Sacramento Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog

The arrest in May of Sacramento Kings star Tyreke Evans for driving 130 miles an hour on Interstate 80 threw a spotlight on speeding and reckless driving on Sacramento's freeways - and the penalties that come with a conviction. The Sacramento Bee's Tony Bizjak published an article on Monday detailing the surprising number of people cited for excessive speed (Vehicle Code 22348) and reckless driving (Vehicle Code 23103). It turns out that over 80 people were issued citations by CHP for driving in excess of 100 MPH in May and June on freeways in Sacramento and Stockton.

Speeding and reckless driving convictions come with costly penalties. VC 22348 says that a first conviction for excessive speed (over 100 miles per hour) results in a $500 fine and loss of driving privileges for 30 days, with the amount fines and length of license suspension increasing with each conviction. A reckless driving conviction under VC 23103 can be punished by up to 90 days in county jail and/or fines up to $1000.

If you've been cited for excessive speed or reckless driving, contact the Law Office of Nancy King at (916) 442-1200 for a free consultation.

Triple Digit Speeders Surprising in Number, CHP Figures Show, Sacramento Bee, August 9, 2010

The Sacramento Bee on July 26 published an article that documents the rising abuse of OxyContin by many people in their teens and 20s.

OxyContin is a prescription pain killer that's derived from opium and has been on the market since 1995. Many young people try it because it can be ingested merely by swallowing a pill and lacks the stigma associated with other drugs such as heroine or cocaine. It is highly addictive, however, and can result in a physical dependence within a few weeks.

The Bee's article gives a valuable profile of the dangers of abuse of OxyContin. What we would add is that Diversion (also known as Deferred Entry of Judgment) and Proposition 36 provide alternatives to incarceration for people arrested for illegal use of OxyContin and other prescription medications. These programs - intended for people accused of drug use or possession, not drug manufacture, sale, or trafficking - allow the possibility of avoiding a conviction in exchange for completion of a drug treatment program.

For a complete description of Diversion (Deferred Entry of Judgment), see our July 9 post. For a complete description of Proposition 36, see our July 15 post.

If you have questions about alternative sentencing programs, call the Law Office of Nancy King at (916) 442-1200.

Teens, Young Adults Abuse OxyContin in Northern California, Sacramento Bee, Monday, July 26, 2010

This Friday, December 18, the Sacramento Police Department will conduct a sobriety and drivers license checkpoint in south Sacramento, while CHP will have one in Rancho Cordova. These are the first of at least eight traffic screenings that law enforcement in the Sacramento region plans over the next two weeks.

Sacramento drivers are receiving particular scrutiny because of data showing that Sacramento ranks at the top of U.S. cities larger than a population of 250,000 in terms of injuries and fatalities caused by alcohol-related traffic accidents.

We strongly advise everyone to not drive after consuming alcohol or ingesting narcotics. The risk of injury to yourself and others is real, and the legal consequences can be severe. Moreover, California law enforcement conducts more DUI checkpoints than any other state and that number is only going to increase throughout 2010, dubbed by public safety agencies as the "Year of the Checkpoint." With district attorney's offices and courts pushing for harsher and harsher penalties for drunk drivers, you are well served to do whatever it takes to keep yourself and family and friends from driving while intoxicated. See our December 11 and August 18 posts for more information.

If you or someone you know is cited for a DUI, get experienced and knowledgeable legal representation. Contact the Law Office of Nancy King if you have any questions.

Sobriety and Drivers License CheckPoint Notification, Sacramento Police Department

CHP to conduct DUI checkpoint on Friday in Sacramento County, Sacramento Bee, December 16, 2009

More checkpoints bolster statewide, Sacramento DUI push, Sacramento Bee, December 17, 2009

With the holidays approaching and many people taking to the roads to visit family and friends, we thought it a good time to provide some highway safety data from Traffic: Why We Drive The Way We Do (And What It Says About Us), by Tom Vanderbilt. If you haven't read Traffic, get a copy and read it this weekend as you stay inside to avoid the rain. It's a tremendously interesting book that uses clear, accessible language to explain research on all aspects of life affected by motor vehicles and roads, including why it's best to form a single line when traffic merges from one lane down to two, the astonishing extent to which people are unaware of what's going on around them as they drive, and why roundabouts are safer than traffic signals.

The part of the book we'll focus on concerns the risk factors that contribute to traffic accidents.

