Free DUI Lawyer In California

Reader’s Question:

Is it true that having even just a glass of wine or a bottle of beer and then driving afterward can already have you arrested for DUI in California?

Mill

Concord, CA

It depends in if you are a minor and under what state you are in. In your case there in Concord, California the answer is yes, it is possible for you to be convicted of DUI even if you have consumed (in your opinion) a small amount of alcohol. It all depends on the result of the Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) test and the level of suspicion of the police officer who have pulled you over. California has one of the strictest laws in the nation governing underage drinking, so anyone caught under 21 and has had a BAC result of 0.01% or greater will face a DUI charge. If you resulted with a 0.05% or greater then you can be arrested and be subjected to two charges, one for underage and a regular DUI charges as well.

To put things in perspective, for most people drinking a 12-ounce beer or one 4-ounce glass of wine or one 1.25-ounce of liquor will already tip your BAC result to over 0.01% to near 0.05%. If this happens to you, you are looking at a one year driver’s license suspension and any subsequent violations and convictions will lead to even more sever punishments, including fines up to the thousands and even jail time. Similarly, individuals who refuse to be tested will mean an automatic suspension of his or her license as well. In some cases, however, if you are 18 or over and have had no prior convictions, you may be able to just attend a 12-hour class regarding safety and alcohol or drug abuse.

Reader’s Question:

I have a history of DWI arrest in California. Recently, I was required by the court to attend a traffic school course. If I took a traffic school course online, how long will it take me to complete the course?

Megan

Concord, California

Interesting question, Megan. Though traffic school course lengths differ from state to state, typical courses are usually within 4 to 6 hours in length. Since it is an online course, you have the freedom to start and stop the course as much as you want to. It should not actually take longer to complete an online traffic school course for your DWI arrest than it would with a traditional sit-down traffic school class, which is normally 8 hours. Online program allows you to work at your own pace. You won’t have to rush or panic, since you will be informed if your court deadline is near. Otherwise, you may stay in the program for as long as you want. The best thing about online traffic school course is that you are not required to go through the course all at once, though you can do that if you want. Normally, the program is broken up into several sections to give you the convenience to move at your own pace. Since the program can keep a record of your development, you can easily go back to where you left off. Usually, there are no limitations on how often you can log on and off.

The California Traffic School Course is arranged to take 8 hours to complete. Because the program is self-paced, however, the length in which it takes to complete a course may vary from individual to individual.