and get injured. At Mission Station, officers tried to administer DUI blood and breath tests; Doda could barely understand their questions!

(If you refuse a Glendale DUI breath test or blood test, your license automatically gets suspended.)

While celebrity DUI cases can be titillating – and certainly interesting to read about – they can also inform the way you think about your own Glendale DUI defense.

The truth is no one is above the law. Whether you are a famous stripper, a hugely influential politician, a sport star or a mega A list actress, the laws of human biology – and the laws of Southern California DUI – still apply to you.

The question is: what should you do now?

Whether you stand accused of a serious felony, pursuant to California Vehicle Code Section 23153, or you “just” got busted for weaving in and out of lanes on the 134, look to an experienced Glendale DUI defense lawyer at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers for smart, capable, and compassionate assistance. Mr. Kraut is a Harvard Law School educated former prosecutor, who won a 99+% success rate at jury trials while working as a prosecutor. He maintains strong relationships with colleagues throughout the Southern California criminal defense system.

November 4, 2013

Glendale DUI Quiz: Which of These Three DUI Stories are True, Which are False?

by Michael Kraut

Now for another Glendale DUI “true or false” quiz. Here’s how it works. You read the synopsis of six stories that may or may not have happened. Try to guess which three stories are made up and which actually occurred in real life.

Here we go:

1. Only in China: 10 employees shove their boss’s vehicle home, after he gets too inebriated to drive.

If you think punishments for Glendale DUI are harsh, they’re nothing compared to what the country of China metes out. Not only do convicted offenders get steep fines, but they also can spend six months or longer in jail for first misdemeanor DUI offenses. In any event… 10 Chinese workers and their boss partied too hard at a restaurant. Soon, no one was sober enough to drive. So the boss convinced his workers to push his car all the way home. The journey took 45 minutes!

2. Woman who did not like the results of her breathalyzer bites off cop’s thumb.

A woman in Louisiana was displeased with the results on her breathalyzer, which found her to be over 2.5 times the legal limit for Glendale DUI (0.08% BAC). She exhibited her displeasure by mangling the thumb of the arresting officer with her teeth. She later told authorities that she was “confused” and thought he had actually instructed her to bite him. Two years after her arrest, she was sadly institutionalized.

3. A woman arrested for DUI had 23 cats in the car with her!

A Meriden, Connecticut woman was pulled over on I-95, when an officer saw her veer suddenly across three lanes of traffic. During her subsequent field sobriety test, officers heard strange noises coming from the car. Upon inspection, they found 23 different cats in her car. Only 5 of them were in cages. The rest were freely moving through the vehicle. Obviously, the woman was arrested on animal cruelty charges. But the big kicker is that she blew a 0.23 on her breath test – the same as the number of cats in her vehicle!

4. Vladimir Putin often purposefully drove drunk to “sharpen his driving skills.”

Former Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, is famous for his rigorous self-discipline and eccentric forms of self-improvement. The ex-KGB op taught himself to drive under the influence “just in case” he ever needed that skill. The former Russian President even had advisers videotape his performances so he could improve his response times.

5. Man shows up for driving test while insanely under the influence.

A man in Romania had his license suspended for two years for driving under the influence. When he returned to the Romanian version of the DMV to retest, the organizers saw him stumbling around. Officers gave him an alcohol test, which he promptly failed.

6. Mother and her boyfriend force 13-year-old to drive, because both adults were DUI.

A 32-year-old woman and her boyfriend downed tons of wine at a local pizzeria. Since both the mom and her boyfriend had multiple DUIs on their record, they forced the woman’s 13-year-old son to drive them home. The young man became confused and disoriented and started driving in the wrong way. But his mom and her boyfriend were too busy making out in the back seat to pay any heed.

If you need help with your Glendale DUI case, connect with the team at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers today for an insightful, useful free consultation.

ANSWER KEY:

1 (true); 2 (false); 3 (false); 4 (false); 5 (true); 6 (true)

November 1, 2013

Beverly Hills DUI Quiz: Are These Crazy DUI Stories Real or Made Up?

by Michael Kraut

Beverly Hills DUI stories have a reputation for being pretty outlandish. The real-life antics of movie stars like Lindsay Lohan and Mel Gibson – along with the strange, wild behavior that we’ve catalogued in hundreds of posts — speak to our weird collective proclivities.

