Los Angeles DUI Attorney Blog

June 8, 2011

Pasadena Breath Test Implications: Will Tainted Santa Clara County Breathalyzer Tests Ultimately Impact Southern California Cases?

If you have recently been arrested and charged with driving under the influence in Pasadena or elsewhere in Southern California (e.g. DUI in Burbank, DUI in Glendale, DUI in Pasadena, DUI in Los Angeles) chances are you’ve tuned into some very curious news out of Santa Clara County, California. Over 850 DUI cases up are being reviewed, after evidence emerged that the Alco-Sensor V breathalyzers used throughout Palo Alto and San Jose may have been significantly defective. As this blog reported a few weeks ago, the Alco-Sensor V breathalyzers have a manufacturer’s defect that causes condensation buildup and skews BAC readings.

The defective breathalyzers may have led to false arrests and convictions.

All that said, so far the Santa Clara County Public Defender’s Office has not identified too many problematic cases. Out of 858 files that theoretically could have been disputed, so far, only 42 questionable cases have so far surfaced. An Assistant Public Defender, Nona Klippen-Hughes, admitted “I don’t think there is going to be a huge number of cases.” Part of the problem is that the average BAC level for arrest was 0.19% – significantly over the legal limit – and many suspects who used the Alco-Sensor V device also blew DUI positive breath results at the police station after being taking into custody.

So the revelation about the faulty machines may not be as “newsworthy” as initial reports suggested…unless, that is, you consider the story in context. Then, it gets a LOT more interesting. For instance, Vermont and Florida have witnessed serious breathalyzer-related problems that may result in a wholesale throwing out of some pretty big charges.

These breathalyzer-related mishaps are disturbing. Especially because it can be easily demonstrated that breath tests skew in a variety of ways. As this blog has noted time and again, if you blow deeply into a breathalyzer machine, you get a higher BAC reading than if you blow lightly. Men and women process alcohol differently. Chemicals on your breath alter these tests. Calibration and officer errors mess them up. And, obviously, manufacturing defects can also do the job.

A Los Angeles criminal defense attorney can unpack the evidence against you and develop a battle plan to fight the charges. For instance, say you blew an over-the-limit BAC level reading on a breathalyzer. Attorney Michael Kraut of Pasadena’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (790 East Colorado Boulevard, 9th floor, Pasadena, California 91101 Phone: (626) 345-1899) could potentially challenge the results on a number of grounds. Attorney Kraut served as a prosecutor for nearly 15 years. He still uses his connections, insights, prosecutorial mindset, and perspective to help clients get the results that they want and deserve.

June 6, 2011

Los Angeles DUI Memorial Day Numbers Are In – Stats are Similar to 2010s, and That’s Kind of a Shame

by Michael Kraut

The California Highway Patrol released its Los Angeles DUI Memorial Day weekend statistics. According to various sources, CHP officers arrested 230 motorists in L.A. County from the period starting midnight Friday, May 27th, through midnight Monday, May 30th. All told, statewide, nearly 900 people were arrested for DUI – 132 fewer than 2010. So that’s good news, for the state. But in Burbank DUI, Glendale DUI, Pasadena DUI, and Los Angeles DUI news, other numbers weren’t so terrific. For instance, three traffic related DUI deaths happened in the first 36 hours of the Memorial Day weekend – thus L.A. County accounted for half of the six total California fatalities over Memorial Day.

Law enforcement officials are staging another anti-DUI effort starting on July 4th weekend ending on Labor Day weekend.

It’s a statistical reality that Los Angeles DUI injury accidents are far more likely to occur during holidays, such as Memorial Day, July 4th weekend, Labor Day, New Year’s Eve, and Super Bowl Sunday. Why?

The answer is at first blush obvious: more people party on those weekends. Therefore, more drivers — on average — will likely be under the influence of alcohol, drugs, prescription medications and thus more likely to commit injury accidents.

But take this idea and follow its logical extension: you might come to some pretty interesting conclusions. Holidays encourage reckless behavior. So since carousing leads to an increase in DUIs, would restricting or eliminating holidays therefore reduce DUIs?

In other words, say, starting immediately, we decided to end all national holidays – no more Memorial Day, no more Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, etc. These days would no longer be days on which people would celebrate, carouse, and be more likely to drive under the influence. Undoubtedly, this practice would save lives, probably hundreds of lives each year in every major American city — as well as prevent untold injuries and costs associated with property damage.

