Articles Posted in Driving Under the Influence

Last week, Lindsay Lohan’s grand felony theft charge (which this blog covered at length in a previous post) consumed nearly all the oxygen in the Los Angeles DUI blogosphere. Jaime Presley’s DUI drama snatched up the dregs. (As this blog also covered recently, the “My Name is Earl” actress filed for divorce just weeks after her January arrest, prompting some to speculate that the DUI sparked her divorce – a rumor she quashed in no uncertain terms late last week.)kristoff-st-john-dui.jpg

But out of all the Burbank DUI, Los Angeles DUI, Pasadena DUI, and Glendale DUI arrests made last week, one celebrity bust was given surprisingly short thrift by the news media and blogosphere: Kristoff St. John, a long-time star on the soap, The Young and the Restless, was pulled over on the freeway last Sunday at 1:30 a.m. and booked on a DUI charge.

The ever-vigilant celebrity watchdog website TMZ.com reported that St. John spent all Sunday behind bars before finally making his $5,000 bail. Officers pulled him over after they saw him speeding. The 44-year-old St. John apparently did “poorly” on his field sobriety tests.

St. John started his role as Neil Winters on The Young and the Restless way back in 1991 – 20 years ago – and actually got his start in the entertainment business when he was just 7, in a short-lived sitcom called That’s My Mama.

Burbank DUI field sobriety tests – similarly to the ones that St. John apparently failed – can trip up many motorists, even motorists who have consumed not a single drop of alcohol. This assertion may sound farfetched at first. But it will resonate as more rational, once you learn a little bit more about what the field sobriety tests (FSTs) actually are and how they work.

Officers who suspect a motorist of DUI in Burbank will subject him or her to physical and mental examinations on the side of the road. You’ve no doubt seen depictions of these tests on TV and at the movies. They include the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, the finger to nose test, the one-leg stand test, counting backwards test, reciting the alphabet backwards test, and walk the line test.

Essentially, the officer wants to know whether the suspect has any coordination problems – either physically or mentally. Unfortunately, these tests tend to yield “false positives.” For instance, say you’re not a coordinated person — or you get vertigo from the anxiety associated with your DUI stop. You may not perform well on your FSTs, even if you’re completely sober.

Conversely, someone who IS actually DUI might perform brilliantly on FSTs. For instance, a trained gymnast who spends her day walking on a balance beam might perform quite well on the “walk the line test” even if she had a BAC of more than twice the California legal limit of 0.08%.

The general lesson here is that, if you’ve been pulled over recently, you should talk to a qualified Los Angeles criminal defense attorney about what steps to take next. Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (located in Burbank at 2600 West Olive Avenue, 5th Floor, Burbank, California 91505 Phone: (818) 563-9810) can provide crucial strategic guidance. Attorney Kraut is a former prosecutor (nearly a decade and half spent as a Senior Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles) and a media analyst trusted by major news media, like CNN and the New York Times, to provide commentary on breaking Los Angeles DUI news stories.

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Often, the most bizarre Los Angeles DUI news items come out of the valley (places like Burbank and Glendale). But last week, Baldwin Hills had the honor of being the site of a super-strange DUI bust in the Southland. los-angeles-bicycle-dui.jpg

If you or a coworker or family member was arrested recently under suspicion of Los Angeles DUI, DUI in Pasadena, driving under the influence in Glendale, or Burbank DUI, take note at how seriously Southern California police took the dangerous behavior of a gaggle of Baldwin Hills bicyclists:

According to the AP, around 1:30 in the morning, California Highway Patrol got a call saying that a bicyclist had careered into the pavement and hurt himself. Officer Travis Ruiz came to the scene and found 15 bicyclists gathered around their fallen comrade. Many bikers lacked helmets and reflective clothing or gear. The bikers had alcohol on their breath. After taking field sobriety tests, five different bikers – including the one who got hurt – were found to have blood alcohol levels that constituted DUI. These five were arrested – even though they were driving bicycles and not motorcycles, cars or trucks.

As this blog has cataloged in the past – specifically with lawnmower DUIs – Long Beach DUI law is very strict. If a California Highway Patrol officer stops you for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you will face stiff charges according to either California Vehicle Code Section 23152 (a) or 23152 (b). If convicted, you face a plethora of unpleasant penalties, from harsh probation to a full year driver license suspension to forced installation of a device in your car that won’t allow you to drive unless you blow a sober breath into it. And of course serious jail time always lurks as a possibility.

