California Vehicular Manslaughter Defense Attorneys

Negligent Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated | California Penal Code 191.5 (b)

Our DUI vehicular manslaughter defense lawyers have local DUI law offices in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Orange County and all surrounding Southern California cities.

California Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated -- Ordinary Negligence

California Penal Code section 191.5 (b) defines “vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated”. This crime is charged when you are DUI and you additionally commit a negligent act that causes the death of another. Negligent vehicular manslaughter is a “wobbler” which means that it may be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on (1) the facts of your specific offense, and (2) on your criminal history, particularly with respect to your prior DUI history.

"Negligent vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated", under 191.5 (b) PC is distinguished from "gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated" under California Penal Code 191.5 (a) by the level of culpability that is necessary to prove each offense. Negligent vehicular manslaughter while DUI only requires that you acted with “ordinary” negligence.

• What is “Ordinary” Negligence?

Ordinary negligence is the failure to use reasonable care to prevent reasonably foreseeable harm to oneself or another. You are negligent if you (1) do something that a “reasonably” careful person wouldn’t have done in the same situation, or (2) don’t do something that a “reasonably” careful person would have done in the same situation.

Examples of ordinary negligence may include (but are not limited to):

• Speeding,
• Texting while driving, and
• Failing to turn your headlights on in the dark.

California courts have even held that failing to wear your seatbelt or failing to ensure that all of your passengers are wearing seatbelts will constitute ordinary negligence. This would be the case in the event that you or your passengers were ejected from the seat and subsequently died or killed another.

How Does the Prosecution Prove California Penal Code 191.5 (b) -- Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated?

In order to convict you of California vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under PC 191.5 (b), the prosecutor must prove that you:

1. Were DUI (under California Vehicle Code 23152 VC) or that your driving under the influence caused injury to another (under California Vehicle Code 23153 VC),
2. That you negligently committed an additional act (not amounting to a felony), and
3. That negligent act caused the death of another.

   ▪Example: Simon, who was DUI and speeding on the 101 freeway, couldn’t brake fast enough to avoid hitting Rick, who then lost control of his car, hit the center divider, and died. Under these facts, Simon’s speeding while he was DUI caused Rick’s death, leading to a vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated charge. But,

   If Simon couldn’t help but hit Rick after Rick “cut him off”, Simon’s Van Nuys DUI defense lawyer would argue that it wasn’t Simon’s negligence, but rather Rick’s that caused the accident that lead to Rick’s death. Simon’s DUI attorney should…at the very least…be able to get the charge reduced to a “simple DUI”.

How Do I Fight a California Charge that I Committed Vehicular Manslaughter While DUI?

As with any DUI defense, your drunk driving attorney will challenge the evidence of your impairment and the procedures that took place during your DUI investigation and subsequent arrest.

What separates a California Penal Code 191.5 (b) vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated defense is that your DUI lawyer will additionally challenge whether your actions separate and apart from your impairment were the cause of death.

• As John Murray, one of Los Angeles’s top DUI defense attorneys, points out, “When defending a client against a “vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated” charge, it’s critical that I work with an expert in accident reconstruction to help demonstrate to the judge and jury why the accident (and unfortunate resulting death) were not caused by my client. The jurors must ask themselves if my client acted “reasonably” under the circumstances…and it’s my job to prove that he/she did.”

This is just one of the reasons that it is crucial to seek representation from an attorney who specializes in California DUI defense when charged with this type of crime. Seasoned “vehicular manslaughter” lawyers know the most effective ways to convince prosecutors and judges to reduce these charges to less serious offenses and how to attack the prosecutor’s evidence to help acquit their clients.

Punishment and Sentencing for California Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated

Penalties for California vehicular manslaughter while DUI can be severe. As previously stated, they are determined based on (1) the facts of your specific case, and (2) your criminal history. Below is an outline of the type of sentence you face if charged with PC 191.5 (b) as either a misdemeanor or a felony:

• California Misdemeanor Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated -- Ordinary Negligence
  • Informal (“summary”) probation for three to five years,
  • Up to a year in a county jail,
  • Possible license restrictions or suspensions, and
  • Possible community service or other community work.
• California Felony Negligent Vehicular Manslaughter While DUI
  • Sixteen months or two or four years in California state prison, and
  • An additional and consecutive three- to six-year California State Prison sentence if any surviving victim suffers great bodily injury, or
  • An additional and consecutive one-year sentence for each additional person that suffers any injury…up to three years maximum, and
  • A strike on your record pursuant to California’s Three Strikes Law

California prosecutors take vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated charges very seriously...which is why it is so important to consult with an experienced criminal attorney who specializes in California DUI defense...and therefore knows how to defend you effectively. For more information or to discuss your case in confidence, please contact us at one of our local DUI law offices today.

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