Long Beach DUI Defense Attorney

November 28, 2011

Celebrity DUI in Long Beach Update: Griffin O’Neal Pleads Guilty to DUI and Drug Charges

When you read about celebrities (or even relatives of celebrities) arrested for driving under the influence in Long Beach or elsewhere in the Southland, you have to feel a certain amount of sympathy and sadness. Celebrities, actors, politicians, well-healed CEOs and others who get into trouble with the Long Beach DUI laws inevitably face not only protracted legal troubles but also embarrassment and shame because, as important figure heads, they “should have known better.” So guilt and shame likely compound the already stressful situation.

Last week, Griffin O’Neal – son of actor Ryan O’Neal and daughter of the late great actress Farah Fawcett – pled guilty to felony charges of possession of a firearm by a felon and driving under the influence, according to a San Diego Union Tribune report. The 47-year-old had a strike on his record for a 1992 vehicular shooting in Los Angeles. He didn’t hit anyone with the bullets, but he did shoot up a car, apparently.

Griffin collided head first with a car in San Pasqual, CA last August. The Union Tribune reports that “toxicology test revealed that O’Neal had amphetamines, cocaine, marijuana and Xanax in his blood at the time of collision…(in addition) raw cocaine and loaded weapons were found in (his) vehicle.”

Interestingly enough, Griffin’s half brother, Redmond, had been stopped and arrested in Santa Monica the day of his crash, after police officers found heroin in Redmond’s car.

Once you’ve been arrested for a drug DUI in Long Beach, multiple alarm bells should probably go off. You don’t have to be Dr. Drew or a licensed psychotherapist to at least postulate that significant demons must be plaguing poor Mr. O’Neal. The question for anyone concerned with Long Beach DUI safety is: what should be done to treat people who are convicted for Long Beach drug DUI? And within the context of “what’s best for the defendant,” what can we do collectively to make our roads safer and more DUI driver proof?

These are obviously two huge questions – bigger than this blog post can tackle effectively. However, it’s at least helpful to raise them. The more we collectively think deeply about the news – not just scan it and gulp it down, but actually take the time to process its meaning and introspect on it – the better strategic thinking we will develop as a result.

On a more, specific, pragmatic note, if you need a Long Beach DUI criminal defense attorney, consider talking to Harvard Law School educated former prosecutor Michael Kraut of Long Beach’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454). Attorney Kraut is a well regarded and well connected attorney who has excellent knowledge of the system and a deep and practical understanding of what it takes to win a DUI defense case.

November 21, 2011

Long Beach DUI Enforcement Gets a Boost with $300,000 Traffic Safety Grant

by Michael Kraut

Last Tuesday, Long Beach DUI checkpoints, patrols, and enforcement got a financial shot in the arm, when the LBPD received a California Office of Traffic Safety grant of $300,000, courtesy of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

According to a special report in the Long Beach Press Telegram, these funds will be used to sponsor “motorcycle safety patrols, DUI and drivers license checkpoints, DUI saturation patrols, red light enforcement and speed enforcement.”

The grant will fuel additional Long Beach DUI checkpoints in a bid to deter DUI drivers from getting behind the wheel and violating California Vehicle Code Section 23152(a) or 23152(b).

According to NHTSA figures, Long Beach DUI checkpoints (and checkpoints throughout the country) “have provided the most effective documented results of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent.

The Long Beach DUI enforcement grant will pay 10 officers to identify drivers who are DUI or drug DUI in Long Beach. On top of that, the grant will fund four additional motorcycle safety enforcement operations.

On the one hand, these increased patrols and special enforcement operations could help keep Southern California residents safer and, ideally, deter people from even thinking about committing a crime like Long Beach DUI. All that said, the law of unintended consequences can rear its head in the strangest of places and times.

While the saturation patrols could protect the public, they could also sweep innocent drivers into the dragnet and create hassles for those innocents and their families.

Challenges abound for those who want to ensure fairness in Long Beach DUI cases. If you or someone you care about has recently been stopped for driving under the influence in Long Beach, a Long Beach criminal defense attorney with the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers can help you understand your rights, resources, and responsibilities and make judicious and strategic decisions in a going forward.

