Arrested for DUI in Hollywood? The Saturation Patrol Might Have Gotten You!
If you indeed got arrested at one of those places, you might be wondering… how did we know that?
The answer is simple: a recent LA Weekly article published the Los Angeles Police Department's most recent saturation patrols and checkpoint planning. These patrols are designed to nab drivers who are out partying. Note the hours of the patrols (e.g. 7 p.m. to 3 a.m.; 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., etc). These hours are the most "fecund," if you're trying to find and arrest drivers under the influence of alcohol in Hollywood or basically anywhere else.
What exactly happens at a DUI checkpoint? Or what's supposed to happen?
First, police will look for symptoms of Hollywood DUI, which can include but are not limited to: slurred speech, loss of balance, trouble answering officer questions, incongruencies in your answers, strange emotional behavior, bloodshot eyes, loss of words (aphasia), inability of your pupils to follow a light (a.k.a. failure of the horizontal gaze Nystagmus test), and an odor of alcohol on your breath.
These "symptoms" may seem obvious enough. If you saw someone exhibiting some or all of them, you might easily suspect that that person was under the influence.
However, the situation is not always so clear cut!
Imagine you're driving home on Hollywood Boulevard at 3 a.m. after a long TV show shoot. Your brain is totally fried because you've been screaming at your line producer all day. You're not thinking clearly because the caffeine from all those grande mocha lattes has worn off. So you make up a bad lane change.
And then a police officer stops you and pulls you over.
Even though you haven't touched alcohol in days, surprisingly enough, you exhibit many so-called "classic" symptoms of DUI, such as bloodshot eyes, inability to remember words, irascibility, perhaps even trouble balancing. If you haven't eaten in a while, you may look bad or stumble due to blood sugar issues.
Believe it or not, even if you haven't consumed alcohol, if you've been producing ketone bodies – i.e. if you're diabetic or on a very low calorie or low carb diet – you may register as positive for alcohol consumption on a breathalyzer.
Of course, your situation is possibly different.
Maybe you did indeed drink alcohol — or even do marijuana or take prescription drugs — before you hopped into your vehicle. You want to minimize your penalties and optimize your chances for getting gentle treatment from the court system.
Every Hollywood DUI defendant's case is a unique puzzle.
You need customized, insightful, and knowledgeable help with the defense. Fortunately, you have a possible ally: Harvard Law School educated Hollywood DUI criminal defense attorney, Michael Kraut. He and his esteemed team can help you battle back against your charges and regain peace of mind.