Your best line of defense is to connect immediately with a talented Los Angeles criminal defense attorney. One of the reasons why many Burbank DUI defendants choose the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers — (located at 2600 West Olive Avenue, 5th Floor, Burbank, California 91505, Phone 818-563-9810) — is that Attorney Michael Kraut and his team deeply understand the concerns that DUI defendants have. With more than a decade-and-a-half experience in the system – including 14 years as a local prosecutor – Attorney Kraut can help answer those nagging questions that have been keeping you up since the night (or day) of your Burbank DUI arrest.

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With the ringing in of the New Year, one might expect to hear stories about elevated numbers of Pasadena DUI arrests and extra checkpoints around the Southland. But two breaking news events suggest that 2011 has gotten off to an extra rocky start, as far as Southern California DUI news is concerned.barricade_in-home.jpg

If you or a co-worker or friend got tripped up with a Pasadena DUI, Glendale DUI, Los Angeles DUI, or Burbank DUI around New Year’s, at least take solace that your relatively pedestrian arrest did not evolve into anything like the following two catastrophic and complicated events:

1. Flight of DUI Fancy
KTLA has reported that a Fontana man who fled a DUI checkpoint barricaded himself into random house on Sierra Avenue. Police at first suspected that the desperate man had taken hostages. A SWAT team was called in to resolve the situation. After a traumatic night, police finally fired tear gas into the home, driving the man outside, where he surrendered. Although the man was injured, no one else got hurt, fortunately.

2. Pedestrian Tragedy
The San Diego Union Tribune reports that a pedestrian got hit and killed by an allegedly DUI driver in La Mesa on Murray Drive, just one hour after New Year’s had rung in on the West Coast. 40-year-old Dana Lohner was arrested and taken into Las Colinas jail after she allegedly hit and killed 53-year-old Kelly McPherson.

Both of these stories deal with the complication of injuries and DUI. What happens if you hurt someone while you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol? How can you build a defense? What strategies should you employ to improve your odds of getting good and fair results?

To answers these questions, we need to delve into what the law says about Pasadena DUI with injury. California Vehicle Code Sections 23152(a) and 23152(b) deal with so-called “typical” DUI arrests. Basically, these are misdemeanor charges: although punishments can be serious, they are not serious as a felony charges.

When you hurt someone while driving DUI in Pasadena (or elsewhere in Los Angeles County), you can be charged under two different California Vehicle Code Sections – 23153(a) and/or 23153(b). If you are convicted, what ordinarily might be a misdemeanor will get elevated to a felony charge. You could thus face more jail time, stricter terms of probation, a lifetime loss of your right to vote in elections, problems getting credit and employment down the road, and many other hassles too numerous to summarize in this blog post.

Whether you’ve been slapped with a minor misdemeanor charge or a serious felony charge for hurting someone while driving under the influence, you need and deserve good legal representation. The Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers — located at 790, East Colorado Boulevard, 9th Floor, Pasadena, California 91101 (Phone 626-345-1899) — can provide critical services to aid in your defense. Attorney Michael Kraut attended Harvard Law School and served as a city prosecutor for over a dozen years before turning his attention and talents to criminal defense. A Los Angeles criminal defense attorney like Michael Kraut can provide you with the strategic assistance, and tactical know-how to respond most effectively to your legal trouble.

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Driving under the influence in Long Beach (or anywhere else in California, for that matter) can result in fatal injuries as well as manifold penalties to drivers caught and convicted. Unfortunately, despite massive multi-million dollar educational campaigns, DUI continues to be a serious problem throughout the southland and beyond.los-angeles-DUI-5.jpg

Those of you out there who have recently been charged with driving under the influence in Pasadena, DUI in Burbank, DUI in Glendale, or DUI in Los Angeles – or who have a relative who faces charges – likely want to understand celebrity DUI stories not just at a surface level but also at a deeper level. Namely, you want to know how the law gets applied to unclear or tricky DUI situations, and you want reliable resources to deal with your legal challenges.

Let’s look at three newsworthy celebrity DUI arrests that happened in the days leading up to Christmas Eve 2010:

#1. Aaron Douglas, University of Alabama football hero.

According to Maryville, Tennessee’s The Daily News, University of Alabama football protégé, Aaron Douglas, got stopped for driving erratically and blowing through a stop sign. After refusing a blood alcohol test and doing “extremely poorly” on field sobriety tests (FSTs), he got arrested and charged with DUI. Douglas’s hearing will be held on 12/29 in Blount County.