Depending on the circumstance of what happened, you may be able to escape harsh punishments, such as jail time, license suspension, mandatory alcohol school, strict probation, annoying court costs and fees, and long-term indirect consequences, like trouble getting work and high insurance rates. Connect with Harvard Law School educated, former prosecutor Attorney Kraut now to understand your best Long Beach DUI defense options.

November 17, 2011

Fear of Long Beach DUI Penalties: Is It Enough to Make You Run in Leg Irons?

by Michael Kraut

Anyone who has sat and pondered the penalties for Long Beach DUI understands, on a visceral level, what fear feels like.

It’s not just the potential jail time that scares defendants. It’s all the other logistical, financial, and emotional headaches that come with the conviction. For instance, even if you are convicted for a minor misdemeanor Long Beach DUI — no property damage or injuries — you can face substantial mandatory alcohol school, court fines and fees, mandatory installation of an IID in your vehicle, license suspension, and, yes, possibly substantial jail time.

Those Long Beach DUI penalties are only the direct penalties. You still may have to face the indirect – the secondary, tertiary and quaternary “blow back” from your conviction – such as screwed up insurance rates, loss of support from friends, family members, and employers, self esteem problems, inconveniences both short term and chronic, and loss of self confidence.

Given all these disincentives, it’s not surprising that some people try their darndest to escape the Long Beach DUI process. Smart defendants might research and then retain a top-caliber Long Beach DUI criminal defense attorney, such as Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454). (Mr. Kraut is an experienced, highly reputed attorney with the connections, strategic insight, jury trial record, and compassion to help practically any Long Beach DUI defendant, no matter how complicated or scary the situation.)

On the other hand, fear can also motivate some, shall we say, less than intelligent behavior.

Consider a baffling story out of Scranton, Pennsylvania, of all places. A 29-year old man suspected in a DUI crash left a medical center in leg irons to escape custody. Here is a report from therepublic.com: “Authorities say (the 29-year-old Blaise) Melofchik was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after police said he crashed into a parked car on Tuesday. Officers took him to the hospital after he appeared to be under the influence of opioids.” The Times Tribune (a local paper) reported that Mr. Melofchik managed to walk away from the Medical Center and escape undetected.

Even after “patrol officers swarmed the area looking for (him),” the search was unsuccessful. Authorities blamed the “breakdown in communication” for Mr. Melofchik’s escape. But the deeper story here is the fear, possibly terror, that the suspect felt which motivated him to undertake the risky escape. If he does eventually get rounded up, one might naturally suspect that additional charges will be thrown at him.

Do not overcomplicate your defense. Begin today by making smarter choices and by connecting with a reputable Long Beach criminal defense attorney.

October 26, 2011

Long Beach DUI Consequences Can Be Brutal, Politically and Otherwise – Just Ask Republican State Senator Randy Hopper…

by Michael Kraut

Getting pulled over for driving under the influence in Long Beach or anywhere else throughout the Southland (or the U.S.) can be a humiliating experience. The level of humiliation gets ratcheted up substantially, however, if you happen to be a public, elected official.

When lawmakers, police officers and others entrusted with the public good do bad things – such as drive DUI in Long Beach or elsewhere – the media pores it on.

Consider last week’s arrest of ex Wisconsin state senator Randy Hopper, who, per a story in the Green Bay Gazette, got pulled over in a Wisconsin parking lot, after witnesses saw him nearly collide head first with another car. Officers administered field sobriety tests to Hopper. He apparently failed, big time – he could not balance, could not say the alphabet, etcetera.

After his arrest, Hopper pleaded with the arresting officer, Deputy Nicholas Venne: “Will you put down there that you didn’t think I was that I (was) driving; you never saw me driving; you don’t know I was driving. I didn’t do anything illegal.” Hopper refused an evidentiary breath test, but jail staff did get a preliminary breath test which suggested that his BAC was around 0.13% — significantly higher than the cut off for Long Beach DUI of 0.08%, pursuant to California Vehicle Code Section 23152.

