In San Diego, a drunk driving arrestee will most likely have his or her driver's license confiscated ( under the stop and snatch laws ) by the aresting Police Officer at the time they are taken into custody on suspicion of DUI.

If a person suspected of driving drunk, submits to a breath alcohol test; that results in a BAC of .08% or higher, or a blood alcohol test that results in a BAC of .08 or higher, or refuses to submit to a chemical test at all, he or she will be formally charged with driving drunk and will be issued a pink sheet of paper to notify the accused of the suspension of their driver's license in lieu of a newly issued 30-day temporary license to drive in California. In the event that the DUI arrestee is licensed to drive in a state other than California, their driver's license will not be seized and the restrictions on their privelege to drive will only be effective within California.

It is critically important to CALL THE SAN DIEGO DMV WITHIN 10 DAYS OF THE ARREST to request a hearing to contest the license suspension; failure to contact the California DMV to request a hearing will result in the diriver's suspension of license becoming effective and enforceable 30 days after a DUI arrest. Requesting a hearing will also result in an extension of the 30-day temporary license, usually for another month or two depending upon when the hearing is held. Nothing is lost by requesting a hearing and a good DUI attorney has a fair chance of getting the suspension thrown out.

   San Diego License Suspension Procedures

A good explanation of the laws and procedures involved in California Department of Motor Vehicles DUI license suspensions, from the attorney who wrote the leading drunk driving law textbook.

   The Statutory DMV License Suspension Laws

The statutory scheme for administrative California DMV license suspensions can become as complicated as the criminal punishment. Basically, a first offender with a
blood alcohol level of .08% will have his license suspended for four months; if there is a refusal to submit to chemical testing, the suspension is for one year. For drivers under 21, "zero tolerance" laws in San Diego dictate a one-year suspension for blood-alcohol levels over .01%. Second offenders with over-.08% levels receive a one-year suspension (two years if a refusal).

  Get a Copy of Your California DMV Record

The Department of Motor Vehicles (California DMV) keeps your driving record for about ten years. You can obtain a copy of your California driving record by following the instructions on this site.

  The National Driver Registry

How to get information about your record on thisnational governmental database used by states to determine a person's driving record in other states.

   Licensing Consequences and the DMV

There are a wide range of consequences that can result from the prosecution of a san Diego DUI case, all influenced by the facts of the case and the skills of your DUI defense lawyer.Because there are so many DUIs in San Diego that standardized treatment by the courts has developed. For the garden-variety DUI, the law requires four minimum, mandatory consequences:

  Three years of informal or summary probation. This is the easy kind of probation, without a probation officer to report to. You are on probation to the San Diego courts, and it is a promise not to get arrested again for three years.

  A fine of approximately $1,250.00, and you will have plenty of time to pay it.

  A level one drinking-driver program. You must attend ten weekly sessions of approximately three hours each.

  A ninety day driver's license restriction, allowing you to drive to and from work, during the course of your employment, and to and from the alcohol program mentioned above.

The timing of this restriction from the court and the suspension/restriction from the San Diego DMV is critical, and failure to time them properly can result in a greater suspension/restriction than is necessary. The consequences discussed in the paragraph above are what referred to as the garden-variety, standard minimum first-time DUI consequences in San Diego. There are four situations that can increase those penalties:

  An accident;

  A blood alcohol concentration of .15% or greater;

  A refusal to take a blood or breath test; and

  A prior DUI or alcohol-related reckless driving conviction.

If any of the above four circumstances exist, the penalties for the standard minimum first offense go up, and can include jail time, community service, additional fines, or a host of other undesirable consequences. A defense lawyer focused exclusively on handling San Diego DUI matters can often make a major difference in the outcome of most cases.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles recently released statistics stating that 34% of all suspended drivers' licenses resulting from San Diego DUI charges were reinstated by way of a DMV Hearing challenge.  When the suspendees were represented by a qualified DUI attorney, reinstatement ratios for DUI in San Diego increased up to 70%.

DMV Drunk Driving Admin Per Se Hearing
When a drunk driving arrest is made in San Diego, typically a pink notice of suspension and a temporary driver's license ( DMV Form DS-367 ) are issued to the arrestee upon release from custody. Attending to the driver's license suspension for DUI is separate and in addition to addressing the san Diego courts regarding criminal drunk driving charges. Your chances of retaining your driving priveleges are significantly higher if you are represented by a DUI attorney who is skilled in administering the San Diego DMV Hearing process and familiar with the varying tendencies of the DMV Officials presiding over your case. It is vital that you request a DMV Hearing within ten days of your arrest, or retain legal counsel to administer this contact for you.

Regardless of how these documents are worded, it is the DMV that bears the burden of proof that your driver's license suspension is justified. Unlike your hearings in the San Diego criminal justice courts, if you neglect to retain an attorney to defend your right to drive, you will not be assigned a Public Defender or advocate for the DMV Hearing, in which case, you would be unprotected and at the mercy of the San Diego DMV Officials whose intention it is to take punitive and regulatory action against you.

San Diego DMV Hearing Objectives
If a complete dismissal of your DUI case cannot be achieved, then our objective will be to greatly reduce the charges against you to contain the consequential damages of your drunk driving arrest. In some cases complicated by enhancements and previous DUI convictions, it may be that the best DMV resolution for your particular DUI charges are a limited driver's license and a shorter revocation. Loss of driving priveleges is a serious implication that will affect every area of your life and obviously must be avoided at all costs.

San Diego DMV Hearing Request Benefits
A DMV Hearing request will effect an extension of the 30-day temporary driver's license that was issued to you at the time of your San Diego DUI arrest. The term for extended driving priveleges can span up to several months until your case can be heard. If you have been arrested and charged with drunk driving, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by exercising your right to the DMV Hearing, especially when you have a San Diego DUI Specialized attorney acting on your behalf.

G. Cole Casey heads the top San Diego drunk driving defense firm. As a well known San Diego DUI lawyer, his proven track record and DUI Jury Trial Case Results are unmatched and unprecedented by any other DUI attorney in the region.

Call us twenty four hours a day at  (619) 237-0384  or  eMail Cole directly   now to discuss a legitimate and effective defense strategy for your driving under the influence case.