Felony DUI in Los Angeles
In Los Angeles, a DUI conviction will have a serious impact on your life. However, all Los Angeles DUI defense attorneys know that a felony DUIwill have an impact on almost every area of your life for a long time.
Felony DUI's happen all the time, but can often be tracked to specific weekends.
Holiday weekends are full of people drinking at parties then driving home. This last Memorial Day weekend was no exception. Two Montana men were charged with felony DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol) this past week, one after a collision with a tree and the other after being pulled over by Montana Highway Patrol troopers. Eric Lee Sowders, 29, was arrested on Saturday a short distance away from the tree he allegedly ran his Mazda SUV into. Witnesses to the accident reported to troopers that a second car stopped at Sowder's wreck shortly after and pull a child from the Mazda before driving off. Sowder's 3 year-old daughter is thought to have been in the car with him at the time of the collision. Breath samples provided by Sowder estimated his blood alcohol concentration to be .252%, well over Montana's legal limit of .08%. Sowder is reportedly a convicted felon with three prior DUI convictions since 2000. He was charged with felony counts of both criminal endangerment and driving under the influence, as well as one misdemeanor charge of driving with a suspended or revoked license.
Jeffrey A. Loofburrow, 55, was arrested last Friday after reportedly driving his car into a ditch. A Montana Highway Patrol trooper at the scene smelled alcohol on Loofburrow, who refused a breath test but later admitted to having consumed several alcoholic drinks. Loofburrow had also been convicted of three prior DUIs and had not had his driving privileges reinstated since 2003. Loofburrow was charged with one felony count of driving under the influence and misdemeanor counts of driving with a revoked license, driving without insurance, expired registration and reckless driving.
Montana state law and penalties are different, but here in Los Angeles,felony DUI offenses and those related to them are taken very, very seriously. In Los Angeles, having multiple prior DUI convictions, having a child present in the car while driving under the influence, having a blood alcohol concentration over .20% and refusing to submit to chemical testing can all seriously raise the stakes and take what might have been a misdemeanor offense up to a felony. In Los Angeles,
felony DUIconvictions can follow you around for years, making it more difficult for you to find a new job or place to live.
A felony DUI conviction also almost certainly means spending time in a state or county jail as punishment. If you are being charged with driving under the influence, call the attorneys at Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP today. You do have options.