To put it mildly – Hopper has not had a shining last few years. In a recent election, Hopper lost his senate seat to democrat Jessica King by a margin of 51% to 49% — analysts believe that the razor thin defeat was fueled in part by Hopper’s messy divorce. He apparently left his wife for a lobbyist, Valerie Cass, who witnessed the arrest. According to one report, Cass “reportedly became upset… and yelled at the family who had called the police.”

So what are some lessons this story can teach Long Beach DUI defendants?

1. What you say or do after your DUI arrest can matter – and come back to haunt you.

The fact that Hopper blew a 0.13% BAC preliminary breath test and uttered recorded comments to Deputy Venne may complicate his legal defense.

2. Anyone can get tagged with a DUI.

Just because you are an elected official or a police officer or some other “special person” does not immunize you from the consequences of driving DUI in Long Beach.

3. Your choice of Long Beach DUI defense attorney is pivotal.

The quality of your legal defense can fundamentally influence your potential sentencing – as well as your ability to rebound, long-term, from what happened to you. Michael Kraut of Long Beach’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454) is an experienced former prosecutor with a phenomenal success rate at jury trials and a great reputation within his industry. Judges, former prosecutors, and others in the system all greatly respect him.

September 23, 2011

Long Beach Celebrity DUI Stories: Do They Help or Harm the Public?

by Michael Kraut

From Perez Hilton on downwards, bloggers and other media players who cover stories about driving under the influence in Long Beach (and elsewhere in SoCal) love to obsess over, speculate on, and pontificate about celebrity DUI arrests. The blogosphere lights up whenever a politician in Oregon is busted for riding his lawn mower while DUI, a pop star princess is busted for a Long Beach drug DUI on a return trip from Vegas, or a football player embarrasses his franchise by hitting three parked cars in one night after partying with his pals at a fancy South Miami club.

Obviously, these cases are entertaining, though theories abound as to why. Some deep thinkers suggest that the whole “let’s take a celebrity down a notch or two” attitude has its roots in the nature of the American myth. Others point to more simplistic Freudian and other physiological reasons. Irrespective of why we engage in voyeurism over celebrity DUI arrests, we do it.

A better question is: Is this media coverage helping people, harming them, doing both or doing neither? Let’s take a look at each of these possibilities.

Helping People

When the blogosphere exposes the latest careless or negligent celebrity, he or she is often painted as a clown or a danger to society. In other words, you don’t want to emulate that person. Thus, one can argue that Long Beach celebrity DUI news serves as a social deterrent.

The coverage also raises discussions about the perils of DUI driving by ruminating over the punishments (jail time, license suspensions, destruction of reputation, you name it), and thus these stories can serve as cautionary tales.

Hurting

On the flipside, one could make a compelling argument that these stories cheapen the problem of DUI. Since these stories circulate so often, our impression is that this is a relatively common thing to do. If people we look up to are doing it, we can probably do it ourselves.

Then there is also the problem of celebrities “getting off” relatively easily. For every story about Lindsay Lohan being tearfully condemned to a jail sentence, you can find three or four Long Beach celebrity DUI stories about football players, politicians, pop stars, etc. getting off with a proverbial slap on the wrist. Readers might be led to believe that driving DUI is (relatively) inconsequential.

The Neutral

Some readers might think this analysis is unnecessary, that a news story is just a news story. Drivers don’t really “take their cues” from what celebrities do or do not do on the roads. And there might be some truth to this side as well.

All of the Above

We also need to consider that there might be some truth to all three positions. Depending on the circumstances –the celebrity involved, the nature of the offense, your ability to relate (or not) with the celebrity, etc. –a news story might be helpful, harmful, or neutral to you.

For practical help with a Long Beach DUI, turn to an experienced attorney: Mr. Michael Kraut of Long Beach’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454). Attorney Kraut is a Harvard Law School educated former prosecutor who can give you powerful advice about how to deal with any charges, no matter how complex.

