The administrative penalties are normally more important to the California resident than to residents of other states. At the time of your arrest, you would normally be given a Notice of Suspension if your blood-alcohol level was .08 or greater or if you refused to take an evidentiary test of the breath or blood.
If you are a California resident, your driver's license will be confiscated. If you are an out-of-state resident, your driving privileges in California will be suspended. You will be given a Notice of Suspension: YOU MUST REQUEST A DMV HEARING WITHIN TEN (10) DAYS OF YOUR ARREST or you will lose your California driver's license or your privilege to drive in California for 120 days, or, in the case of a test refusal, for one year.
If this is your second offense, the periods of suspension are increased. Therefore, it is very important that you request a hearing within the 10-day period or contact the law office of William Cole so that they may request the hearing for you at no charge.
If you request a hearing within the 10-day time limit, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will provide you with a hearing wherein most of the defenses that you can raise in your court case may be raised at the DMV hearing.
In addition to presenting your defenses to the suspension of your driver's license or driving privilege, the DMV hearing provides your attorney with an opportunity to cross-examine your arresting officer and others involved in your DUI case. This may later be very important in the court case.
The DMV procedure is not as important to a non-resident unless you have to renew your license in your state of residence during the 120-day period that California will have a hold on your license. The out-of-state resident may still want to have the DMV hearing as it, again, gives your attorney the opportunity to cross-examine the arresting officer under oath, which he may not have the opportunity to do in your court case unless you go to trial.
William Cole