California Vehicle DUI with Injury
What are the factors or elements for 23153 VC DUI with Injury?
Under California law, if you cause injury to any person other than yourself, you may be charged with vehicle code 23153 DUI causing injury.
You can be charged with §23153(a) even if your blood alcohol content is below the permitted limit of 0.08%. “Driving under the influence” means that your physical or mental abilities are impaired to such a degree that you no longer have the ability to drive a vehicle with the caution characteristic of a sober person of ordinary prudence under the same or similar circumstances. Basically, if you have a measurable level of alcohol or drugs in your system, you may get charged with this section if the prosecution believes they have a strong case against you.
Contrarily, if you have a BAC of 0.08% or higher, you will get charged with California Vehicle Code Section 23153(b); it is automatically a DUI because of the level of alcohol content and you caused injury while driving.
Legal Consequences:
The penalties for a conviction are determined on a case by case basis and largely depend on the specific circumstances of your case and your past criminal history.
First Conviction:
- A period of imprisonment in a county jail,
- A fine between $390 and $1,000,
- Informal probation of between three and five years,
- A court imposed alcohol education program, and
- A suspension of your driving privileges.
As with a charge of vehicle code 23152(a), the offenses are “priorable” and the penalty increases for a second dui and third dui and so on each time you receive a conviction.
How can we defend you against charges of California Penal Code 23153 VC DUI with Injury?
Defending against a California Vehicle Code 23153 VC violation begins with the same approach as defending against any drunk driving charge. A highly skilled and experienced DUI defense attorney from the Law Offices of Michael A. Fiumara will explore all possibilities of proving that (1) you weren’t under the influence, and/or (2) that your unlawful blood alcohol level was inaccurately reported.
A skilled California drunk driving defense attorney will additionally ensure that all investigation, arrest, and breath-testing procedures were properly adhered to.
The defense takes on an additional approach when focusing
The defense takes on an additional approach when focusing in on the accident and subsequent injury. A good criminal defense lawyer will work with an accident reconstruction expert who can independently evaluate whether the accident that caused the injury was truly your fault.
The accident reconstruction expert “reconstructs” the scene, taking into account factors such as
- The weather,
- Road conditions,
- Damage to the vehicles, and
- Any other relevant evidence that he/she acquires.
This is critical because when police arrive on the scene of an accident and learn that someone has been drinking, they tend automatically to assume that that person is to blame. Police traffic investigators then write their reports based on that presumption.
Contact us:
We have been successfully defending clients facing all types of criminal charges in Sonoma and Marin Counties, since 1992.
The 100 Trial Lawyers Association has recognized us as one of the best criminal defense attorneys in the country!
Please call our office today at (707) 571-8600 in our centrally located Santa Rosa office in Sonoma County or call our office in San Rafael in Marin County at (415) 492-4507 to schedule a free and confidential case evaluation.
Don’t bargain with your freedom! The right attorney makes all the difference between your freedom and incarceration!
Please CLICK HERE to visit our dedicated page on DUI charges for more info.