September 12, 2011

Long Beach DUI Hit and Run Nets Fire Captain 90 Days Behind Bars

by Michael Kraut

Last week, 30-year-old fire department captain John David Hines was convicted of an April Fool’s Day Long Beach DUI hit and run. According to an L.A. Times report, the captain had a blood alcohol concentration of nearly three times the legal limit for Long Beach DUI (according to California Vehicle Code Section 23152: 0.08% BAC) when he slammed into 47-year-old bicyclist Jeffery Gordon and sent the man flying more than 70 feet.

Hines will serve 90 days in a California prison and may face a jail sentence of up to six years, depending on how things go during his sentencing hearing on December 2.

According to the Times, “Hines pleaded guilty to felony driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury [in Long Beach], driving with a blood alcohol over the state limit and hit and run with injury. Because his blood alcohol level was so high, he was also convicted of several sentencing enhancements.”

This last bit of information – about how his sentence was increased because of his excessive BAC level – should be of interest to anyone recently arrested for a similar crime.

The public may believe that a Long Beach DUI is a Long Beach DUI is a Long Beach DUI. But that’s far from the truth. Innumerable factors can influence sentencing, including whether you hurt anyone, whether you fled the scene of the accident (hit and run), how far under the influence you were according to breathalyzer and blood tests, and so on.

In a “best case” scenario, your Long Beach DUI criminal defense attorney might be able to clip your sentence down or even get the charges dismissed altogether. But if you killed someone while DUI, depending on the circumstances, you could be face a DUI murder charge and wind up with life behind bars.

This is a huge range of possible punishments.

And while there is obviously no “one-size-fits-all” solution to Long Beach DUI charges, your choice of attorney can make an enormous impact on your ultimate outcome. Long Beach’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454 ) can clarify your options and develop a strong case for you. Attorney Michael Kraut served as a prosecutor for nearly a decade and a half – this fact gives the Harvard Law School educated attorney a huge advantage when building DUI defenses. He also can leverage his excellent jury trial record, status as a Long Beach DUI media observer, and relationships with the legal community to get you the results you crave.

August 29, 2011

Long Beach DUI Field Sobriety Test with Rodney King: How Did the Police Handle It?

by Michael Kraut

Last week, Rodney King – the man whose videotaped beating ultimately sparked race riots that left 55 people dead and $1 billion worth of property damaged in its wake – was charged with DUI near Long Beach.

Twenty years ago, King was stopped by LAPD officers and then beaten to near death – the tragic beating was captured on video, and it led to the indictment of four officers involved. When three of the officers were acquitted, the verdicts touched off race riots that tarnished Los Angeles’ name for over a decade.

So how did police handle the King near Long Beach DUI stop this time?

According to news reports: relatively smoothly. CNN reported this blow by blow: “A Moreno Valley traffic enforcement unit observed King commit “several traffic violations,” although he was not cited for speeding. After questioning King, a patrol officer noted King exhibited signs of behavior that might involve alcohol or drug consumption.”

King was asked to step out of the car and submit to a voluntary field sobriety test. He was “cooperative and compliant.” So no drama on either King’s part or the LAPD’s part.

Is that a sign that the LAPD has evolved or that race relationships have changed in the city?

Pundits can say what they will, but a single stop is a single stop. It’s hard to extrapolate patterns from single data points, as any good scientist would tell you.

It’s pretty amazing – given what King went through 20 years ago – that he managed to behave calmly and rationally. A Long Beach field sobriety test can be a very scary ordeal. You might be asked to engage in a series of physical and mental coordination tests, such as walk the line, finger to the nose, horizontal gaze nystagmus, counting backwards, and other balance tests. If you underperform – trip or stumble – officers might interpret your lack of coordination as a sign that you were indeed driving under the influence in Long Beach, and you could be arrested and charged pursuant to California Vehicle Code Sections 23152(a) or 23152(b).

And that’s just if you were stopped without any other complications, such as an accident, injury, hit and run, or other traffic infraction.

If you or someone you love got pulled over for Long Beach DUI, you may be bedazzled by questions, like:

• What is the best way to navigate the Southern California legal system?
• How do you build your best defense?
• How do you make sure that the police and prosecutors treat you fairly?
• How do you avoid making mistakes or giving statements that could compound your legal woes?