#2. Ignacio De La Fuente, Oakland City Councilman.

In Oakland, City Councilman Ignacio De La Fuente got pulled over on the 880, an Oakland area freeway. De La Fuente had been pulled over just for speeding, but the CHP officer suspected him of DUI and subjected him to field sobriety tests, which he failed.

#3. Sergio Kindle, Baltimore Ravens player.

23-year-old Sergio Kindle, a rookie with the Baltimore Ravens, got slapped with a DUI charge after an officer saw him weaving around on Route 1. The former University of Texas phenom had to make a $10,000 bond, and his football future has been cast into further doubt by the incident. (The Ravens did recover from Kindle’s arrest; hours later, they beat the Cleveland Browns 20-10 to clinch a berth in the 2010 playoffs.)

In all of these three minor celebrity arrests, suspects faced “field sobriety tests” (also referred to as FSTs). In Long Beach, if you are pulled over under suspicion of driving under the influence, a police officer will administer a series of physical and mental examinations. These will include (but may not be limited to):

• Finger to the nose test
• Rhomberg test
• One leg stand test
• Walk the line test
• Horizontal gaze nystagmus test
• Count backwards or recite the alphabet backwards
• Other tests of your physical and mental acumen

Officers will also look for so-called “symptoms” of a Long Beach DUI – such as bloodshot eyes, odor of alcohol on your person, or your admission to having consumed intoxicants – to assemble enough probable cause to make an arrest.

Once you have been charged, your actions – including your choice of attorney – can have a profound influence on your future and financial well-being. A Long Beach criminal defense attorney, such as Mr. Michael Kraut of Los Angeles’ Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers, can be instrumental in designing and executing a sound and sturdy rebuttal to the prosecutor’s charges.

As a Harvard Law School educated former LA prosecutor, Mr. Kraut has the wherewithal, resources, knowledge, and intuition for the system to deliver precisely the kind of defense you need.

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Last weekend, Chico California Police arrested George Jefferson Smith, for driving an ice cream truck while under the influence. Pasadena DUI bloggers and others who follow bizarre criminal news have been vigorously discussing the plight of the 48-year-old Smith, who got stopped as part of a saturation patrol that led to 15 motorists heading to custody for suspicion of DUI.ice-cream-truck-dui.jpg

If you’ve been recently stopped at a saturation patrol for Los Angeles DUI, DUI in Pasadena, DUI in Burbank, DUI in Glendale, or DUI anywhere else in the region, perhaps you will feel some empathy for Mr. Smith. According to local newspaper reports, Officer Ryon Mitchell saw Smith swerving around on Nord Avenue on the evening of December 13. The officer stopped the ice cream truck for a taillight violation. When Mr. Smith responded that he “could get the taillight to work if he banged on it,” the officer noted that the driver appeared impaired. He made Mr. Smith take field sobriety tests. People walking past took pictures of the odd sight of an ice cream truck driver walking the line and counting backwards by threes.

According to reports, the driver had not been delivering ice cream to children when he was pulled over.

The Pasadena DUI process that defendants get funneled through may seem confusing at first. But it’s really quite straight forward. Here is a brief overview of what happens.

1. You are stopped at a checkpoint, traffic stop or site of an accident.

Perhaps a Pasadena officer saw you weaving across a lane or blowing through a stop light. In any case, the police must follow very specific procedures to make DUI checks.

2. Investigation into your alleged intoxication

An officer will ask you to leave your vehicle and participate in field sobriety tests, also known as FSTs. You may also be asked to submit to a preliminary alcohol screening (PAS) test. Note that both the FSTs and the PAS tests are voluntary.

3. Arrest for driving under the influence in Pasadena

A typical non-injury DUI will be charged under California Vehicle Code Sections 23152(a) and/or 23152(b).

4. Selecting a Pasadena DUI defense lawyer

The court can appoint a public defender to represent you, or you can represent yourself without a lawyer. Both of these options have serious drawbacks. Experts would almost certainly recommend that you choose a third option: hiring a private lawyer to represent you for your DUI.

Pasadena DUI defense attorney Michael Kraut is a former senior trial prosecutor who boasts a 98% success rate at jury trials that have gone to verdict. As a Harvard Law School educated lawyer who has extensive connections and a deep understanding of the law, Attorney Kraut can provide a free consultation at his Pasadena office at 790 East Colorado Boulevard, 9th Floor, Pasadena, California 9110. Call 626-345-1899 to set your appointment.

