One of the more common factors is speed. If you are speeding more than twenty miles over the speed limit, they actually can add a sixty-day jail sentence tacked on to your normal minimum sentence of two days, or it can be sixty-two days. If you are thirty miles over the limit, that is also an enhancement.
If you were on a freeway and were stopped for doing eighty-five miles, that is one of the more common enhancements. Generally speaking, the attorney can usually negotiate that enhancement away with a DA if they were willing to work with them on it. So, if you get one of those, it is important to talk to a lawyer.
Another common enhancement is a second offense. If it is a second offense, the first one is prior-able, it aggravates the sentence. A second offense knocks it up to a minimum sentence of ten days and that does not guarantee that you will only get the ten days, you could get more. Courts around Bay Area will generally let people do some sort of creative sentencing on second offenses, and even third offenses. This sentencing will keep them out of jail. They may do work time, home detention or a residential program or even an outpatient program.
If a person has a second or third offense, they definitely do not want to go in the court without a lawyer. A good lawyer could save you a lot of aggravation on that. Those are the two most common factors, speed and priors. However, if you get into an accident, even property damage, that could enhance it. If it is an injury accident, that is going to enhance it. Depending on the severity of the injury, it could be charged as a felony, so it can be a real problem.
Those are the factors that can aggravate the case. A fourth offense is automatically charged as a felony in California now. The main problem is if you hurt somebody badly enough, the DA will charge it as a felony. They will charge it as a DUI causing injury, which can be charged as either a felony or a misdemeanor. The decision is usually based on how serious the injury is. Either one of these, if convicted, even a misdemeanor DUI causing injury, you can lose your license for a year on a first offense.
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF HAVING MINOR CHILDREN IN YOUR CAR?
That is another enhancement too, the child endangerment enhancement. There is a whole separate charge for child endangerment in the penal code but it also can be charged as an enhancement to a DUI charge. Having a minor in the car can exacerbate the sentence. If you have any cases where those are involved, you must have a lawyer.
If you are not sure What Are Some Factors That Can Impact A DUI Charge In California, call The Law Office Of Blackie Burak for a FREE Case Evaluation at (925) 933-4500 and get the information and legal answers you're seeking.