A Long Beach criminal defense attorney at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454) can help you understand what to do – and, possibly more importantly, what not to do. Attorney Michel Kraut spent over 14 years as a Senior Deputy District Attorney for the City of Los Angeles (a prosecutor of crimes like DUI), and he has a fantastic track record for developing strategic, effective, and aggressive defenses for DUI clients.

August 10, 2011

Long Beach DUI Penalties: A Cautionary Tale, as Former NBA Star Starts 20-Day Jail Sentence

by Michael Kraut

Let’s get this straight: driving under the influence in Long Beach is a crime. A major one.

Depending on how you defend yourself (e.g. whether you consult with an experienced Long Beach criminal defense attorney or not), as well as the circumstances of your Long Beach DUI arrest, you can face truly horrific punishments, such as jail time. It doesn’t matter whether you are a celebrity, political superstar, rock star, or athlete.

Just ask Lindsey Lohan.

The latest proof that Long Beach DUIs can and will be punished — hugely — comes out of Pontiac, Michigan, where Jalen Rose, a former NBA player and ESPN analyst, started a 20-day jail sentence pursuant to his March arrest in West Bloomfield Township for DUI. According to an Associated Press article, “Rose crashed his sports utility vehicle… after drinking 6 large martinis. The 38-year-old pleaded guilty in May.” According to the AP story, the judge who sentenced Rose was known for “tough punishments.” 20 days behind bars is anything but light, especially since the analyst didn’t hurt anybody (expect for his car) in the disaster.

The story illustrates a truism about Long Beach DUI punishments. Namely, you can never identify in advance all the possible “X factors” that can lead to better (or worse) outcomes for your case. Here are some X factors, over which you have little to no control:

• Judge has a reputation of being unusually harsh;
• Police officer who arrested you (for whatever reason) has some sort of grudge;
• You can (or cannot) find compelling exonerating evidence;
• Your can (or cannot) win sympathy from a judge or mercy from prosecutors.

So there are so many factors outside of your control. Focusing on them can be depressing.

But fortunately, you can leverage factors within your control to get (probably) far better results than you likely realize is possible right now. In other words, don’t say: “this is all so unfair. The police, prosecutor, judge, [insert other villain here] is against me. I have no hope.”

Instead, focus on being resourceful. What is true about your situation now? What do you want out of your situation in terms of preventing punishments and protecting privileges and rights?

Once you are very, ultra clear about where you are and where you want to be, you can start collecting resources to achieve that reality faster and more efficiently.

One great potential resource is Attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (located in Long Beach at: 444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454) Mr. Kraut is an experienced former prosecutor who is often called upon as a legal expert by major media throughout the Southland. As a former prosecutor, he understands how other prosecutors think and react, and he can use his insight and knowledge to build a better case for you.

August 3, 2011

Long Beach DUI Homicide Tragedy: Suspect in Fatal DUI Jumps to his Death in Prison Cell

by Michael Kraut

A fatal DUI in Long Beach is always a needless tragedy. We can all agree on that.

But sometimes horrific events can be ratcheted up in terms of their horribleness fivefold, thanks to “after the crash” mistakes, errors of judgment, lack of decisive positive action, and so forth.

Indeed, many cases of DUI in Burbank, Glendale DUI, Pasadena DUI, Los Angeles DUI, and DUI elsewhere throughout the Southland take turns for the tragically worse – when defendants react non-resourcefully to their situations.

This is all little abstract. So let’s bring it home with a specific example – a case out of suburban Philadelphia. Last week, a 45-year old man, Mathew McNamara, apparently killed himself in prison. He had been charged with vehicular homicide while driving under the influence, after a July 13 automobile accident killed a woman and hurt a child.

According to a local Indiana paper, the Daily Reporter (out of Greenfield, Indiana), McNamara “died from injuries sustained in a fall from the upper level of the cell block at a central Pennsylvania prison… police say accounts of McNamara intentionally jumping from the cell block’s upper level are consistent with surveillance footage.”