The question is: At what cost?

Would sacrificing all of our fun times and holidays be worth the trade-off of preserving life and protecting property?

Obviously, the philosophical implications are far too deep to explore in any length in a short blog post. But they are certainly interesting, and they go to show that controlling DUI is a lot more complicated than simply setting up a checkpoint here and there and spreading educational campaigns. These issues touch on the very fabric of who we are as a people.

A Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, such as Michael Kraut (Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. – 6255 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 1520, Los Angeles, California 90028), a former prosecutor with a terrific record at jury trials, can help you understand how best to fight back against the charges you face. Whether you’ve caused minor property damage while DUI or got stopped at a checkpoint and tested to have a BAC level of just slightly over Southern California DUI limit of 0.08% BAC, Attorney Kraut can help isolate, design, and execute a sound strategy.

June 3, 2011

Burbank DUI Checkpoints Violating Civil Liberties?

by Michael Kraut

The police officers who stop drivers at Burbank DUI checkpoints are empowered to remove dangerous drivers from the roads to enhance public safety. And while everyone can agree that we want to reduce and ideally eliminate Burbank DUI, Glendale DUI, Pasadena DUI, Los Angeles DUI, etc., civil liberties groups are complaining that DUI checkpoints are being used to generate impoundment fees… as opposed to eliminating DUI drivers!

According to a May 24th story from the Associated Press, a lawmaker in Northern California (Santa Rosa), Assemblyman Michael Allen (D), has proposed a law to “restrict the inspections to their intended purpose of stopping drunken driving.” Allen’s bill, AB 1389, points out that impoundments have leapt over the 50% between 2007 to 2009.

In many California cities, Allen says, “the ratio of impoundments to DUI arrest is 20 to 1.” The California Police Chief Association, among other enforcement agencies, denies that DUI checkpoints are being abused to generate impoundment fees. David L. Maggard, Jr. responded via e-mail that “DUI checkpoints are exclusively about safety.” Another Assemblyman, Kevin Jeffries, complained that the bill would tie up police and prevent enforcement of anti-DUI policy: “I was a volunteer firefighter for 29 years, and I saw a lot of carnage the road because of drunk drivers…this weakens our ability to catch drunk drivers.”

The bill proposed by Allen would codify a state Supreme Court ruling that “requires officers to conduct their checkpoints on roads that already have a high rate of DUI arrest or accidents, and then give advance notice of the location.”

Clearly, there has to be some way to find a balance here between respecting the rights and civil liberties of drivers and keeping our roads safe and clear of dangerous drivers.

Unfortunately, the way the system has been politicized, policy analysts, politicians, and many people in the legal system have been conditioned to believe that only “win-lose” outcomes are available. Either the police “win” or DUI drivers “win.” This kind of binary choice is obviously a false choice, if you probe the argument in any logical detail. Surely, we collectively can find ways to eliminate or reduce DUI driving and abuse of checkpoints and make our roads safer – all at the same time. It’s just going to take creativity and a little more willingness to both experiment with policy solutions and to measure the efficacy of the solutions in a smart way.

Changing our cultural expectations of drivers may help a lot more than simply punishing them. For instance, right now, in spite of the fact that California’s laws prohibit drivers from text message while driving, many people still do it anyway. If we can find a way to eliminate the “social permission” that we’re tacitly giving each other to text while driving, we can likely reduce accidents significantly – all without punishing anybody.

All of this philosophizing aside, a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney can provide crucial, tactical, and strategic advice and solutions for you, if you or someone you care about has been charged with a DUI crime. Michael Kraut of Burbank’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (2600 West Olive Avenue, 5th Floor, Burbank, California 91505 Phone: (818) 563-9810) is a highly reputed former prosecutor (served as a Deputy District Attorney almost for 15 years), who is respected by prosecutors and judges and regarded by major media as an expert in Los Angeles DUI law.

June 1, 2011

Pasadena DUI Breathalyzer Machines: Could They Be Next on the Chopping Block?

by Michael Kraut

Attorneys and pundits who follow news about Pasadena DUI (and DUI throughout the country) are keeping a keen eye on Sarasota County, Florida, where an otherwise boring and workaday DUI trial may have profound implications for the use of DUI breath tests in Florida – and perhaps, indirectly, Southern California (e.g. Pasadena DUI, Burbank DUI, Los Angeles DUI, and Glendale DUI).

