In 2022, the State of California had more DUI arrests than any other state, according to data released by the FBI. California saw nearly 100,000 drivers arrested for DUI in the course of one year.

However, Alaska had the highest rate of DUI arrest, with 726 arrests per 100,000 people.

While DUI arrests are very common, most DUI defendants are ordinary people with good jobs and good lives. This is different than many other types of criminal offenses. DUI cases can be more difficult to defend than other types of criminal cases. Defending a DUI case requires expertise in the police procedures and science that the government uses to prosecute these cases. There may be 4th Amendment challenges regarding a wide variety of issues, including: (1) why the police stopped the person; (2) probable cause for the arrest; (3) accepted medical practices in the blood draw; (4) consent to the blood or breath test; and many more.

Field sobriety testing is often unreliable, and it takes a skilled attorney to understand the nuances of how the tests are supposed to be conducted. There may be scientific issues in the way a breath testing device works, or how the blood is handled and tested at the lab.

This is a photo of attorney Don Hammond, at a lab in 2019, preparing a sample for testing on a gas chromatograph — the same technology used in California crime labs to test blood samples for alcohol.

Don Hammond is the founder of Criminal Defense Heroes, P.C. He has more training than the average police officer in field sobriety testing and DUI investigations. He has taken their Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) class, and Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE). And, Don has spent time in a lab, processing and testing human blood samples for alcohol using gas chromatography.

Very few attorneys are so well trained and experienced at defending DUI cases. If you or a loved one are arrested for DUI, please contact us at (323) 529-3660 today!