Obviously, if you played any role in a fatal Long Beach DUI event – even if you were not fully culpable – the grief and guilt may be weighing heavy on your heart. Even if you caused only minor damage – such as a Long Beach DUI with injury or just damage to an automobile or property – you may be feel overwhelmed, confused, and, frankly, angry at yourself.

But you can’t turn back the clock. What’s done is done. You made a mistake — or you got unfairly charged. And that’s the reality now. The question is: how do you deal resourcefully with your circumstances?

A Los Angeles criminal defense attorney can help you plot out a strategy for your defense, combat charges, and clue you into outside resources to help you deal with your alcohol problem (if you have one).

You face fundamental choices. You may need to make reparations to someone you harmed. But there are resourceful ways of doing this that can not only help release your guilt but also help the victim – or the victim’s family – come to turns with what happened and experience emotional relief.

Doing all this is tricky. And right now, you are probably most concerned with urgent issues: Will you go to jail? For how long? What are your other punishments? What can you do to bring order to this chaos? Etcetera.

Turn to Long Beach attorney Michael Kraut at the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West ocean Suite 800  Long Beach, California 90802 (562) 531-7454) for help with your situation. Mr. Kraut is a former Deputy District Attorney (a high profile prosecutor), and he can help you understand what to do next.

July 11, 2011

Long Beach DUI Object Lesson: When to Hold Your Tongue

by Michael Kraut

Ask anyone who specializes in helping people who have recently been charged for driving under the influence in Long Beach about their experiences, and you will hear a common refrain: Drivers often needlessly dig themselves deeper after getting stopped, and these stupid post-hoc actions often cause far more legal trouble than defendants realize.

Let’s say you get pulled over for driving under the influence in Pasadena, Glendale DUI, Los Angeles DUI, Burbank DUI, or what have you: Likely, you will feel terrified, angry, frustrated, ashamed, and many other emotions. In that highly volatile, spiked emotional state, you might say or do things that can make your legal woes infinitely worse. For instance, you might swear at or hit a police officer, leave the scene of an accident that you just caused, or even try to flee an accident by swimming across a local reservoir (as a Boulder Colorado woman recently tried to do – this blog covered that last week).

Perhaps the most common mistakes come from failing to hold one’s tongue.

By saying things to the police like “I only had 6 drinks,” talking back to police, prematurely confessing to guilt in an accident, and so on, you might, within a span of seconds, accidently add months or even years to your sentence.

Last week, a DUI suspect in Santa Rosa illustrated this lesson literally. According to California Highway Patrol reports, Olan Yahal Mitchell got pulled over early Saturday morning on the 101. The suspect refused to take field sobriety tests (common Long Beach field sobriety tests include walk the line test, finger to the nose test, Rhomberg test, other balancing tests, reciting the alphabet backwards, counting backwards, etc).

According to officer Jonathan Sloat: “While seated [in the police cruiser], Mitchell began to lick the keyboard of the officer’s computer…the officer ordered Mitchell not to interfere with any equipment. Mitchell repeated his behavior, and the officer reached in to move the computer out of his reach… That’s when Mitchell kicked the officer, promoting both officers to restrain him and put him in the back of a “caged” patrol cruiser.”

At the end of the day, Mitchell was charged not only with DUI, driving without a license, and possessing marijuana but also with resisting arrest and battery on a peace officer.

As a qualified Los Angeles criminal defense attorney will tell you, those extra two charges – the battery charge and resisting arrest charge – will almost certainly compound the defense.

Part of the problem is that, if you’ve already committed a crime (or likely crime), you may be in an irrational state of mind. Thus, you might not realize the consequences of your continued criminal conduct. Education is critical – not only to help you deal with your current situation but also to help you avoid future mistakes and punishment.

Connect with Long Beach’s Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers (444 West Ocean, Suite 800 Long Beach, California 90802 Phone: (562) 531-7454) for a free consultation to go over your options and figure out a smart and strategically sound plan to go forward. Attorney Kraut understands how prosecutors think and react, since he actually was one for nearly a decade-and-a-half (Los Angeles Senior Deputy District Attorney).