At issue is whether the Intoxilyzer 8000, a breath test machine that Florida troopers use exclusively, generates scientifically sound results.

According to an article in the Herald Tribune, “A five-year legal dispute over the machine has left prosecutors in Sarasota and Manatee counties unable to use Intoxilyzer 8000 test results to trial without bringing experts to prove the machine is scientifically sound… if prosecutors prevail, the hearing could save one of the most powerful pieces of evidence in DUI trials… but if not, prosecutors may not be able to use alcohol breath test in DUI trials, making it harder to prove cases or get DUI pleads.”

As this blog has reported, the Intoxilyzer 8000 is not the only breath test machine under fire recently. Both Southern California DUI breathalyzers and Vermont breathalyzers have come under heavy fire this year.

The Sarasota case has some very interesting details. The defendant, Felicia Bridwell, is a 25-year-old who was stopped last August. She admitted to having consumed two glasses of wine – “one at dinner and one at home” and performed her field sobriety tests adequately. But her Intoxilyzer results measured her BAC at 0.10% – greater than the 0.08% that marks the cut-off for Southern Florida and Southern California DUI. Her reaction was astonished and nonplussed: “Are you serious? Are you serious? I didn’t pass the test?”

Now, of course, just because certain breathalyzer tests are faulty doesn’t mean that no one drives DUI. It just means that the tests may be far more flawed than most people realize. Depending on whether you have certain diseases or conditions; whether you blow hard or soft into the machine; whether the machine is properly calibrated; and probably dozens of other factors, your reading may be higher or lower than your actual, real world BAC level.

Who knows how this campaign to demand accountability from our breathalyzer machines will end? Clearly, we need two things:

1. A way for authorities to better analyze BAC readings, so drivers get treated more fairly.
2. Creative, sensible solutions to eliminate or at least limit bad and dangerous driving behaviors.

These two aims may not be exclusive.

On the practical side, a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, such as Michael Kraut of Pasadena’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (790 East Colorado Boulevard, 9th floor, Pasadena, California 91101 Phone: (626) 345-1899), can give you clearheaded, strategically sound advice about how to build your Pasadena DUI defense. Mr. Kraut has the experience, track record, reputation, and compassion to meet your needs.

May 30, 2011

Los Angeles DUI For Estella Warren Complicated by Charges of Hit and Run, Kicking a Cop, and a Felony Escape!

by Michael Kraut

Most celebrity arrests for driving under the influence in Los Angeles are relatively pedestrian as far as the details are concerned. Yes, you can occasionally find salacious stories – such as Mel Gibson’s famous anti-Semitic rant or Lindsay Lohan’s notorious probation violation situation. But most celebrity arrests are simply workaday examples of Burbank DUI, Glendale DUI, Pasadena DUI, and Los Angeles DUI.

Not so for Planet of the Apes star and model, Estella Warren, who was arrested last Monday. Her arrest took multiple bizarre twists. The following details are cribbed from an E-online news report:

• Ms. Warren drove into three different trees before getting pulled over for DUI.
• After police caught her, she literally kicked one of them.
• She failed a Los Angeles DUI field sobriety test – in the words of the E-online reporter, “go figure”…but that wasn’t the end of her adventure.
• During her booking, Ms. Warren slipped out of her handcuffs (helps to have really thin “model” wrists, apparently) and tried to flee the police station. Officers quickly apprehended the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Model and tacked on yet another charge – felony escape.
• She was booked as being aged 40 years old… when she has publicly declared herself to be just 32.
• Due to the hit and run, escape attempt, and other factors, Ms. Warren’s bail was set at a whopping $100,000.

So what are the lessons we can learn from this escapade?

First of all, if you’re looking to try to pass your field sobriety tests (such as horizontal gaze nystagmus test, finger to the nose test, counting backwards by 3s, etc.), it’s probably a good idea to avoid actively kicking or assaulting the officers conducting the tests on you.

Secondly, Ms. Warren’s post-arrest hysterics illustrate clearly that your behavior following an arrest can have profound ramifications for your potential sentencing. The more charges you rack up, the more difficult it will be for your Los Angeles criminal defense attorney to develop and push forward a strategic defense for you. Even if you manage to get the hit and return DUI dismissed or at least plead down to a lesser charge, you will still have to face other charges from your continued misbehavior – in Ms. Warren’s case, for instance, the felony escape charge.

