Easy Method How to get DUI dismissed in California

By Maggie Last updated Feb 16, 2023

How to get DUI dismissed in California? There is a chance that a person with a prior DUI conviction can have that conviction overturned before their case even goes to trial. An estimated 1.5 million people are arrested annually for driving under the influence in California. Driving with BAC of.08% or higher is illegal in the United States. Those who are stopped while driving under the influence may face criminal charges. Learn your options for having a drunk driving charge dropped against you.

Getting a DUI charge is frightening and stressful. Every day, officers stop drivers who are impaired by alcohol or drugs. The courts’ decisions have far-reaching effects on individuals, their families, and their businesses. Is it possible to have a DUI charge dropped?

If you’ve been arrested for driving under influence (DUI) and want to clear your name, it’s crucial that you understand your rights under the law and how you can alter your behavior to improve the odds of having the charges dropped. In a DUI case, your chances of success increase if you have competent legal representation.

California has recently passed new DUI laws, and in this post, we’ll go over those changes and give you advice on how to build a defense that will hopefully get your DUI dropped.

Table of Contents

What is a DUI charge?

A person’s ability to safely operate motor vehicle is severely compromised by driving under the influence (DUI) of any substance, but not limited to illegal drugs, alcohol, marijuana, and prescription medications.

Adults over 21 in California are only allowed a 0.08% BAC. The legal limit for those under the age of 21 is 0.01%. The legal limit for blood alcohol content 0.08 percent, so anyone with a BAC over that can be arrested for driving under influence.

Even for first-time offenders, the costs of a DUI conviction can be substantial and lasting. Many motorists who get pulled over hope to have their charges dropped or reduced to a lesser offense.

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What Consequences are There?

The likelihood of having charges dropped depends on various factors, some of which are legal precedent and other specifics of your case. Without first looking into the specifics of the police stop and the paperwork, a DUI attorney cannot give an accurate estimate of the likelihood of a case being dropped.

Those convicted of driving under the influence in California face the same potential consequences as those in other states: monetary fines, license suspension, jail time, and the installation of an Ignition Interlock Device (IID).

The best way to mitigate the effects of a DUI charge is to retain the services of a defense attorney who specializes in this area of law.

Conditions for Dropping a DUI or How to get DUI dismissed in California?

In some cases, you may have valid reasons to argue that you should not be charged with DUI. A “motion to set aside” and “motion to dismiss” can be filed in a California court. With this motion, you are formally asking the court to dismiss the case.

There are two scenarios where this request is most appropriate:

Your preliminary DUI hearing was improperly conducted.
As such, the DUI charge against you should be dropped immediately.

These defenses hinge on nuanced interpretations of the law, but they can prevent you from being convicted of driving under the influence.

You were wrongly charged

A preliminary hearing will be held after your arrest when you will be formally charged with DUI and other criminal offenses. It’s possible that this hearing will take place the very next day, or it could be scheduled for a date several weeks down the road. You have substantial rights under the law, and hearings must be conducted in a specific way.

It is a crime to bring a charge that goes against any of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. If you were not allowed to have legal counsel present at your preliminary hearing, if you were not informed of your right to legal counsel, if your hearing was not held in “one session,” or if you were not given the opportunity to present witnesses, confront witnesses, or cross-examine witnesses, your rights were violated.

A Lack of Probable Cause

To have probable cause, there must be both reasonable suspicions that a DUI was committed and reasonable suspicion that you committed it. This is different from speculating on your guilt or innocence. It’s not complicated; if you deny probable cause, you might as well say the entire charge is false.

Here are a couple of scenarios where a challenge based on probable cause might be successful:

No DUI: Cops saw you stagger out of the bar and into your car. Having started the car, you promptly fell asleep while still seated behind the wheel. The police woke you up with a tap on the window, arrested you for DUI, and took your license. If you had driven, there is a good chance you would be charged with driving under the influence; it would be worth your time to defend yourself. However, because you did not go anywhere in your car, you did not commit the crime of driving while intoxicated. The DUI charge could be dismissed if you file a motion to do so.
No sentence enhancement: You were arrested for driving under the influence, and the police told you they needed a blood sample to check for drugs. To put it bluntly, you turned down the offer. The police then filed charges against you for refusing the blood draw, which increased the severity of the DUI sentence (a “sentence enhancement”). However, the police were supposed to inform you that refusing the test is against the law, and they never did. A motion to drop the refusal charge is possible and should be granted. The refusal charge is dropped, but the DUI charge remains.

The case was dismissed because of the following factors

There are several factors that a court may consider when deciding whether or not to reduce or dismiss a DUI charge, including but not limited to

No reasonable suspicion: Probable cause is required for a DUI stop by law enforcement. In the absence of evidence of wrongdoing, the prosecution may drop the charges.
Faulty breath tests: Field sobriety tests aren’t always accurate, and BAC tests can be manipulated by the user or a technical glitch.
Any trace of alcohol in the mouth after brushing your teeth, visiting the dentist, experiencing heartburn, or experiencing acid reflux can be an indicator of an exaggerated blood alcohol level.
Having acid reflux, heartburn, or gastroesophageal reflux disease can skew breathalyzer results.
Police misconduct: Misconduct from law enforcement officials can result in dismissing any charges, including those for DUI.

