Vehicle Code 23152(b) VC – DUI Based on BAC .08% or Greater

Updated February 15, 2022

23152(b) VC is the California Vehicle Code section that makes it “unlawful for a person who has 0.08 percent or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood to drive a vehicle.” This offense is a misdemeanor punishable by probation, fines, DUI school, a license suspension, an ignition interlock device, and sometimes jail or work release.

Section 23152(b) VC is referred to as California’s “per se” DUI law. This means you can be charged with this offense for driving with an excessive BAC, regardless of whether you are actually intoxicated or whether your driving ability is actually impaired. BAC is measured by either a breath test or a blood test.

If you get arrested for DUI in California, you will likely be charged with this section as well as Vehicle Code 23152(a) VC – driving under the influence. These are considered two separate crimes. But even if you are convicted of both of them based on the same incident, it only counts as one DUI conviction on your record.

In this article, our California DUI defense attorneys discuss:

• 1. What does VC 23152(b) prohibit?
• 2. What are the best defenses in California?
• 3. What penalties can the judge sentence me to?
• 4. Can I avoid jail by doing probation?
• 5. Will I still be able to drive?
• 6. Will my car insurance rates increase?
• 7. What happens to immigrants?
• 8. When can I expunge my record?
• 9. Is VC 23152(b) a wobbler?

VC 23152(b) prohibits driving with a BAC of 0.08% or greater, even if the driver is sober.

1. What does VC 23152(b) prohibit?

California Vehicle Code 23152(b) VC forbids driving with a BAC of at least 0.08%. It does not matter if you have a high alcohol tolerance and are driving safely without being impaired from the alcohol. Driving with an illegal BAC is per se illegal.¹

This crime has two elements that prosecutors must show:

1. You were driving an automobile, and
2. You had a BAC of 0.08% or greater.²

To prove blood alcohol content, prosecutors rely on the results of the breath test or blood test that you take following your arrest.³ Prosecutors do not need any circumstantial evidence – such as bad driving or slurred speech – to show that you were drunk. Sober people can have a BAC level above the legal limit.

As a California DUI suspect, you typically face charges for two separate offenses:

1. Driving with a BAC of 0.08% or greater (VC 23152(b)) – an objective standard that rests on BAC, and
2. Driving under the influence of alcohol (VC 23152(a)) – a subjective standard that does not depend on BAC.

By prosecuting you with both these charges, the D.A. gets “two bites of the apple” when trying to convict you. But even when you commit both drunk driving and driving with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08% or higher, you can get convicted of just one crime. In short, the two DUI offenses combine into one.⁴

2. What are the best defenses in California?

Three effective DUI defenses to VC 23152 b include the following:

1. Your BAC was below 0.08% at the time of driving;
2. Your breath sample was tainted; and/or
3. The chemical testing equipment was compromised.

2.1. Your BAC was below 0.08% at the time of driving

You may still be absorbing alcohol into your bloodstream when you get stopped for DUI. So even if your BAC is legal at the time you are driving, it may rise to illegal levels when you take the breath or blood test one or two hours later.

In these cases involving rising blood alcohol, DUI attorneys can hire a forensic toxicologist to show that your BAC was probably legal at the time you were pulled over.⁵

2.2. Your breath sample was tainted

Breathalyzers are supposed to measure your deep lung air. But in many cases, breath samples get contaminated by your mouth air. And if you have any mouth alcohol, it can cause an inaccurately high BAC reading.

Mouth alcohol is residual alcohol that lingers in the mouth. It can be triggered by:

• regurgitation,
• burping/belching,
• mouthwash, breath spray, or medicine containing alcohol,
• dental work,
• a high-protein low-carbohydrate diet,
• diabetes and/or hypoglycemia,
• GERD / Acid reflux, and/or
• other factors.

DUI lawyers can call on medical experts to argue your mouth alcohol caused incorrect chemical test results.

