DUI Defense in Bellflower

Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is always the wrong decision. But people can and do make mistakes. If convicted of DUI in California, you could be sentenced to jail time and fines, and you could lose your driver’s license for months, years, or in some cases, forever. The financial impact—higher insurance rates and possible job loss if you can no longer make it to work—adds more stress to an already difficult situation.

Based in Bellflower, The Law Office of Stein & Markus helps people fight DUI charges across Southern California. We do it by investigating thoroughly, communicating openly, and mounting strong defenses for our clients. Our founding attorneys have more than 75 years of combined legal experience, and Joseph A. Markus is a former prosecutor who handled hundreds of DUI cases.

You can rely on our DUI defense attorneys to work diligently to find weaknesses in the case against you and try to get the charges dismissed or at least reduced. We won’t encourage you to plead guilty unless it truly is the best option.

Types of DUI Cases We Handle

Over the years, we have successfully handled nearly every type of DUI case in the Los Angeles area:

• Failed DUI test
• First offense DUI\
• Second offense DUI
• Third and subsequent DUI/multiple DUI
• Underage DUI
• DUI involving accidents and injuries
• DUI related to drugs instead of alcohol
• “Watson” murder (death caused by an allegedly drunk driver who has a prior DUI conviction)
• DUI and Your Driver’s License
• Driver’s license suspension is one of the most impactful penalties in a DUI case because here in Southern California so many of us depend on driving to get to work and perform everyday functions.

For now, we’ll focus on first-time DUI. In California, you must do two things to avoid a driver’s license suspension after your first DUI arrest:

• Successfully fight the DUI charge in court; and
• Request a DMV hearing within 10 days and prevail at the hearing.

Under California law, a first-time DUI arrest automatically triggers a six-month license suspension. However, rather than impose that suspension, the judge waits for the court case to end. Then, if you are convicted, the judge notifies the DMV and the DMV imposes the suspension. If you get the DUI charge dismissed or reduced to a lesser offense, then no suspension is triggered. Being represented by a skilled DUI defense lawyer is your best chance at achieving this positive outcome.

In addition to all of that, you must also request a DMV hearing within 10 days from the date of your arrest. If you fail to do so, the California DMV can suspend your license for up to four months. Again, your attorney can and should represent you at the DMV hearing to increase your chances of success.