• Speed: People in an accident at 50 miles per hour are fifteen times more likely to die than they are at 25 miles per hour
• Alcohol: Alcohol slows reflexes and diminishes the brain's ability to evaluate risk
• Gender: Men are more likely across all age groups to be involved in auto accidents
• Age: Teenagers are involved in more crashes because they lack experience behind the wheel, underestimate risk, and engage in activities that distract their attention, like talking on a cell phone
• Rural, non-interstate roads: The rate at which accidents occur is higher on country roads than it is on city streets

Interestingly, when analyzing accidents by profession, doctors are among the most accident-prone, perhaps because they tend to rush to and from work and can be fatigued after a long shift. Firefighters and pilots are toward the bottom of the risk list, perhaps because they are attuned to safety and their jobs give them skills that make them better drivers.

So as you enjoy time with family and go to end of the year parties, take it slow and be safe while on the roads. A little caution and some common sense can prevent injury, avoid entanglement with law enforcement, and make for a happy holiday season.

Tom Vanderilt's blog: How We Drive

As the California State Legislature wrestles with the possibility of paroling thousands of inmates from California prisons, a new study shows that in neighborhoods lacking a social network of long-time residents and active community organizations, crime tends to increase as the number of parolees rises. However, those neighborhoods with a strong social support system appear to do a much better job of bringing former prisoners back into society, and thus experience little if any increase in crime.

Because of the over $25 billion state budget deficit, the California Assembly and Senate are proposing cutting the state's prison population, which increased 73% between 1990 and 2006, three times faster than the California adult population. The Senate's plan is more sweeping than the Assembly's, but both would grant early parole to thousands of prisoners.

Coincidentally, University of California, Irvine, professor John Hipp has just published a paper in the Journal of Quantitative Criminology examining the impact of increases in parolees on the neighborhoods they move to after release from prison. His study, which looked at data for Sacramento neighborhoods between 2003 and 2006, showed that as parolees moved in, incidences of burglary, robbery, and assault often went up. When parolees with violent backgrounds moved in, murder rates went up as well.

What was significant though was Hipp's finding that this tendency toward increases in crime were moderated significantly in neighborhoods with established residents and community organizations that helped parolees reintegrate into society. A stronger social fabric seems to boost parolees' chances for success.

At a time when government and non-profit organizations are cutting services because of lack of funding, the legislature's plan to reduce prison population through increased paroles raises concerns for communities in light of Hipp's findings. Given that there will be continued pressure to reduce, or at least not increase, the state's prison population in coming years, communities need to find ways to strengthen programs that help former prisoners become contributing, law abiding citizens.

"Parolees' release leads to crime," UC Irvine, September 1, 2009
"California's Changing Prison Population," Public Policy Institute of California, August 2006

Law enforcement agencies throughout the United States, including here in the Sacramento region, are mounting a wide-ranging campaign leading up to Labor Day to convince people to not drink and drive, and to arrest those who do drink and get behind the wheel.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Governors Highway Safety Association, MADD, and other organizations are sponsors of the national "Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest." initiative, a multi-year effort that combines increased and highly visible enforcement of DUI laws with a media campaign to educate drivers on the dangers and consequences of drunk driving. $13 million will be spent nationally on the media campaign alone in late August and early September.

Here in the Capitol region, the Sacramento Police Department is conducting what it calls a surveillance "sting operation" of traffic court to make sure drivers who have lost their licenses because of DUI do not drive away from court. It will also provide officers with DUI "Hot Sheets" with information on people whose licenses have been suspended for DUI or are sought on a DUI warrant. Similar efforts, including sobriety checkpoints, will be made in Placer, Yolo, and El Dorado counties.

In line with a recent post (August 15, 2009) in which we wrote about the increase in women drunk drivers, the Governors Highway Safety Association points to FBI data showing a nearly 29% increase between 1998 and 2007 in the number of women arrested nationally for DUIs involving alcohol or drugs.

In California alone in 2007, the last year for which complete data are available, 30,642 people were injured and and 1,491 killed in traffic crashes involving alcohol.

Press Release, August 13, 2009, Sacramento Police Department
Press Release, June 18, 2009, CaliforniaAvoid.com
"States Increase Efforts to Combat Drunk Driving," Governors Highway Safety Association
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
StopImpairedDriving.com

The Sacramento Bee reports that arrests of women for DUI offenses have risen dramatically in recent years throughout California, with marked increases in Sacramento County.

Since 2000, female DUI violations in Sacramento County have increased 60%, triple the increase seen for men.

Statewide, females under 18 years of age accounted for nearly a quarter of DUI arrests in 2007, up from 17 percent in 1998. In fact, the percentage of DUI arrests for women rose in all age groups during that time period.

"Female DUI arrests soar in state, capital area," Sacramento Bee