Let’s test your mettle: try to figure out which DUI stories are true and which are false.

1. Son and both his parents all separately arrested for DUI on the same day.

A family in South Canterbury scored the ultimate DUI trifecta. The 15-year-old son got arrested at 12:15 a.m. for DUI, testing at nearly 3.5 times over the legal limit. Police took him to the station, where he called his mom. While on her way to the station to pick him up, the mom was stopped and busted for DUI (nearly twice the legal limit). She then called her husband, who came to get both offenders. The husband in turn was stopped and arrested for DUI!

2. 49-year-old Wisconsin woman called the police on herself after calling 911.

The dispatcher asked her if she was driving behind a DUI driver. She responded: “no, I am them.” BAC tests later showed that she had twice the legally acceptable amount of alcohol in her system.

3. Vermont man charged with DUI after letting his dog drive his pickup.

A 39-year-old farmer and dog trainer in rural Vermont rigged his truck so that his dog could operate the vehicle. Unfortunately, police spotted him “training” the dog on a rural road and found that the erstwhile owner had a BAC of nearly 0.20% — nearly three times the Beverly Hills DUI limit!

4. Woman claims that she couldn’t have been DUI because she is a “breatharian.”

Police in Arizona arrested a woman for driving under the influence – testing her to have a BAC of 0.12%. She denied the charges, claiming that she couldn’t have consumed alcohol, since she lives off of only air and sunlight. This bizarre “diet” – known as breatharianism — has a rich, chequered history going back thousands of years. (It’s obviously impossible, since the human body cannot survive for more than a few days without water or more than a few weeks without food). But the woman may have been the first breatharian ever arrested for DUI.

5. Student arrested for DUI while dressed as a breathalyzer test.

Irony alert! A student in Ohio got arrested for DUI while dressed as the very test that he later failed (he blew a 0.158% — nearly twice the Beverly Hills DUI limit). His costume different drunkenness levels including “boring,” “life of the party,” and “sotally tober.”

6. Police officer singlehandedly arrests 18 different people (in different cars!) for DUI.

In the outskirts of Dublin, an officer was tired of taking flak from patrons at a local pub.

Many people in the pub apparently knew the police officer since he was a child and didn’t respect his authority. To mess with them, nearly two dozen patrons decided to leave the pub at once (while DUI) and drive away. Rather than call back-up, the officer proceeded to find and ticket each one of the drivers.

If you need help deal with your Beverly Hills DUI case, connect with an experienced and highly respected attorney at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers for a free consultation.

ANSWER KEY:

1 (true); 2 (true); 3 (false); 4 (false); 5 (true); 6 (false)

October 21, 2013

Glendale DUI Cautionary Tale: Aldon Smith’s DUI Arrest and Legal Trouble

by Michael Kraut

Whether you got arrested for DUI in Glendale, after police stopped you for speeding on the 134, or police snagged you at a Pasadena DUI checkpoint near Old Town Pasadena, you’re facing a serious legal crisis.

Join the club.

Aldon Smith of the San Francisco 49ers also just got busted for driving under the influence in California, after he smashed his truck into a tree. While such an event would render many people unable to walk or engage in vigorous activity, Smith took to the field against the Colts just two days later… and made five tackles on the way to a 27 to 7 defeat.

Jed York, the CEO of the 49ers, said that the team had the right to play him, despite his DUI: “our opinion is, if you’re sitting someone down and paying them to sit down when they’re going to seek treatment in the future, we didn’t feel like that was an appropriate punishment. We’re not trying to circumvent what the NFL will do. This is about making sure that Aldon has the opportunity to work on something, to get better…”

Last season Smith had 19 1/2 sacks – a record for the 49ers, and the second most sacks in NFL. But he’s apparently equally aggressive on and off the gridiron.

• In 2012, Smith got into a car accident in Santa Clara County, and he sustained a deep cut on his face.
• In June 2012, Smith and Delanie Walker (also on the 49ers squad) allegedly got intoxicated at Smith’s house and shot guns into the air to stop their party. Unsurprisingly, in shooting off their guns in a crowded area, they allegedly hit a man, who later filed a lawsuit against Smith.