2.3. The chemical testing equipment was compromised

Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations governs how DUI breath and blood tests are supposed to be conducted. It may be possible to get BAC samples excluded from evidence if police officers failed to adhere to the Title 17 standards for:

• maintenance,
• operation,
• certification,
• collection, and/or
• storage (including the proper “chain of command”).

So even if your BAC result was 0.08% or greater, prosecutors may agree to reduce or dismiss the DUI charges if there is evidence that law enforcement mishandled the evidentiary tests of your blood or breath.⁶

Contaminated blood tests can possibly get a DUI charge dismissed.

3. What penalties can the judge sentence me to?

Violating VC 23152(b) is typically a misdemeanor unless you have a prior felony DUI conviction or the incident resulted in a serious injury. The DUI penalties grow harsher with each successive conviction, and they vary by county.

Driving under the influence offense	California punishments*
First time DUI in 10 years	3 to 5 years of summary probation (typically 3 years); DUI school If BAC is lower than 0.20%, 3 months of DUI school, which is about 30 hours; If BAC is 0.20% or greater, 9 months of DUI school, which is about 90 hours Victim Impact Panel attendance; $390 to $1,000 in fines, plus penalty assessments; 6-month driver’s license suspension, but you may usually drive right away if you install an IID in your cars for 6 months; 48 hours to 6 months in jail (courts usually order no jail if they grant probation); and Work release (depending on the county)
Second time DUI in 10 years	3 to 5 years of summary probation; 18-month or 30-month DUI school course; $390 to $1,000 in fines, plus penalty assessments; 2-year driver’s license suspension, though you may usually drive right away with an IID in your cars for 1 year; and 96 hours to 1 year in jail (the judge may agree to grant house arrest or a work program rather than jail)
Third time DUI in 10 years	3 to 5 years of summary probation; 30-month DUI school course; $390 to $1,000 in fines, plus penalty assessments; 3-year driver’s license suspension, though you may usually drive right away with an IID in your vehicles for 2 years; and 120 days to 1 year in county jail (the minimum jail sentence is 30 days if the court grants probation and orders a 30-month DUI school class)
*The sentence may increase in aggravating circumstances, such as by going over the speed limit while DUI (VC 23582), transporting a minor under 14 in the automobile (VC 23572), or driving with a BAC of 0.15% or greater.7

In addition, you may be banned from traveling to Canada.⁸

In certain circumstances, the D.A. may agree to plea bargain DUI charges down to wet reckless (VC 23103.5) or dry reckless (VC 23103).

4. Can I avoid jail by doing probation?

In many DUI cases, courts do grant summary probation in lieu of jail. But there are some mandatory jail sentences for second- or successive DUI convictions.

Summary probation (a.k.a. informal probation) usually spans three to five years. The terms of probation include:

• Abiding by the criminal sentence, such as paying the fines in full and completing DUI School;
• Driving with a 0.00% blood alcohol concentration;
• Agreeing to take an evidentiary breath or blood tests should you get another DUI arrest; and
• Staying out of trouble (committing no other crimes).

In certain cases, the court will also order you to do the following:

• Attend Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings;
• Participate in the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Victim Impact Program; and/or
• Paying the victims (if any) restitution.⁹

If you violate these probation terms, you risk being sent to jail. Read more about DUI probation violations.¹⁰

Driver’s license suspensions increase with each DUI offense.

5. Will I still be able to drive?

Every DUI arrest results in a license suspension unless you win both:

1. The criminal case, and
2. The DMV hearing (which is an administrative matter separate from the criminal case).

Usually you can continue driving right away if you install an IID in your motor vehicles.

Misdemeanor DUI case in California	Length of license suspension
First-time offense in 10 years	If you are convicted in the criminal case, the suspension is for 6 months. If you lose the DMV case but win the criminal case, the suspension is for 4 months.
Second-time offense in 10 years	1 year as long as you install an IID. If not, then 2 years.
Third-time offense in 10 years	2 years as long as you install an IID. If not, then 3 years.11

Also read our articles about how to get a DMV administrative hearing, restricted license rules, and chemical test refusals (which trigger a license revocation).

