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What happens after a 5th DUI?

If you've previously been found guilty of repeated drunk driving crimes, you might not be startled if you're pulled over for another alleged DUI crime. However, if it's your 5th DUI arrest, the repercussions could be significantly harsher than your prior DUI convictions. This blog delves deep into what to expect if you're convicted of a 5th DUI and measures you can undertake to preserve your driving license and future.

Your Prior Offenses Do Matter

When accused of a DUI offense, it is critical that you legally fight the allegations. Even if you believe a DUI conviction for the 5th time is not a big deal, you should reevaluate your position. All California DUI convictions are regarded as priorable offenses. If you're found guilty, every priorable crime you received during the last ten years will affect your current sentence.

Even though you might not spend much time behind bars or pay a lot of money in fines for your first DUI offense, you can anticipate receiving harsher punishments each time if you get another DUI or face accusations for other criminal charges.

Priorable offenses include a variety of misdemeanors and felony convictions, and they may affect the severity of your sentencing if you're convicted of a fifth DUI. Some of these priorable offenses include the following:

  • Driving with a blood alcohol content of more than.08% under California VC 23152(b)
  • Causing serious bodily harm or loss of life while drunk driving under California VC 23153
  • Reckless driving under California VC 23103.5
  • Driving under the influence under California VC 23152(a)

What the Prosecution Must Prove to Secure a Fifth DUI Conviction

According to California law, you could be charged with a felony DUI offense if you're found guilty of not less than 3 DUI convictions within 10 years of the first violation. Therefore, for the prosecution team to successfully find you guilty of a felony DUI, they should demonstrate the following elements:

  • You were drunk driving or had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of at least 0.08% while operating the vehicle
  • You have at least 3 prior DUI convictions during the last 10 years under California VC 23152a, 23152b, 23103.5, and 23153, respectively

The 10-year timeframe is often referred to as a "lookback" period. It is important to note that it refers to the date a crime was perpetrated and not the conviction date.

The prosecution can make use of or apply any of the documents to prove that you had previously been found guilty of a DUI offense:

  1. Records from the courts
  2. DMV records, such as those detailing a prior DUI driver's license suspension
  3. Completion certificates for all court-ordered rehabilitation or treatment programs

Compared to felony DUI arrests, first or second DUI charges are considered misdemeanor DUIs and usually lead to misdemeanor charges.

The Consequences of a Fifth DUI Conviction

If you're guilty of a fifth DUI, you could be subject to some of the harshest penalties. A fifth DUI offense will be treated as a felony crime and not a misdemeanor.

If you're convicted of a 5th DUI offense, you could face a number of criminal punishments, such as:

  • Attending a mandatory DUI program as required by law
  • Participating and completing a court-ordered alcohol rehabilitation program for not less than 30 months
  • Serving no more than three years behind bars
  • Hefty cash fines not exceeding one thousand dollars
  • Being labeled as a Habitual Traffic Offender
  • Being sentenced to informal or formal probation, each with its own set of penalties and conditions
  • Driver's license revocation for a maximum of four years
  • Once you have your driver's license reinstated, you must have an ignition-interlocking device (IID) installed at your own cost

The Effects of Aggravating Factors on a Fifth DUI Offense

If aggravating factors are present in your case, the consequences against you can be significantly severe. Aggravating elements will enhance your sentencing if you are convicted.

Some of the aggravating elements can include the following:

  • Having a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.15% or higher.
  • Drunk driving resulting in a car accident
  • Driving under the influence while on a DUI probation sentence
  • Underage drunk driving
  • Speeding and reckless driving
  • Refusing to consent to BAC chemical testing
  • Drunk driving with a minor passenger in the vehicle

The Effects of Collateral Consequences

If you're found guilty of a fifth DUI offense, you will suffer consequences that go beyond the criminal punishments. A fifth DUI will haunt you for the rest of your life. It could be challenging for you to secure or remain employed, get to your workplace daily, make a living, and take care of yourself and your loved ones if you lose your driver's license for a prolonged period.

When prospective landlords, employers, or anybody else conducts a background check, they'll discover that you've been sentenced to 5 DUI convictions. They're less likely to accept your application or deal with you if this occurs.

You risk losing your good reputation. It is crucial that you fight these charges if you want to keep any potential citizenship or immigration issues from developing if you're a foreigner. If found guilty, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may take action against you.

Legal Defenses You Can Use For a Fifth DUI Offense

If this is your 5th time being charged with DUI, you should know that you won't qualify for the pretrial diversion program, which is a crucial part of your defense. This implies that you won't be given the option of a plea deal and instead will have to present your defense at trial.

You could be able to fight a 5th DUI conviction by presenting one of the following legal defenses:

You Were Not Allowed To Contact Your Lawyer During the Investigation

Everybody is entitled to the right to speak with a lawyer before or following an arrest during any investigation. This constitutional right is crucial in DUI investigations since the timelines of a DUI inquiry are essential when determining whether "independent exculpatory evidence" should be obtained. DUI charges could be dropped if this right is denied.