Can you fight a California DUI?

Driving under the influence charge can result from being stopped while intoxicated. Good news: you can have it dropped before ever having to set foot in a California courtroom.

What are chances of getting a DUI dropped in California?

How often, then, do charges of DUI get dropped? There are states where the rate of DUI convictions is below 63%, while there are others where it is above 85%, according to the data. On the other hand, there was a 1.5% dismissal rate for DUI charges. The fact that so few DUI convictions are overturned suggests that offenders may be breaking the law even as their cases are being heard in court.

Here are four tips to help you get your DUI charge dropped in California

Hire a lawyer with a lot of experience to help you build a strong case.

You need to consult with a lawyer as soon as possible after being charged with DUI so that your attorney can mount a strong defense. A DUI defense attorney can help you understand the legal process, formulate a strategy for fighting the charges, and advise you on the outcomes of any potential plea deals.

Ask the DMV for a hearing to fight the suspension of your license.

A license suspension can be contested by requesting a hearing with the DMV. There is a strict time limit of 10 days for you to submit your request for this hearing. If you are arrested and do not ask for a hearing within 10 days, you will lose the right to one.

If you request a DMV hearing after being arrested for DUI, your license suspension will be put on hold until the outcome of the hearing is known. Forget about suspension if you come out on top at the hearing.

Get copy of the police report and look it over for mistakes and things that don’t make sense.

More and more people are wrongly accused of driving under the influence due to inadequate police training and updated prosecutor guidelines. Details in reports, such as a person’s physical description, the reason for a traffic stop, or an officer’s objective observations of the suspect’s driving, can sometimes be inaccurate.

There are valid grounds for challenging a prosecution because of inconsistencies and errors, such as not being read your Miranda rights.

Take a class on how to be a safe driver or an alcohol education course

A conviction for driving under the influence carries real-world repercussions that should motivate the offender to change to keep this kind of thing from happening again.

Enrolling in a driver safety class or alcohol education program is one way to bring about change and show that you are making an effort to improve your driving abilities.

You’ll show the court that you’re serious about fixing the problem and not just trying to avoid it by doing something like this. While this probably won’t get your case dropped on its own, having a good lawyer on your side certainly won’t hurt. Weirdnewsera recommends you to read all content about sport, entertainment, science and many more.

Ways to avoid filing a Motion to Dismiss

Your attorney may consider filing a motion to dismiss the case, but other strategies may be more effective. Among these submissions are:

If the prosecuting attorney refuses to provide evidence to your attorney, your attorney can file a motion for discovery to compel them to do so. This may help you disprove the prosecution’s case against you.
To move to suppress: You should do this if you think the police violated your rights by obtaining evidence against you (like a confession or breathalyzer results) improperly or illegally. Not being read your Miranda rights is one example.
False arrest, racial profiling, harassment, or evidence planted by police are all grounds for a pitches motion. You have right to ask to see the officer’s file to see if there’s any documentation of such behavior.

California Senate Bill 1421, which was passed recently, did away with the need for filing Pitchess motions in certain circumstances. When an officer has committed acts such as discharging a weapon at a civilian, sexually assaulting a civilian, using excessive force that results in death or grievous bodily injury, or committing a dishonest act, their personnel file is made public (false reporting or perjury). Without filing formal legal charges, your attorney can request the officer’s records in these situations.

Summary

A conviction for driving under influence of alcohol or drugs is a serious crime with potentially permanent repercussions if not handled properly and promptly.

How to get a DUI dismissed in California? You can defend yourself in court if you’ve been charged with driving under the influence. For those unfamiliar with the legal process surrounding DUI charges in California, this can be a stressful and time-consuming experience. Seek competent legal counsel before forming your case; doing so will give you more agency and insight into the likely outcomes of your case.

A skilled DUI attorney who is familiar with building defenses against DUI charges is your best bet for having your charges reduced, dropped, or dismissed.

FAQs

How often do DUI cases in California get dropped?

In the end, the case against the driver is dropped if there is insufficient evidence. California prosecutors obtained a 90% conviction rate in 2006, meaning defendants only had a 10% chance of having their cases dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

Can you avoid a DUI charge in California?

A conviction for driving under influence in California does not simply “drop off” your record after a certain amount of time, despite popular belief. To get rid of a California DUI conviction from your record, you must file a petition with the court.

How long does it take for a California DUI to fall off your record?

10 years

What are three penalties in California for a first-time DUI?

If you convicted of first-time DUI in California, you will have to complete a 30-hour program at a cost of about $500, serve three years of informal probation, pay a fine of $390 plus “penalty assessments” (totaling about $2000), and pay for your alcohol treatment.