DUI & the DMV
Most people charged with DUI don't realize that they will be facing "charges" from both the County District Attorney and the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). These two governmental bodies are completely separate, have completely separate proceedings, and shockingly enough, will impose separate and distinct punishments.
Navigating the two systems is complex, difficult, and time-sensitive. At Brownstein Law Group, we will handle both proceedings, and utilize each proceeding in a manner that allows us to use information from one proceeding to benefit our clients in the other proceeding.
IMPORTANT: It is critical to immediately notify the DMV that you dispute any action taken against your driving privileges. Failing to properly notify the DMV immediately after you've been arrested will result in the immediate suspension of your driver's license and loss of driving privileges. Should you retain our firm, we will handle the DMV notification and prevent the immediate suspension of your driver's license.
As part of the DMV notification process, we will schedule a hearing with the DMV to contest any action taken against your driver's license. Even if your physical driver's license was taken from you, we will make sure you promptly receive a temporary driver's license.
A DMV hearing is governed by a completely different set of laws that includes extremely relaxed evidentiary requirements. In other words, the DMV is not required to follow stringent evidentiary protections afforded in the court proceedings. This can often be very frustrating, and extremely difficult to navigate without substantial prior experience.
Further, the issues are very limited in a DMV hearing:
For a typical DUI charge, the issues in a DMV hearing are as follows:
Did the police officer have reasonable cause to believe you were driving under the influence;
Were you lawfully arrested, or lawfully detained while on DUI probation; and
Were you actually driving a motor vehicle while under the influence?
If you refused to submit to a chemical test, the issues in a DMV hearing are as follows:
Did the police officer have reasonable cause to believe you were driving under the influence;
Were you lawfully arrested, or lawfully detained while on DUI probation; and
Did you refuse or fail to complete a chemical test after being requested to do so by a police officer:
It is imperative to have an experienced DUI attorney handle the DMV hearing on your behalf. The issues are complex, and navigating the DMV hearing is difficult. Further, the DMV hearing is overlooked far too often as a useful tool in building your case that is also pending in Court.
If you have been charged with DUI in Marin County, San Francisco County, or the Bay Area, please contact Brownstein Law Group immediately for a consultation.