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Huntington Beach DUI Information

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Huntington Beach DUI Informationdui huntington beach

If you were arrested for DUI in Huntington Beach, your arrest could have been from the Huntington Beach Police Department,  California Highway Patrol (CHP), or from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, which also patrols Huntington Beach. This page contains Huntington Beach DUI Information that you may find helpful regarding your pending matter, including court information and DUI driver’s license information.

Huntington Beach DUI Information – DUI Arrests and Accidents

Huntington Beach was singled out by the California Office of Driver Safety as the city that is highest in DUI accidents.  The Huntington Beach Police Department says that three bars, in particular, have among the highest rates of DUI arrests, from their statistics.

The bar with the highest amount of DUI arrests is Baja Sharkeez. In 22 months, 72 Sharkeez patrons were arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, Huntington Beach police say. Hurricanes Bar & Grill had the second highest number of DUI arrests linked to it in the same period, at 52. Killarney Pub & Grill was third, with 33.

Huntington Beach has many other options for drinking – including everything from many Dive Bars (like Perq’s, or Johnny’s Saloon), to the beach bars of the tourist area of Main Street, to upscale lounges and bars, like Mazara, the Black Trumpet, or Watertable.

Unlike DUI enforcement efforts in other cities, like DUI in Irvine, or Newport Beach, which makes dancing unlawful without a permit (yes, they actually do), Huntington Beach has many popular nightclubs, like XO (nearby) and Bar Rouge, and many places with live music.

Popular festivals, sports events (like annual surfing and volleyball events), a tourist season, and hundreds of restaurants, bars, and drinking themed events also make for drinking or alcohol consumption, and the fact that the 405 Freeway, Pacific Coast Highway, and many urban streets, all run through Huntington Beach, and factor in that there is a CHP office within the City of Westminster, all of which makes for a high rate of DUI arrests for the City of Huntington Beach.

Huntington Beach DUI Information – DUI Statistics

The City of Huntington Beach has a total population of 200,652.  The California Office of Traffic Safety has data for rankings and rates for Huntington Beach DUI arrests, which was unavailable when we wrote this page, due to the website being down.

Huntington Beach DUI Arrests

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Huntington Beach DUI Information – Police Agencies

Huntington Beach Police Department
2000 Main Street
Huntington Beach, CA 92648
Phone: (714) 960-8825

California Highway Patrol
13200 Goldenwest Street
Westminster, CA 92683
Phone:  (714) 892-4426

Orange County Sheriff’s Department
320 N. Flower Street, Suite 108,
Santa Ana, CA 92703
Phone: (714) 834-6670

Huntington Beach DUI Information – DUI Arrest Information

Arrest and other calls for service in Huntington Beach are listed on the Huntington Beach Police Department’s crime blotter, (updated every two to four weeks), as well as the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Crime Blotter.  Just select “Huntington Beach” as the City.

Most people booked and held in Orange County jail are listed in the OCSD Who’s in Jail website.

Huntington Beach DUI Information – The Prosecution

DUI cases from Huntington Beach are handled by the DA’s office in the West Justice Center branch of the Orange County. Look for the District Attorney’s Office (inside the courthouse, on the second floor).

West Justice Center DA’s Office
8141 13th St, Second Floor
Westminster, CA 92683
Phone: (714) 896-7261

Certain municipal (City) code violations may be handled by the Huntington Beach City Attorney, rather than the District Attorney’s Office.

Huntington Beach DUI Information – the Courthouse

DUI cases from Huntington Beach are handled by the West Justice Center branch of the Orange County Superior Court.

West Justice Center
8141 13th St
Westminster, CA 92683
Phone: (657) 622-5900

West Justice Center (WJC) (This is the location where Huntington Beach DUI cases are heard).

DMV City of Orange Office of Driver Safety:

790 The City Drive South, Suite #420
Orange, CA 92868
Phone:  (714) 703-2511
All DMV hearings from DUI cases anywhere in Orange County, California, including in Huntington Beach, are held at this office.

Your Driver’s License and the DMV:

Note: THE DMV REQUIRES THAT YOU ACT WITHIN ONLY TEN DAYS (not business days)from the date of your arrest to protect your driving privileges. It is best if you are going to retain an attorney, to allow the attorney’s office to schedule the DMV hearing for you. Our fee includes this service, and we can schedule a hearing that works with our availability (court and DMV) schedule. For your convenience, if you cannot retain an attorney within 10 days, the phone numbers for all Orange County DMV matters from a DUI, to do so, is here:  (714) 703-2511.

When you call, advise them that you are retaining an attorney, that you request a stay on your driver’s license suspension, and that you will be sending a written request for discovery. They will ask if you request an “in person” or “telephonic” hearing, and we recommend that you set it for an in person. By making this request you ensure that your driving privilege will not be suspended until your case is heard.

At the DMV hearing, a hearing officer will conduct the hearing. His or her function is to prosecute the case and make a final decision based on the evidence presented. You needing to drive or your need for a driver’s license for work are not considered relevant and cannot be considered at the hearing. Likewise, you cannot apply for a “hardship” license based upon medical, employment, or education right to drive, unless you are under age 21.

