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Last week, Sherri Lee Chinn was driving on Highway 1, which is just north of Santa Cruz, when her car went from the southbound lane to the northbound lane. A man driving a motorcycle, Jose Absalon Barrientos, was hit head-on and died immediately. Passengers of a car in front of Chinn’s car also got hit and were badly injured. Drivers stopped to help the accident victims and could smell the alcohol coming from Chinn. Officers arrived and after testing her, realized her blood alcohol level was at a .24% (three times the legal limit). All the injured people were taken to the hospital where another victim died. Chinn was arrested and faces charges of vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license.

If Chinn is convicted of all these charges, she can face up to life in prison. Often times, people do not know that they are drunk because they have consumed just one or two alcoholic beverages. If a person’s blood alcohol level is at a .24%, as in this case, the person has consumed far more than just a few drinks. If you are unsure about driving, call a cab or a friend to drive you home. Besides prison time, Chinn will likely have to take alcohol education classes and will have her license suspended for even longer. Whether you live in Stanton, Brea or Laguna Niguel, if you are charged with DUI manslaughter, call an experienced DUI defense attorney to assist you.

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Earlier this week, a drunk man got behind the wheel of his Volkswagen Golf in Vacaville, California. Officers noticed that he was driving 100 m.p.h. so as they ran his license plate, he started swerving in and out of his lane. The officer tried to pull him over but he crashed into 2 cars, pinning one against the wall. The drunk driver jumped out of his vehicle just before it caught on fire. Police detained him and after testing his blood alcohol content (BAC), results showed that he had a BAC of a .21%. The man was arrested on suspicion of DUI and taken to jail.

The blood alcohol content limit in California is a .08%. This means that if an officer pulls you over and your Breathalyzer results show that you have a blood alcohol content of .08% or higher, you will be arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Sentences range from license suspension to jail time. Possible defenses include malfunctioning Breathalyzer equipment and road conditions that caused the driver to drive recklessly. Whether you live in Orange, Brea or Laguna Niguel, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney to assist you.

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Francisco Romero Gutierrez, 19, was driving in Fillmore on Sunday night while intoxicated. He lost control of his vehicle and it crashed into a metal guardrail. Gutierrez sustained a broken neck, abrasions and bruising. His passengers Cesario Sandoval and Jose Luis Solorzano were also injured. All three men were taken to the hospital. Gutierrez was then arrested on suspicion of felony drunk driving.

Since this was a holiday weekend, many people were driving drunk. Luckily, Gutierrez did not kill anyone. The passengers in his vehicle should have made sure that he was not going to drive. Now Gutierrez faces jail time, court fines, a revoked license, probation and alcohol classes. Whether you live in Irvine, Laguna Niguel or Villa Park, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney to assist you.

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This weekend, a 17-year-old boy led police on a brief chase through Moorpark, that ended with two police cars being hit. An officer saw the boy run a red light so the she tried to stop the driver, but he sped off. The driver then swiped two police cars before speeding up on Highway 118, exceeding speeds of 85 m.p.h. After a few minutes, the boy lost control of the car and it flipped over a few times. The passenger of the vehicle was thrown out of the car and the driver was trapped inside the car. After being rescued, he was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, causing injury while fleeing from a piece officer and driving under the influence of alcohol and causing injury.

It is likely that this boy was so intoxicated that he thought he should take his chances and flee versus get caught for driving under the influence while being underage. Unfortunately for this young boy, he will likely face jail time, have to take alcohol classes, have his license revoked and get probation. If a police officer ever wants to pull you over, do not flee. You will be caught and face even more charges and steeper penalties. Whether you live in Westminster, Anaheim Hills or Villa Park, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney to assist you.

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William Scott Simon was arrested in January for drunk driving when he drove into a parking lot through the wrong entrance, parked crookedly and stumbled into a Starbucks. Police tested his blood alcohol level, which revealed a .22% blood alcohol content. Last week, a judge sentenced him to two years in prison for this January event. Alone, this DUI would rarely qualify a person for 2 years in prison. This incident, however, was followed by six other DUI’s spanning about 20 years.

Being charged with seven DUI’s in around 20 years indicates that Simon likely has an alcohol problem. Beside prison time, it is likely that the judge may have recommended that Simon go to rehab, attend alcohol education classes and have his license revoked. Luckily, Simon has not hurt or killed himself or others around him yet. Hopefully, prison time will make him realize the severity of his crimes.

Whether you live in Santa Ana, Yorba Linda or Irvine, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney right away to assist you.