The NFL’s personal conduct policy takes a Glendale DUI violation (or DUI violation anywhere) extremely seriously. But since Smith’s case had not been adjudicated, he was allowed to play against the Colts. Following that game, however, he was put on the non-football-injury leave of absence list.

As we reported in a separate post on Jacoby Jones and Pacman Jones, NFL players have gotten into some horrendous legal turmoil recently. (To refresh your memory, Jacoby Jones got smashed over the head with a bottle of champion (by a stripper, no less!) on a party bus. Pacman Jones, meanwhile, got hit with DUI charges and mouthed off to the officer arresting him.)

But the mayhem is not restricted to the NFL. Taylor Olander, a UConn basketball hero, recently also got suspended, after police busted him for driving under the influence without a license.

If you or someone you love has been arrested for driving under the influence in Glendale (or elsewhere in Southern California), consider getting in touch immediately with an experienced Glendale DUI defense lawyer at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Mr. Kraut is a very experienced Harvard Law School educated ex-prosecutor. He is known for his excellent relationships with judges, prosecutors and other members of the Southern California legal system.

October 14, 2013

Q: What Happens When You Drive Nearly 5 Times the Legal Limit for Burbank DUI?

by Michael Kraut

A: You crash into a gas station window.

There are many good reasons why to avoid driving under the influence in Burbank (or elsewhere in Southern California). Among them include:

• Your license could be suspended for a year;
• You might have to go to jail;
• Your insurance rates might balloon and stay high for years afterwards;
• You might have to pay incredibly steep fines and fees;
• You might have to endure uncomfortable prohibition terms;
• You might have to pay to install an interlock ignition device in your vehicle;
• Perhaps most vividly, you might do crazy things, like drive your car into the glass window of a gas station.

Such was the fate of 33-year-old Evelina Igor Bennett of Boise, Idaho, who allegedly drove through a gas station on the 100 block of South Broadway. According to reports, police arrived at the gas station to find the woman sitting in the lot, smelling intensely of alcohol.

They put Ms. Bennett through the paces of Field Sobriety Tests. (Probably, they were very similar to the Burbank Field Sobriety Tests that you had to do — such as the finger to the nose test, the stand on one leg test, the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, and the count backwards by threes test.)

But more astonishing than her failure at the FSTs was the intensity of her alleged intoxication.

Her two breath tests show that – which were taken later at jail (after she had time to metabolize some of the alcohol) showed that she had a 0.382% and 0.395% BAC, respectively. That’s astonishingly high. You’re considered legally over the limit at just 0.08%.

In fact, at that level of intoxication, Ms. Bennett is lucky to have survived the night. It’s not uncommon for people with BACs of 0.40% and above to become comatose or to suffer severe and permanent health effects due to the alcohol.

Bennett had been convicted twice before for DUI – once in 2006 and once in 2007. If you’re arrested three times in the span of ten years for DUI in Burbank (or elsewhere in Southern California), prosecutors can charge your third DUI as a felony, even if it ordinarily would be just a misdemeanor. That means you could go to jail for over a year (among other things), instead of just a few days.

Sobering thoughts.

Fortunately, if you’ve been arrested for a similar crime, you don’t have to passively accept your fate. Connect today with a Burbank DUI defense attorney at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers. Attorney Kraut is a very experienced former prosecutor who has a tremendous record for delivering results, even in tough, complex cases. Mr. Kraut served for 14 plus years as a prosecutor in the capacity of Senior Deputy District Attorney.

October 7, 2013

DUI and Burbank Sports News: Bernie Kosar, ex-Browns QB, Busted for DUI in Cleveland

by Michael Kraut

If you think that your DUI in Burbank has been a depressing turn of events, try being a Cleveland Browns fan.

All kidding aside, Cleveland sports fans received some pretty harsh news last Sunday, tempered only slightly by a victory against AFC rivals, Cincinnati Bengals. Police in Solon, Ohio arrested 49-year-old Bernie Kosar, an ex-Browns quarterback, for driving under the influence. Police stopped him for speeding around 2:45 am, and officers noted a smell of alcohol on him. As regular readers know, that’s a key symptom of Burbank DUI. (Other common symptoms include: bloodshot eyes, inability to balance, strange/awkward behavior towards officers; slurred words; emotional outbursts. When combined with other evidence – such as failures on field sobriety tests and DUI Burbank positive breath or blood tests, it can be enough to put you behind bars!)