5. Your arraignment

Depending on the nature of your charges, you may have to appear at your arraignment, or your private DUI attorney can appear on your behalf to enter your plea.

6. Preparing for the pretrial

95% of criminal trials get resolved at this stage. For instance, your DUI lawyer could get your charges reduced or dropped altogether.

7. Trial by jury

If you are among the one out of 20 criminal defendants who has to go to a jury trial – whose case has not been dismissed or settled – your lawyer will represent you to win the best possible verdict.

8. Beyond trial

Your attorney can help you stay on track after you’ve fought the charges by turning you onto good resources.

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Everyone in the world of poker knows that driving under the influence in Burbank (or, really, anywhere in the United States) is bad news. Unfortunately, John Racener, Runner Up in the 2010 World Series of Poker’s Main Event, may not have gotten the memo. According to a report out of St. Petersburg, Florida, Racener got arrested on December 11 for his third DUI, after police stopped him near South Westland Ave and West Azeele Street.John-Racener-DUI.jpg

If someone or you care about has been recently pulled over under suspicion of a Burbank DUI, Pasadena DUI, Los Angeles DUI, or Glendale DUI, Racener’s story may sound uncomfortably familiar. Just last month, the 24-year old won $5.5 million in Las Vegas. But all his earnings may not be enough to prevent him from seriously harsh penalties. According to the St. Petersburg Times, “Racener has been arrested in Hillsborough County three times before – on charges of driving under the influence in 2005 and 2006 and on a misdemeanor battery charge in 2009.”

Racener allegedly refused a blood alcohol test and made a bail of $1000 to secure his release.

As we’re going to see in a moment, the more often you get arrested and convicted for DUI charges, the more uncomfortable the penalties become. For instance, a first time Burbank DUI offender might get a misdemeanor and be subjected to court penalties such as 48 hours in jail (max six months); court costs and a fine of a $1000; a full year license suspension; six weeks minimum DUI alcohol school; and formal or informal probation.

A second time misdemeanor DUI within 10 years results in an increase in your jail time and alcohol school minimums, doubles your license suspension, hikes up your court costs and fines, and leads to potentially other punishments.

If you get convicted of three DUIs within a decade – a la John Racener – a 3rd time misdemeanor offense will land you a minimum of 120 days in jail with a maximum of a full year. Your other penalties (e.g. alcohol school, license suspension, fines, etc) will also hike up.

Beyond this, extra DUI convictions within 10 years will lead not only to more penalties but also to potential felony convictions for what ordinarily would be considered a misdemeanor offense.

All of this is to say that a Burbank DUI defense attorney, like Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers, may be an essential person to call if you or someone you care about faces charges. Whether this is your first arrest in your life for anything or whether you have a criminal record already, connect with Attorney Kraut’s Burbank offices at 2600 West Olive Avenue, 5th Floor, Burbank, California 91505. Or dial 818-5639-810 for immediate help.

Attorney Kraut has a Harvard Law School education, and he has been featured as an expert on DUI law by CNN, ABC News, KTLA Channel 5, and the Burbank Ledger.

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Last Friday, D.J. Williams, a top linebacker for the Denver Broncos, got pulled over for driving under the influence in his Hummer, prompting many in the celebrity Los Angeles DUI community (and others in the media) to examine what appears to be a rash of sports figures – specifically NFL players – nabbed for misbehavior on the roads recently.broncos-williams-dui.jpg

If, like Williams, you’ve been recently stopped and charged with DUI in Los Angeles, DUI in Pasadena, DUI in Burbank, or DUI in Glendale, the travails that the linebacker faced may seem familiar. According to a Friday report in the Denver Post, a Denver police officer pulled Williams over at around 2:40 in the morning. A Department spokesman said “(Williams) was contacted and ultimately taken in for a DUI.” Documents show that Williams also got a ticket for driving without his headlights on. He is scheduled to appear in court on December 13.

This arrest is not Williams’ first for DUI. On September 23, 2005, Williams got pulled over for DUI, after he attended a birthday party. He later revealed to the Denver Post: “Yeah, it is embarrassing…I know now you’ve got to have a driver or somebody driving you around when you plan on going out like that.” Williams’ plight may make things difficult for the Broncos. The NFL star is the team’s leading tackler, and the NFL’s personal conduct policy could require his suspension for 2 to 4 crucial upcoming games. Other NFLers recently hit with DUIs include Jared Allen, Vincent Jackson, and Braylon Edwards.