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Around 1 a.m. on Sunday morning, Julian Martinez was driving drunk in Roseville, California. He accidentally fell asleep at the wheel and veered from the east bound to the west bound lane. He hit a van head on. The driver of the van, Manuel Espinoza, was killed immediately. The passengers Enedina Espinoza and her son David Espinoza were critically injured and were taken to the hospital. Martinez was arrested on the scene and is expected to be charged with felony DUI and vehicular manslaughter charges.

During holiday weekends, more people drink and drive, leading to more DUI accidents. Unfortunately for the Espinoza family, Martinez decided to drive even though he was intoxicated. If you are intoxicated and need a ride home home, call a taxi cab, take the bus or ask your friend for a ride home. Do not put anyone’s life in danger. Whether you live in Fullerton, Newport Beach or Santa Ana, if you are charged with DUI manslaughter, call an experienced DUI defense attorney right away to assist you.

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Dennis LeRoy Anderson plead guilty on Monday to driving while under the influence. After going to the Keyboard Lounge and drinking a few alcoholic beverages, Anderson got on to his motorized La-Z-Boy and accidentally crashed it into a car in the parking lot. Officers arrived and Breathalyzer results proved that Anderson had a blood alcohol level of .29%. They impounded his vehicle, arrested him and put him in jail. The La-Z-Boy was powered by the engine of a lawn mower and had a steering wheel, an antenna, headlights, a radio and a cup holder. Police estimated that the chair could go as fast as 15-20 m.p.h. The vehicle will likely be sold at the next police auction. A picture of the vehicle can be seen here.

People often think that you can only get a DUI while driving a car. This is wrong. You can receive a DUI while operating a bike, a motorcycle, a boat and almost anything else with a motor. If you are drunk, call a taxi cab to drive to you home instead of risking getting a DUI. Whether you live in San Clemente, Anaheim or Laguna Beach, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney to assist you.

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This week, Sacramento received a $1 million grant to use for aggressive prosecution and prevention of DUI related injuries and deaths. The money will be spent on a two year program that has two parts. The first part of the program will be for the prosecution of DUI offenses. A special team will be formed to prosecute DUI related offenses and take a vertical approach that requires one person to handle the case from beginning to end to more effectively prosecute DUI offenders. The second part of the program will be for the education of the community. A community service officer will present a drivers safety program using personal stories, photos and even a wrecked car to show the emotional aspects of DUI offenses. The educational program will teach safe driving as well as help passengers develop confidence to prevent drinking and driving by being assertive and taking the wheel if the driver is drunk.

This program seeks like a great way to reduce DUI injuries and fatalities while also being educational for people who may not know all of the dangers of drinking and driving. In California, DUI offenses have been going down and hopefully this program will further reduce DUI injuries and fatalities. Whether you live in Anaheim, Santa Ana or Laguna Woods, if you have been charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney right away to assist you.

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This week, AJ Allmendinger was pulled over in North Carolina because of drunk driving. Police said he blew a .08% on the breathalyzer machine. Allmendinger said he had gone to dinner that night and had a few drinks. He said he did not feel drunk but should have known better than to drive, since he is a Nascar driver and a DUI could ruin his career. Nascar suspended him from driving race cars until next year. From now on, Allmendinger says he wants to educate people on driving responsibly and be a good role model.

Luckily, Allmendinger was not drinking before racing his car. Racing is already a dangerous sport and if he was intoxicated while driving, he could have killed himself or others around him. Since he did not cause any damage, it is likely that Allmendinger will just have to pay some fees and take an alcohol education class, as opposed to going to jail. If he is charged with another DUI, his license will likely be revoked, thereby ruining his racing career. Whether you live in Santa Ana, Brea or Laguna Niguel, if you are charged with a DUI, call an experienced DUI defense attorney right away to assist you.

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Robert Martinez was arrested earlier this week for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and for vehicular manslaughter. Around 1 a.m., Martinez was driving on I-10 near a construction zone. Surrounding drivers slowed down to around 15 m.p.h., but Martinez kept up his high speed of 80-90 m.p.h. He hit the left rear corner of the pick up truck in front of him which tore into the car. His car then spun out of control and was hit by another pick up truck and then hit the center divider. The passenger in Martinez’s car was killed. Martinez was injured so he was taken to the hospital and then arrested for DUI manslaughter.

It us such a tragedy that Martinez’s passenger, his own friend, was killed. Martinez will have to live with this for the rest of his life. This was such a high impact crash that Martinez was lucky to survive the crash. He will likely face prison time, revoked license, probation, fines and alcohol education classes. Whether you live in Irvine, Newport Beach or San Clemente, if you are charged with DUI manslaughter, call an experienced DUI defense attorney right away to assist you.

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