6. Will my car insurance rates increase?

Following a DUI, your auto insurer will most likely increase premium rates. You do not have to tell your insurance carriers about DUIs unless there was an accident.¹² But insurers often find out anyway through a background check or if you apply for a SR-22 to get your license reinstated. Read more about DUIs and car insurance.

7. What happens to immigrants?

In general, misdemeanor offenses of DUI of alcohol are not crimes involving moral turpitude and are therefore not deportable.¹³ Read more about DUIs by non-citizens.

8. When can I expunge my record?

After you finish your summary probation, you can ask the court to expunge your VC 23152(b) conviction.¹⁴ The main benefit of expungement is that the DUI case can no longer disqualify you from being hired or promoted.¹⁵ However if you pick up another DUI within 10 years, the court will still treat the expunged DUI as a prior offense and can impose harsher punishments.¹⁶

9. Is VC 23152(b) a wobbler?

VC 23152 is a wobbler when you have three or more prior misdemeanor DUI convictions in the past 10 years. Prosecutors can then bring charges for either a:

• misdemeanor carrying up to 1 year in county jail; or
• felony carrying a county jail term of 16 months, 2 years, or 3 years.¹⁷

Note that if you have a prior felony DUI conviction, any future DUIs cases automatically get charged as a felony.¹⁸

Our DUI defense attorneys fight defendants’ drunk driving charges throughout California, including Los Angeles County, Santa Clarita, Riverside, Newport Beach, San Bernardino, Glendale, Long Beach, Santa Ana, Ventura, San Fernando, San Diego, Pasadena, Orange County, and more.

---

Legal References

1. California Jury Instructions, CALCRIM no. 2111.
2. VC 23152(a). See also People v. Fish (Cal. App. 2d Dist. 2018); Coffey v. Shiomoto (2015), 60 Cal. 4th 1198; Burg v. Municipal Court (1983) 35 Cal.3d 257, 198 Cal.Rptr. 145, 673 P.2d 732; People v. Bransford (1994) 8 Cal.4th 885, 35 Cal.Rptr.2d 613, 884 P.2d 70; People v. Milham (1984) 159 Cal.App.3d 487, 205 Cal.Rptr. 688.
3. VC 23612(a)(2)(A).
4. Penal Code 654 PC.
5. Terry v. Ohio (1968) 392 U.S. 1.
   
6. See, e.g., People v. Woodard (Cal. App. Dep’t Super. Ct. Apr. 1, 1983). See also People v. Adams (1976) 59 Cal.App.3d 559, 131 Cal.Rptr. 190; People v. Williams (2002) 28 Cal.4th 408, 121 Cal.Rptr.2d 854, 49 P.3d 203; People v. Esayian (2003) 112 Cal.App.4th 1031, 5 Cal.Rptr.3d 542.
7. VC 23536, 23540, 23646, and 23566. See also People v. Weathington, (1991) 231 Cal.App.3d 69, 282 Cal.Rptr. 170; People v. Calderon (1994) 9 Cal.4th 69 , 36 Cal.Rptr.2d 333; 885 P.2d 83; People v. Cline (1998) 60 Cal.App.4th 1327, 71 Cal.Rptr.2d 41; People v. Hall (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th 128, 79 Cal. Rptr. 2d 690; People v. Roder (1983) 33 Cal.3d 491, 189 Cal.Rptr. 501, 658 P.2d 1302.
8. Canadian Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (“IRPA”) 36; Canadian Criminal Code (“CC”) 253.
9. PC 1203.
10. VC 23600.
11. VC 13352; see also Murphey v. Shiomoto 13 Cal. App. 5th 1052.
12. California Vehicle Code section 16000(a) VC.
13. 8 USC 1227.
14. PC 1203.4.
15. California Government Code 12952.
16. PC 1203.4.
17. VC 23550.
18. VC 23550.5.