All that said, facing a Los Angeles DUI charge is neither easy, nor simple. And you may face a surprising amount of hostility – whether you are a celebrity or not – not only from the popular press but also possibly from friends, colleagues, families, and even yourself. Attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. in Los Angeles (6255 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 1520, Los Angeles, California 90028) can give you practical, immediate assistance building a defense. As a former prosecutor of DUI crimes, Mr. Kraut understands how the lawyers working against you think and what motivates them – and he has a stellar record at jury trials and great relationships with people in the legal community.

May 25, 2011

Glendale DUI Doozy – DUI Cabbie Drives Wrong Way on Freeway; Fortunately, He Didn’t Kill Anybody

by Michael Kraut

The crime of driving under the influence in Glendale (or anywhere else, for that matter) is serious enough. But when DUI drivers compound their problems by doing things like driving the wrong way on the freeway, accidents can happen far more easily – and these accidents have a far greater likelihood of leading to fatalities.

Not all the scary California DUI news has to do with Burbank DUI, Glendale DUI, Pasadena DUI, and Los Angeles DUI events – stuff that this blog normally tries to cover. Sometimes, our neighbors in the northern CA also get into trouble. Case in point, Mercury News is reporting on a terrifying story about a 57-year-old taxi driver, Steve Sharek, who drove his cab up an off-ramp onto Highway 1 – a misadventure that ended in a significant accident (although, fortunately, not a fatal one).

Here’s the story, per mercurynews.com: “About 1:50 P.M Monday, Sharek drove a taxi up an off-ramp at State Park Drive in Aptos to southbound Highway 1 in the wrong direction, the CHP said. The driver apparently realized his error and made a U-turn…by that time, a 57-year-old Aptos woman in a white, 1994 Toyota Avalon slammed on her breaks (and slammed into a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban).”

Fortunately, both the Aptos woman and the driver of the Suburban escaped without significant injuries, at least according to news reports. After his U-turn, Sharek attracted the attention of CHP officers, who pulled him over and arrested him under suspicion of DUI.

Most defendants understand that charges of injury DUI in Glendale may be more significant than simple Glendale DUI charges. But how different, exactly, are these crimes?

If you look at the California Vehicle Code sections that describe these crimes, you might not see much of a difference… at first.

A typical misdemeanor DUI, for instance, might be charged pursuant to CVC 23152 (a) or 23152 (b); whereas a typical injury DUI would be charged under CVC 23153 (a) and 23153 (b).

If you glance at these CVC codes quickly, they look basically identical!

But there is an enormous, profound difference. A 23152 charge is generally a misdemeanor – a serious crime, to be sure. But a 23153 charge, on the other hand, is a felony charge. Convicted felons can wind up with extensive prison sentences. So even if the person you hurt in your DUI accident wasn’t “that hurt,” you could still find yourself a felon if the prosecution manages to convict you under 23153 CVC.

A Los Angeles criminal defense attorney (for example, Mr. Michael Kraut of Glendale’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc., located at: 121 W Lexington Dr, Glendale, CA 91203 Phone: (818) 507-9123) can provide timely, effective, and strategically sound help. Attorney Kraut is not only a well-recognized former prosecutor of Los Angeles DUI crimes, but he is also regularly sought out by trusted media organizations like KTLA News, The New York Times, and Fox News, to discuss important breaking news in the Los Angeles DUI arena.

May 23, 2011

Pasadena DUI Implications of Vermont DUI Breath Test Failures?

by Michael Kraut

Those who cover Pasadena DUI stories often set their sites on parochial stories – that is, police blotter news items about things like Glendale DUI, Burbank DUI, Los Angeles DUI, and Pasadena DUI. But it’s often helpful to analyze national news as well to get perspective on how the goings on in other states might have bearing on the politics, science, and legal philosophy of Southern California DUI defense.
 Regular readers will remember that we have been closely following reports a few months ago on the revelation that many San Fernando DUI breathalyzer tests used from January to March this year had been compromised by technology flaws. Well… it turns out that Southern California DUI breathalyzer tests are not the only broken breath tests out there this year.

Check out this breaking news out of Montpelier, Vermont of all places (quote comes from the AP): “A mistake in the software setup on a breath analysis machine and whistle-blowers’ complaints about unethical lab work threaten dozens of drunken-driving prosecutions in Vermont. At issue are breath tests performed by a DataMaster DMT machine at a Vermont State Police barracks that authorities say was not set up properly. Amid a broadening inquiry by two defense attorneys, dozens of criminal convictions could be reopened and a handful of civil license suspensions are being overturned.”

