The Two Components of a California DUI Charge
California DUI law is primarily regulated under Vehicle Code 23152 VC. Vehicle Code 23152 VC establishes two distinct laws: Vehicle Code 23152(a) VC driving under the influence and Vehicle Code 23152(b) VC driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or greater.
Vehicle Code 23152(a) VC California’s “driving under the influence” law penalizes driving “under the influence”. You are under the influence regardless of what your BAC reveals if you are unable to drive with the caution characteristic of a sober person.
Vehicle Code 23152(b) VC California’s “driving with a BAC of 0.08% or greater” law penalizes just that…driving with a BAC of 0.08% or greater regardless of whether you are “under the influence”.
Unless a suspect refuses to submit to a DUI chemical blood or breath test, most people arrested for a California DUI are charged with both sections, which carry the exact same penalties. In fact, whether you are convicted of one or both of these charges, California law only sentences you as if you were convicted of one.
And despite the fact that these laws are proven in very different ways, prosecutors often rely on each to help prove the other. In fact, the court instructs the jury that they may (but are not required to) presume that if you were driving with a BAC of 0.08% or greater, you were also under the influence.
