Anyone been arrested for a driving under the influence case is never happy to be in that circumstance. For members of our armed forces including those serving in the Marines or Navy in San Diego County face even greater challenges and potential penalties. It becomes very clear that the service, regardless of which one treats any DUI arrest very harshly, and starts its sanctions even before any court date, or prosecution by the state has begun.
Although it feels like double jeopardy, that persons in the service are punished twice, once by the military and once by the criminal justice system for the same offense, it is not. Federal jurisdiction over the military empowers it independently to punish soldiers for offenses that they commit on or off a military base. A drunk driving arrest, even prior to any court proceeding or conviction can result in a serviceman being confined to base for 2 to 3 months, have their rank reduced, have their pay cut in half, and often required to complete an alcohol education program on base.
By comparison, a civilian charged with suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, is considered to be innocent until that person pleads guilty, or is found guilty after a jury trial. It is only after that finding of guilt that penalties are imposed. Both military persons and civilians being convicted of a DUI are placed on summary or unsupervised probation, required to pay fines in excess of $1500, complete a minimum of 12 weeks of alcohol education and in some circumstances serve jail time.
San Diego Marine and Navy personnel arrested for a DUI may also face penalties from the Department of Motor Vehicles in the form of a driving privilege suspension. What makes this problem more challenging is that most service people in San Diego have drivers licenses issued him other states. Those individuals found to be driving with a .08% of alcohol may have their California driving privileges suspended between four months and one year after a hearing before the DMV. It should be noted that California only has jurisdiction over a person's privilege to drive in California, regardless of where that person arrested holds a drivers license. The California DMV cannot suspend any other states drivers license.
Our firm of DUI Defense Specialists has helped hundreds of local service men and women sort out and minimize the effects of a DUI arrest on those special people serving our country in the military. Consulting an attorney immediately after a DUI arrests can minimize some of the potential complications by not missing critical deadlines created by one's arrest.
An experience DUI attorney can also under most circumstances be able to appear in court on behalf of the soldier thus also avoiding further problems in the military.