The AP article also mentions that literally hundreds of DUI cases may be reopened and reevaluated because of other Vermont Department of Health machine maintenance problems.

Despite the snafu out of Vermont and the problems that we reported about here in Southern California, it’s unlikely that police officers and the public will seriously reconsider the efficacy of breath tests.

This is, in a word, frustrating. No matter how often blogs like this report on the potential technical glitches, human errors, and other problems that can distort readings and cause false positives (such as ketones on the breath, the fact that men and women process ethanol alcohol differently, the fact that the depth of the breath that you blow into the machine can alter BAC results, etc.), we still collectively give breath tests way too much “trust.”

An experienced Los Angeles criminal defense attorney can review the breath test that officers conducted on you and determine if and how to challenge those results. Michael Kraut (of Pasadena’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. – 790 East Colorado Boulevard, 9th floor, Pasadena, California 91101 Phone: (626) 345-1899) has the facility and familiarity with DUI law you need. Mr. Kraut served for nearly 15 years as a prosecutor for the city prior to representing defendants of DUI crimes. He has a great track record at jury trials, and he has won the respect of peers in the legal community.

May 18, 2011

Glendale DUI Brouhaha Brews in Senate over Google and Apple Apps

by Michael Kraut

Mobile apps designed and provided by the likes of Google and Apple can “yield up” the locations of Glendale DUI checkpoints (and DUI checkpoints throughout the US). These apps have raised the hackles of lawmakers. Last Tuesday, a US Senate Subcommittee held a hearing with Apple’s VP of Software Technology to discuss the legality of apps that can alert drivers to checkpoints for Glendale DUI, Burbank DUI, Los Angeles DUI, Pasadena DUI, and so forth.

Two of the most popular apps are Buzz’d and Fuzz Alert. Senator Chuck Schumer lashed into the software execs about these apps in particular, saying that they “really only have one purpose” – to clue drivers into where police stakeouts might be. Schumer did not mince words. He told Alan Davidson, the Director of Public Policy for Google: “I hope you that you narrowly look at this app. You agree that it is a terrible thing, and it probably causes death.”

Apple defended itself by saying that the apps often just publish data in real time that the police department themselves put out. Schumer and others countered that this argument qualified as a “weak read” and challenged the software company to admit that the apps essentially are designed to help people violate laws like California Vehicle Code Action 23152(a) and 23152(b).

Likely, the debate over the legality and general fairness of apps like Fuzzed and Buzz Alert has only just began. One question that seems to have eluded the Senator is: “Should drivers really be using their mobile devices while driving in the first place?” After all, as this blog has documented many times over, some evidence suggests that driving while talking on cell phones – especially while texting – can be as dangerous as or perhaps even more dangerous than driving under the influence in Glendale or elsewhere.

Irrespective of how the police stopped you for DUI (checkpoint, roadside stop, etcetera), you would like the services of a highly reputable Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney to work out a plan for your defense. The Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (121 W Lexington Dr, Glendale, CA 91203 Phone: (818) 507-9123) is dedicated to serving defendants through meticulous preparation and strategic planning. Lead counsel, Attorney Michael Kraut, is very experienced – he spent nearly 15 years as a prosecutor for the city before “switching over” to represent defendants. He is widely considered to be an expert in Los Angeles DUI Law, and he has appeared on KTLA, Fox News, and other media to discus and analyze critical DUI cases.

May 17, 2011

Burbank DUI is Not the Worst Thing That Could Happen to You. You Could be Charlie Sheen…

by Michael Kraut

Obviously, no one wants to get arrested and charged for a crime like driving under the influence in Burbank or elsewhere in the Southland (e.g. DUI in Burbank, DUI in Glendale, DUI in Pasadena, DUI in Los Angeles, et cetera). But it’s helpful to put your problems in perspective.

Consider the plight of the fallen-from-grace TV/Movie actor Charlie Sheen, whose “winning” escapades have been well documented in the celebrity tabloids and gossip blogosphere. Last week, Sheen found out that heartthrob Ashton Kutcher may be taking over his marquis role on the CBS series Two and a Half Men. During Sheen’s public meltdown this past several months, he has made some pretty acerbic comments regarding his past associates and friends. So it was not surprising to those who have followed the Sheen drama to discover that the former Wall-Street star was, shall we say, less than thrilled about the prospect of a Kutcher takeover.