At your hearing, only the following issues will be discussed, by law:
(If you took a blood, or breath test)

  1. Did the officer have reasonable cause to believe you were driving a motor vehicle in violation of Vehicle Code 23140, 23152 or 23153?
  2. Were you placed under lawful arrest?
  3. Were you driving a motor vehicle when you had a 0.08% or more by weight of alcohol in your blood or 0.05% or more if under age 21?

Police Procedures:

The law requires that an officer have probable cause before you are arrested.Typically, the training for officers as well as case law requires police to establish probable cause by a violation of the law, an accident, and observations of the physical manifestation of intoxication. This is subjective, and many agencies require that Standardized Field Sobriety Tests be given, correctly, and perhaps a field breathalyzer, or PAS machine, to establish alcohol in your blood. Your Miranda warnings, or the “reading of your rights”, also require that you be advised or warned before they take testimony from you after an arrest.

Your Rights:

You have the right to refuse the FST’s, and you have the right not to state anything that may incriminate you. You even have the right to refuse a blood, breath, or urine test, but if you do so, your license will be suspended for one year. You always have the right to be treated fairly by the police, and for the police to not use unreasonable force against you during an arrest.

How can I estimate my Blood-Alcohol Level?
Use a Blood Alcohol Level (BAC) Calculator.

DUI Charges (The Law):

The California Vehicle Code, specifically, VC section 23152(a) and 23152(b), sets the law in DUI cases, and states as follows:

VC 23152:

(a) It is unlawful for any person who is under the influence of any alcoholic beverage or drug, or under the combined influence of any alcoholic beverage and drug, to drive a vehicle.

(b) It is unlawful for any person who has 0.08 percent or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood to drive a vehicle. For purposes of this article and Section 34501.16, percent, by weight, of alcohol in a person’s blood is based upon grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath.

The two sections above are typically charged together. The first has to do with your ability to safely operate a motor vehicle, regardless of your blood alcohol level. The second, or (b) count, requires that you have a .08% blood alcohol content, or BAC, by weight, California’s “legal limit”. The term “alcoholic beverage and drug” or “alcoholic beverage or drug” in the (a), or first count, does not mean that you were driving with drugs in your system, but that either alcohol or drugs, or both, were found at the time of driving, not that you, in fact, did have both in your system.

Huntington Beach DUI Information – Huntington Beach DUI Attorney

Our law firm of Miller and Associates, in Orange County, has handled Huntington Beach DUI cases, and trials, since 1995.  Our Orange County DUI Lawyers can help your case.  Contact us today.

Police Agencies, Procedures, and your Legal Rights:

Persons prosecuted in Orange County were likely arrested by one of the following agencies:

Prosecutors:

Orange County Drunk Driving or DUI violations within the city of Anaheim, as well as infraction or municipal code violations within Anaheim, are handled by the Anaheim City Attorney’s Office:  Anaheim City Attorney

All other Orange County DUI or criminal cases are handled by the Orange County District Attorney:  Orange County District Attorney

Court Locations and Phone Numbers:

Orange County has five court locations where Orange County DUI cases may be prosecuted, depending upon which court had jurisdiction over the location where the arrest took place:

Central Justice Center (CJC)
700 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701
Phone: (714) 834-3575

Harbor Justice Center (HJC/NB)
Newport Beach Facility
4601 Jamboree Road
Newport Beach, CA 92660-2595
Phone: (949) 476-4699

North Justice Center (NJC)
1275 North Berkeley Avenue
Fullerton, CA 92832-1258
Phone: (714) 773-4668

West Justice Center (WJC)
8141 13th Street
Westminster, CA 92683-4593
Phone: (714) 896-7351

What may happen to my insurance?

There are two ways insurance companies generally deal with customers convicted of a DUI in Orange County. First, your insurer will likely raise your insurance premiums and label you a high-risk driver if it finds out you’ve been convicted of DUI. In this case, you’ll likely have to file proof of insurance for three years minimum with the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Your insurance company will have to provide the DMV with an SR-22 form, which removes your license suspension and replaces it with a restriction by providing the California DMV with proof of insurance. An SR-22 also means your insurance company is required to notify the DMV if it cancels your insurance for any reason. Most state laws require persons that DUI convicts to get an SR-22 from their insurers, so you can’t hide. In addition, your company may cancel your insurance mid-term or terminate the policy at the end of the term because of your DUI conviction, especially if you are currently in a preferred class. Your company will send you a notice stating why you’ve been canceled, and then you’ll have to find another insurer while having a cancellation on your claims history.

Some insurance companies don’t offer SR-22 policies, so you may also be non-renewed or canceled because your company can no longer provide what you need.

Insurance Links:

Orange County DUI Legal Research Links:

Orange County DUI Local Service Links:

Professional Organizations:

Contact us to update any Huntington Beach DUI Information on this page.

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