Kosar has been an outspoken advocate of retired NFL players who’ve struggled with brain injuries incurred while playing. But his public troubles are well known. He’s struggled financially, gone through a divorce and gotten addicted to painkillers. Kosur claims that his NFL-induced brain injuries have caused him to slur his words.

While QB’ing for the Browns, Kosar took his team to the AFC Championship game three different times. But he got in trouble with the Browns’ organization earlier this year, when he lashed into the St. Louis Rams during a pre-season broadcast. He called Tavon Austin, a wide receiver for the Rams, “horrible,” and he also said “Bless me Father for I have sinned. I have to watch [backup quarterback Kellen Clemens] the whole fourth quarter.”

What You Can Learn from Kosar’s Saga about Your Burbank DUI

Kosar’s story indicates how vulnerable we all are to periods of despondency, dependence, and just bad luck. It takes a single act of careless judgment on one particular day to create terrible circumstances that can alter your life and damage other people.

Kosar’s story also suggest that head injuries may indeed be capable of inducing serious behavioral changes, such as loss of impulse control. If you know someone who has gotten arrested for DUI in Burbank — and that person has been sick or recently injured — you may need medical help as well as legal assistance.

For help with the legal piece, consider turning to experienced former prosecutor, Michael Kraut, of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers, for a free and thorough DUI defense consultation. Mr. Kraut is an ex-prosecutor with excellent connections with the Los Angeles legal community.

September 30, 2013

Bishop’s DUI Arrest Puts Your Own Glendale DUI Charge in Perspective

by Michael Kraut

As someone arrested for DUI in Glendale, you’ve been beating yourself up pretty badly.

You’re not the only one showering you with negative emotions. Odds are high that you’ve encountered at least one friend or relative who responded to the news of your arrest in a less than congenial or compassionate manner – either judging you outright for “being a bad person who can’t get it together” or by making subtle but still painful digs.

The Glendale DUI experience is more diverse — and more human — than many people realize, however.

For instance, did you know that a Roman Catholic bishop from Rhode Island recently got arrested for DUI, after he consumed wine at dinner and then hopped in his car? It’s true. Out in South Kingston, Rhode Island, Robert McManus, a bishop for Worcester, got arrested for DUI and for leaving the scene of an accident. The 61-year-old bishop admitted that he “made a terrible error in judgment.” William Murphy, the former Speaker of the Rhode Island House, is representing McManus in court.

When most people think about Glendale DUI arrests, they conjure up caricatures.

They might picture a wastrel — a no-goodnik whose “life is a mess.” An irredeemable “criminal” who’s not at all like normal, law-abiding people. Or they think of “hot messes,” like Lindsay Lohan or presumptuous pols or narcissistic sports stars.

Does a 60-something high priest from Rhode Island fit your mental profile of “DUI driver”? Probably not! The reality is that the diversity of people arrested for this crime is astonishing, but that diversity is just not reflected in news stories or in tabloids.

Changing How You Think about And Reflect on Your Glendale DUI

We live in a society that emphasizes the judging, shaming and punishment of “wrongdoers.” This moralizing is built into the very fiber of our legal system. But this kind of thinking is not particularly resourceful. It can be downright destructive.

As we discussed above, Glendale DUIs are often the surface manifestations of deeper issues.

For instance, a person who loses his job might feel helpless and thus drawn down into a spiral of destructive behavior (including driving DUI). To turn things around, he will need not only to face down the charges but also to address the root issues making him feel helpless.

Of course, in some cases, DUIs really are “random.”

For instance, Bishop McManus may, indeed, have just “had a bad night.” You never know.

In any case, it’s useful to at least probe your DUI to try to understand its root cause, so you can address it and save yourself hassle in the future.

Connect with Attorney Michael Kraut of Glendale’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers today for assistance with your case. A Harvard Law School educated ex-Deputy District Attorney, Mr. Kraut can offer powerful and comprehensive help with your Glendale DUI defense.