For Williams’ first DUI, he paid $740 in fines and served 24 hours of community service, according to the Post. If he is convicted a second time, he could face fines ranging up to $1500, 5 times as much community service, and a two year probation.

If you are convicted for Southern California DUI multiple times, you could face significantly greater penalties. Even first time offenders can have it rough. A court can impose 48 hours of jail time with a maximum of six months behind bars – just for your first misdemeanor DUI. You could also face a $1,000 fine as well as court costs. On top of that, you might face a one year driver’s license suspension, mandatory alcohol school, strict probation imposed by the court, and a forced installation of an IID device in your vehicle, which will prevent you from driving unless you blow a non-alcoholic breath into the device.

For your second Los Angeles DUI conviction (misdemeanor) within a ten year period, almost all of your possible penalties will be elevated. Instead of serving 48 hours behind bars, you will have to serve a minimum of 4 or maybe even 10 days behind bars. Instead of a one year driver’s license suspension, you will get a two year suspension. Instead of spending six weeks in alcohol school, you could face 18-30 months. And the penalties ratchet up from there with each successive Los Angeles DUI conviction you get within a 10 year period.

Whether you’ve been pulled over for your first DUI in Pasadena for blowing a breathalyzer result just slightly above the state’s legal limit of 0.08%, or you’ve been involved in a complicated injury crash on the 405, connect today with a responsible, resourceful Los Angeles DUI attorney, like Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Michael Kraut.

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Gary Collins, the ex-host of “Hour Magazine” and the Miss America Pageant (1980 to 1988) may soon be arrested for a hit and run DUI in Mississippi, according to celebrity Los Angeles DUI blogs. gary-collins-dui.jpg

Although the 72-year old has not yet been arrested for DUI in Los Angeles, DUI in Burbank, DUI in Glendale, or DUI in Pasadena; he does have multiple DUI arrests on his record. In fact, in 2007, Collins got involved in a fatal accident while driving under the influence of alcohol. The police later determined that he did not cause the accident. Thus, he only faced a punishment of 4 days in prison and 4 years probation, after he pled no contest to charges against him. However, over the past 10 years, he has been arrested 3 times for DUI. During one incident, Collins allegedly had been driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.29% — more than 3 times the legal limit for Southern California DUI of 0.08%.

In this latest incident, Collins allegedly slammed his white jeep into the back of a car driven by a local woman named Cheryl Hales. After initially exchanging words with Hales and her husband, he fled the scene. According to reports, the former Miss America host “wasn’t concerned for my wife’s wellbeing… he wasn’t concerned for my child’s wellbeing. He simply walked over, got in his vehicle, and left.”

The latest news reports suggest that the Mississippi police are preparing an arrest warrant for the celebrity, who once appeared on shows like Charlie’s Angels and The Love Boat. Collins is married to Mary Ann Mobley, who once won the Miss America crown.

What lessons can we extract from this story?

One important point is that California law seeks to punish recidivist (repeat) DUI drivers by ratcheting up penalties for multiple offenses. For instance, a first misdemeanor DUI offender may be hit with serious penalties – such as 48 hours in jail, fines of $1000 on top of court costs, a full year of CA driver’s license suspension, mandatory alcohol school, serious probation, and mandatory interlock ignition device installation. But these admittedly strict penalties can really only constitute the beginning of what the court can throw at you.

If you are convicted a second time for Los Angeles DUI within a 10 year period, you face more jail time, more alcohol school, a license suspension that’s twice as long, bumps in your court costs and fines, and more.

If you get convicted three times within 10 years, your jail time leaps up to 120 days minimum… with a maximum of a full year behind bars. Your alcohol school time goes up, as does your license suspension, fines, and other penalties.

If you get convicted four times or more within 10 years, a standard misdemeanor might be bumped up to a felony. A felony is a much more serious charge than a misdemeanor. If you are convicted of a felony, you can permanently lose many rights you now have as a citizen.

In the case of Collins, the fact that he fled the scene of the accident (allegedly) might elevate his charge from a misdemeanor to a felony, even if it were his first offense.

Whether you face a simple charge of non-injury DUI in Los Angeles; or you face a much more complicated and multi-layered charge of hit and run injury DUI in Pasadena, you could benefit significantly from consulting with a reputable and credentialed attorney.

