San Bernardino DUI Attorney

If you're arrested for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, our San Bernardino DUI defense attorneys will explore every avenue to keep you out of jail, save your drivers license, and dismiss or reduce the charges in your case.

We provide DUI defense throughout the area, including Redlands, Yucaipa, Big Bear, Colton, Rialto and Highland. We also handle California boating under the influence BUI cases from Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead and Lake Havasu.¹

Continue reading to learn more about California drunk driving laws and procedures and how we can help your case:

San Bernardino DUI Defense Lawyer Michael Scafiddi

The DMV Hearing

The Criminal Case

San Bernardino Jail & Courthouse Information

San Bernardino DUI Schools

Don't wait to call our San Bernardino Attorneys DUI Office at (909) 863-5500 for a free consultation. Our office is located at 432 N. Arrowhead Avenue, just across from the courthouse.

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San Bernardino DUI Defense Lawyer Michael Scafiddi

With decades of experience as a cop and then as a criminal defense attorney, San Bernardino DUI lawyer Michael Scafiddi is adept at negotiating with prosecutors to throw out or lessen your charges. A former police officer himself, attorney Michael Scafiddi takes advantage of his expert insider knowledge to weaken the state's case against you and to raise reasonable doubts in the minds of the judge and jury.

A graduate of California Southern Law School, Michael Scafiddi’s expertise extends from misdemeanor DUI and California DUI causing injury to California felony DUI and gross vehicular manslaughter cases.

The San Bernardino DMV Hearing

DUI arrests are unique offenses in California because they open not only a criminal case (discussed below) but also a DMV case! Once a cop arrests you for a San Bernardino DUI charge, expect him/her to take away your drivers license and replace it with a thirty-day temporary one. At this point, you have only ten days after your drunk driving arrest to contact the DMV to request a hearing to argue against the drivers license suspension.

It's highly recommended you hire a San Bernardino DUI attorney right away to request the hearing as well as to appear on your behalf. And if the DMV suspends your license after all, we can almost always get you a "restricted" one that allows you to legally drive for work and school purposes. For first-time DUIs, the DMV typically suspends licenses for six months. Successive DUIs may invite suspensions of a year or more.

But it may be possible to avoid the drivers license suspension altogether!

The Criminal Case

A San Bernardino Misdemeanor DUI arrest results in two charges: 1) DUI under Vehicle Code 23152(a), and 2) Driving with Excessive Blood Alcohol Content under Vehicle Code 23152(b). If it's your fourth drunk driving incident, however, it will automatically be treated as a California felony DUI. And any driving under the influence accident involving injury or death is charged as a felony.

For misdemeanor DUI, your attorney can usually make all your court appearances for you (unless you request that the case go to trial and you testify). San Bernardino courts tend to drag out DUI cases over several months, which gives us plenty of time to craft the best defense possible and to broker a favorable deal with prosecutors.

If you're convicted for a first-offense San Bernardino misdemeanor DUI, the penalties normally include three years of probation, a six month drivers license suspension, fines of $390 to over a thousand dollars, DUI School, and two days of jail time (which we can usually get suspended). Penalties for a second DUI can be a lot harsher, including at least four days of mandatory jail time as well as an ignition interlock device in your car.

San Bernardino Jail & Courthouse Information

Depending on where you're arrested in the county, you may be booked at either one of the following jails:

West Valley Detention Center²
9500 Etiwanda Avenue
Rancho Cucamonga, California 91739
(909) 350-2476

Adelanto Detention Center
9438 Commerce Way
Adelanto, California 92301
(760) 530-9300

Afterwards, the San Bernardino Courthouse will administer your case. It's located at 351 N. Arrowhead Ave., and you can reach them at (909) 384-1888.

DUI cases that allegedly occurred in the city are prosecuted by the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office. Judges divvy up cases on a random basis. And if you plea or are convicted of a DUI, the clerk will give you DUI School information while you're still in the courtroom.

San Bernardino DUI Schools

California DUI School is always a standard penalty for San Bernardino driving under the influence pleas and convictions. A first-offender may be sentenced to a three- to nine-month program, while second or third offenders may have to complete eighteen- or thirty- month programs. Either way, as attorneys we may be able to persuade the judge to order the minimum time.

Two San Bernardino DUI schools which offer first-offender and eighteen-month programs are:

Hase & Associates Systems, Inc.
353 West 6th Street
San Bernardino, CA 92401
(909) 888-0149

Mental Health Systems, Inc.
2282 North Sierra Way
San Bernardino, CA 92405
(909) 881-1570

Have you been charged with DUI in San Bernardino County?

Or arrested for DUI in Redlands, Yucaipa, Colton, Highland, Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead or Needles? If so, please contact us at (909) 863-5500 to discuss your case with our San Bernardino Criminal Defense Lawyers free of charge. We won't rest until we've done everything to try to reduce or dismiss your charges and minimize your penalties.

Go back to our San Bernardino Criminal Defense Lawyers main page.

¹Prosecuted under Harbors & Navigation Code Section 655, California Boating Under the Influence (BUI) law makes it a crime to operate any watercraft while you're under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Many BUI arrests occur at Big Bear Lake, Lake Arrowhead or the California side of Lake Havasu...and get prosecuted at the San Bernardino courthouse.

²Most people arrested for DUI in San Bernardino County get booked at the West Valley Detention Center. This is also where most of the DUI breath testing and blood testing takes place.

Join us to discuss your DUI case at any of our
local offices: You can also contact us 24/7 at
888.327.4652 for a free consultation