Many commentators, including celebrity addiction specialist Dr. Drew, have hypothesized that the troubled actor’s problems may stem in part from chronic drug and alcohol abuse. It’s very difficult to adduce precisely how pharmacologically active compounds will influence the human brain. Although scientists have conducted some studies to examine how, for instance, marijuana smoking impacts judgment and reaction times; these studies are far from conclusive. This allows wild speculation to flourish not only among the punditocracy but also among addiction experts themselves.

If Charlie Sheen did “X” amount of drugs, what impact might that have on his brain? On his behavior? On the possibility of his getting his Two and a Half Men role back from Kutcher? The answers really are very difficult to say – and not just because Sheen’s public persona has been so tempestuous and difficult to understand. In fact, different drugs – and combinations of drugs – have wildly different effects on different people’s brains at different times.

Thus, if you’ve been pulled over and charged with a drug DUI in Burbank (or elsewhere), one of the first things that you and your Los Angeles criminal defense attorney will likely discuss will be the details of the arrest and what you did/consumed on the day/night of the arrest. Your personal history with drugs and alcohol; how your body and brain typically process these substances; whether you’ve been arrested in the past and for what; and what tests were used by the police can all have an enormous bearing on your potential defense.

Attorney Michael Kraut of Burbank’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (2600 West Olive Avenue, 5th Floor, Burbank, California 91505 Phone: (818) 563-9810) can speak with you about how to develop and follow-up on the most appropriate and efficient defense. Mr. Kraut has a peerless reputation as a Los Angeles DUI expert – he is often called upon by major media to weigh in on breaking LA DUI news, and he served almost 15 years as a prosecutor for the city before choosing to “switch sides” and start representing criminal defendants.

May 16, 2011

Pasadena DUI Sports News: Ravens’ Sergio Kindle Pleads Guilty to DUI Charge, Gets Probation

by Michael Kraut

Driving under the influence in Pasadena with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.17% – more than twice the legal limit – is very likely to get you into trouble.

If you doubt this notion, just talk to Ravens’ rookie linebacker Sergio Kindle. The 23-year pled guilty last Tuesday in a case stemming from a December 2010 arrest. Police pulled Kindle over the day after Christmas on Interstate 95 and later tested him at a county detention center to discover that he had a BAC of a whopping 0.17%. That’s easily enough to constitute DUI in Pasadena, Glendale DUI, Burbank DUI, or Los Angeles DUI.

According to a Washington Post blog report on Kindle’s guilty plea, the linebacker will get two years of unsupervised probation and mandatory treatment and self-help meetings. If he violates the terms of the probation, Kindle could face nearly a full year behind bars. If the judges in Maryland take DUI probation violations as seriously as the judges do here in Los Angeles (ask Lindsay Lohan!), Kindle has plenty of motivation to reel in his behavior. The judge in this case allowed the probation because Kindle demonstrated “positive steps” during his rehabilitation. He spent five days in a facility in Owings Mills to get treatment for alcohol abuse, for instance.

Kindle also issued a statement of contrition during the hearing: “I am very remorseful for my actions. I am held to a higher standard and people look up to me. I see that it’s a problem and I am here to get it treated. I want to continue to address this as long as need be.”

When someone gets pulled over for DUI in Pasadena, the police will often subject them to tests known as Field Sobriety Tests, or FSTs. These involve observations, analyses, and physical and mental challenges to help the officers ascertain whether or not you are under the influence.

One of the first tests is something called a horizontal gaze nystagmus test. A police officer will test the motion of your pupils by flashing a flashlight in your face, for instance. Delayed pupil response may indicate that you are DUI. Other tests could involve balancing on one leg, tilting your head backwards, pacing back and forth across a white line, and even extending your arms in both directions, then closing your eyes and then trying to touch your nose with the tips of your fingers. Police may ask you to recite the alphabet backwards or count backwards. And your results in the tests may be combined with other kinds of assessments – if you are visibly intoxicated, stumbling, uncoordinated, smell like alcohol or admit to having consumed alcohol, the police will be more suspicious that you are actually DUI.

A Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney – such as Michael Kraut of Pasadena’s Kraut Law Group Criminal & DUI Lawyers, Inc. (790 East Colorado Boulevard, 9th floor, Pasadena, California 91101 Phone: (626) 345-1899) can help you respond in a smart and proactive way to the charges against you to help you save your license, potentially avoid jail time, and regain a modicum of relaxed control of your life.