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Most Los Angeles DUI arrests involve one (or maybe two) violations of proper driving protocol. In other words, they are not overly extreme. But a breaking case out of Richmond, Vermont has made national headlines due to just the sheer outrageousness of the allegations. Apparently, a 49-year-old woman named Matilda Stacey crashed her car on I-89 while consuming alcohol and simultaneously text messaging on her cell phone.text-messaging-and-dui.jpg

If you have been recently charged with DUI in Glendale, DUI in Burbank, DUI in Los Angeles, or DUI in Pasadena, you have likely already reflected a little bit on your arrest and realized just how dangerous it can be to get behind the wheel while distracted or intoxicated.

According to police reports, Stacey had been driving on I-89 last Tuesday afternoon, when she drove her car off the road into guardrails and then into some trees. Her blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level tested at more than two times the legal limit of 0.08% (the same limit for Southern California DUI), and now she faces twin charges of driving DUI and text messaging while driving. As of this post, her crash remains under investigation.

Although in the case of Ms. Stacey, police had ample reason to suspect that she was driving while under the influence and inattentive (after all, she did crash into a tree), in other cases, the “symptoms of Southern California DUI” may be less than clear. Here is a list of possible symptoms that officers look for:

• Stumbling and loss of balance
• Inability to form words and mumbling
• Inability to answer officer questions coherently
• Odor of alcohol on the person or in the vehicle
• Admission to using alcohol or drugs
• Disheveled or unkempt appearance
• Incoherent stories about where the person has been
• Bloodshot eyes or watery eyes
The more of these symptoms that you exhibit, the more likely police will be to suspect you are DUI. You may also have to go through field sobriety tests (FST), such as balancing tests and tests of your mental coordination. As well, police may ask you to take a breathalyzer or blood test to determine your blood alcohol concentration level.

Remember, failing any one of these tests does not necessarily mean that you are DUI. And even if you tested positive for Los Angeles DUI in a blood test, a deeper analysis may reveal that the blood test got contaminated or misinterpreted or that something else was going on. To compile your best case, turn to the resources of an experienced Los Angeles DUI lawyer.

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If you get arrested for driving under the influence in Southern California – whether you are a celebrity like Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton; or an “ordinary Joe” – you may find it difficult to get over the social stigma and get on with your life. Ideally, you want to avoid arrest and be a safe and conscientious citizen on Southland freeways and surface streets. Unfortunately, even people who do follow “best practices” for defensive driving — who stay away from things like speaking on their cell phones while on the road or driving under the influence — can get tagged for DUI in Long Beach (or elsewhere). DUI-breath-test.jpg

Here are potential triggers that can yield false positives for DUI:

1. Ketosis/ketoacidosis interfering with breathalyzer test results
If you are a diabetic who suffers from ketoacidosis (a consequence of hypoglycemia) or if you are on the induction phase of a low carbohydrate diet and your body is burning ketones (i.e. in a state of ketosis), you may have chemicals on your breath which can falsely elevate your BAC reading on a breathalyzer test. In other words, you may be legitimately under the legal limit but because of your diabetes or your diet, you can blow a BAC reading that looks positive for DUI in Los Angeles.

2. Smoking cigarettes or tobacco

When you smoke cigarettes or other tobacco products, you raise your level of acetaldehyde, another chemical that can falsely elevate your BAC readings and make it look like you are DUI in Pasadena (or wherever) when you are actually not.

3. Fatigue

When you are pulled over for under suspicion of driving under the influence in Southern California, and you are fatigued, you may present symptoms that look very similar to Los Angeles DUI symptoms. For instance, you may have bloodshot eyes, you may not be able to put together a coherent sentence, and you may slur your words. This obviously isn’t to say that you should drive while fatigued – you certainly shouldn’t, because that’s also very dangerous – but your extreme fatigue can certainly mimic DUI symptoms and lead to a “false positive.”

4. Personal “X” factors

Every person is different. Some people are naturally sweaty and ruddy, and they are not able to articulate themselves well. Other people just have bad coordination. So if you are someone who is uncoordinated, for instance, and you are asked to perform a field sobriety test, you might fail the FST simply because of your innate lack of coordination.

5. Nervousness and agitation because you are pulled over

If you’ve ever been pulled over, you probably felt agitated, anxious and maybe out of breath. We behave differently under extreme circumstances – and a suspect’s nervous behavior thus may look like DUI behavior, even if he or she is well below the legal limit.

So if you believe that your DUI was a “false positive” or if you are simply not sure how to proceed with your best defense, talk to an experienced attorney as quickly as you can.

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