In a California DUI investigation, you have the right to communicate and engage with your legal counsel if doing so would not unnecessarily delay or obstruct the investigation. If you file a petition to suppress or reject evidence based on denial of your right to an attorney, the prosecutor bears the burden of proving that any restriction of the constitutional right to a lawyer would have compromised the investigation.

If not, evidence will be suppressed, and the allegations will be dropped. When the prosecution interferes with your rights to speak with your attorney, any evidence gained as a result of that violation would be considered inadmissible in court, and frequently, the solution is to drop the charges.

Inaccuracy of the Breath Alcohol Tests

Breathalyzers, often known as breath tests, are devices that test your blood alcohol content as well as the alcohol-related particle concentration in your lungs. Given that a single test is insufficient to identify the quantities of alcohol in the blood system, this indirect assessment of your BAC level could give an incorrect reading.

The partition ratio measures how much alcohol level is in your blood in relation to how much is in your lungs or breath. The Breath Alcohol Testing system is based on the assumption of a single partitioning ratio assessment. However, variations in human physiology could lead to people having partition ratios that differ from the ratio considered as the foundation for the breath test.

Some factors can imply that a breath test reading or an Intoxilyzer is excessively high. Variations in your body temperature while undertaking the test can also lead to an inaccurately high reading. Even the breath analyzer has a 10% built-in error margin, which could generate deceptively high values.

Your defense attorney can work with a forensic toxicology specialist to identify flaws with the breathalyzer tests used in a DUI prosecution and build a defense around those issues.

You Were Illegally Pulled Over By the Law Enforcement Officer

You cannot be detained or pulled over unless the police have a legitimate and reasonable suspicion that suggests that a traffic violation or other offense has been committed. The burden of demonstrating that all facts were collected legally and under the 4th Amendment of the US Constitution rests on the prosecution in all court proceedings. The 4th Amendment shields every individual from unwarranted seizures and searches.

A law enforcement officer cannot pull you over based on a guess or a "hunch." Similarly, driving late at night or leaving a pub is not an offense. To validate any later seizure or information obtained, a law enforcement officer should prove an objective purpose for conducting a traffic stop.

In situations where there was no valid reason for the traffic stop, a defense lawyer can examine the circumstances to determine whether a motion to suppress the gathered information should be submitted.

The Field Sobriety Tests Conducted Are Invalid or Inaccurate

Any test purporting to determine "cues of impairment" should be administered, assessed, and conveyed, in the same manner, every time. When conducted on elderly people, people with disabilities, or individuals who are obese, these assessments are hardly reliable and are totally invalid.

Field Sobriety Tests vary in their level of "standardization." The Federal Government and NHTSA don't recognize the validity of Rhomberg-Modified Balancing Tests, "Finger to Nose" Tests, or tests that require reciting the alphabet as standardized field sobriety tests. Some of these tests aren't even acknowledged by all law enforcement agencies. Their value in court as evidence of impairment is, at best, doubtful.

A skilled DUI lawyer can fight these sobriety tests with efficacy, particularly if there are no complaints of dangerous driving or the officer involved is not competent or has failed to accurately administer the tests.

No Evidence That You Were Driving or Controlling the Vehicle

A solid public policy requires you to safely exit the road if you realize that you're endangering other motorists and road users. If you were inebriated but not operating a vehicle or were not actually in physical control of the vehicle, you would not be charged with DUI.

The question in such cases usually boils down to the jury deciding whether you were only using the automobile as a cover before regaining your sobriety or if you were a danger or hazard to the public. Simply having the ignition key in place or the engine running doesn't indicate that you have physical control of the vehicle.

The jury and judge need to consider the "totality of the facts" to decide whether your imminent or current control of the vehicle posed a genuine risk to you or other individuals at that time. It's crucial to defend your reputation against the accusations made against you if you want to evade the severe punishments related to a 5th DUI conviction.

For you to be exonerated or have the allegations against you withdrawn, your lawyer will need to provide solid evidence that casts doubt on the prosecution's case in the eyes of the jury and the magistrate.

What Would Happen if You Had a Different State DUI Conviction?

If you have a history of convictions for other priorable crimes, such as DUIs, in other jurisdictions, you could also face harsher consequences. If you're found guilty of a felony DUI, you could face even harsher penalties. Also, if you had a prior DUI conviction erased from the criminal record, it would still count and be regarded as a priorable crime for determining your sentencing if you face another DUI conviction in the future.

Find a Los Angeles DUI Lawyer Near Me

A 5th DUI conviction can result in serious consequences for both your personal and professional life. It's crucial that you treat these allegations seriously and mount a solid defense. You can contact us at Jonathan Franklin DUI Attorney to find out how you're able to effectively fight the DUI charges against you. Call us today at 323-464-6700 to speak with one of our attorneys in Los Angeles.

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Jonathan Franklin DUI Attorney
6777 Hollywood Blvd Ste 508
Los Angeles, CA 90028
323-464-6700