Palm Springs DUI Attorney

Our Palm Springs DUI lawyers negotiate strategically with prosecutors in an effort to get your drunk driving charges reduced to reckless driving or dismissed completely. And we fight aggressively at your DMV hearing to save your driver’s license because your job could be on the line if you lose it.

On this page, our Palm Springs DUI defense lawyers discuss the following essential information about California DUI Law and how we can help you:

• 1. Do I have to surrender my license?
• 2. What is the standard sentence?
• 3. Where is Palm Springs DUI School?
• 4. Who makes DUI arrests in Palm Springs?
• 5. Where is the jail?
• 6. Where is the Palm Springs DUI courthouse?
• 7. Who is Palm Springs DUI lawyer Michael Scaffidi?

1. Do I have to surrender my license?

The moment a DUI defendant is booked for drunk driving, the police officer will confiscate his/her driver’s license and replace it with a pink one that is good for only thirty days. Meanwhile, the defendant (or his/her attorney) must contact the Department of Motor Vehicles within ten days of the arrest to request a DMV hearing to contest the license suspension.

DMV hearings are more difficult to win than the criminal case because the state has a very low burden of proof. But first-time DUI defendants who lose the hearing can often still drive on the condition they use an ignition interlock device (IID) while their license is suspended.

Driving with a lawful blood alcohol content (BAC) of below .08% is still a crime if the driver is impaired by drugs or alcohol.

2. What is the standard sentence?

For a first-time misdemeanor DUI conviction in Palm Springs, defendants are typically ordered to:

• Six to ten days of jail or work release
• Fines ranging from the mid-hundreds to a thousand dollars or more
• Probation of three or more years
• A suspended driver’s license lasting for a few months (but most defendants can resume driving right away with an ignition interlock device )
• A three-to-nine month California DUI School program

People arrested on DUI charges in Palm Springs can expect to face two misdemeanor charges: 1) Vehicle Code 23152(a), and 2) Vehicle Code 23152(b). The DUI may be charged as a felony, however, if the defendant already has three drunk driving convictions in the last ten years or if someone was hurt.

California DUI cases typically last several months if not longer, with the first court date often not occurring until well after the arrest. We act quickly, however, to compile evidence and research the facts surrounding your case in an effort to persuade the prosecutor to lessen or throw out the charges completely. Furthermore, we can usually appear for you in court throughout the entire case so you do not have to take time off school or work.

3. Where is Palm Springs DUI school?

Two Palm Springs DUI Schools are:

Alert Program
Programs: First Offender
730 Eugene Rd.
Palm Springs, CA 92264
(760) 322-7725

Awareness Program
Programs: First Offender; Eighteen-month
1700 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Ste. 6
Palm Springs, CA 92262
(760) 322-4554

California DUI School is a standard penalty for all Palm Springs defendants who plead to or are convicted of driving under the influence. If it is a first DUI, the judge will probably order a three-to-nine month alcohol education program (depending on criminal history and BAC levels at the time of arrest). Successive DUIs can result in eighteen- or thirty-month programs.

4. Who makes DUI arrests in Palm Springs?

DUI arrests are made by the Palm Springs Police Department, located at 200 S Civic Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92262. The phone number is (760) 323-8116.

If the incident happens on a highway such as SR 111, the arrest may be made by the California Highway Patrol.

5. Where is the jail?

People arrested for DUI in Palm Springs are usually booked and released at either:

Palm Springs Police Department
200 S. Civic Drive
Palm Springs, CA 92262
(760) 323-8110

Indio Jail
46057 Oasis Street
Indio, CA 92201
(760) 863-8252

And juvenile defendants are booked at Indio Juvenile Hall, located at 47665 Oasis Street, Indio, CA 92201, and reachable at (760) 863-7600.

6. Where is the Palm Springs DUI courthouse?

Cases are handled in the Larson Justice Center (also called Indio Courthouse), located at 46200 Oasis Street, Indio, CA 92201, and reachable at (760) 863-8206. Defendants who are convicted of or plead to driving under the influence will be given California DUI School information by the Indio Courthouse courtroom clerk.

Juvenile cases are heard in Indio Juvenile Court, located at 47671 Oasis Street, Indio, CA 92201, and reachable at (760) 863-8992.

Depending on where the arrest took place, DUI cases will be prosecuted by either the Palm Springs City Attorney or the Riverside County District Attorney.

7. Who is Palm Springs DUI lawyer Michael Scafiddi?

“Know thy enemy.” As a former police officer and sergeant, Palm Springs DUI defense lawyer Michael Scafiddi has years of experience in watching police make crucial mistakes and misjudgments in handling drunk driving cases. Consequently, attorney Scafiddi is now better equipped than most other lawyers to identify every weak spot in the state’s case against you, which he then uses to try to persuade the prosecutor to dismiss or significantly reduce your charges.

In addition to being an effective negotiator, Palm Springs criminal defense lawyer Michael Scafiddi is also a seasoned trial attorney having himself testified in numerous drunk driving cases. Michael Scafiddi received his J.D. from California Southern Law School and is a court-certified drug recognition expert. He practices throughout Riverside County, including Palm Desert, Twentynine Palms, Cabazon, Cathedral City, Indio, and Coachella Valley. He has a perfect 10-point AVVO score.

Call our criminal defense law firm for legal advice on your criminal charges.

If you get arrested for driving drunk, our Palm Springs CA DUI attorneys are here to try to lower or throw out your charges, ensure you stay out of jail, and let you keep your driver’s license. We are also prepared to take your case to trial. Phone our Palm Springs Attorneys DUI Defense Office at (760) 430-0400 to schedule a free consultation and discuss creating an attorney-client relationship. Our law office is located at:

777 E Tahquitz Canyon Way
Suite 200-074
Palm Springs, CA 92262

Our Riverside County DUI defense attorneys help clients defend against drunk driving charges in and around Palm Springs, Indio, Coachella Valley, Palm Desert, Cabazon, Cathedral City, and Twentynine Palms. Our criminal defense attorneys serve DUI / DWI clients in Los Angeles, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, Banning, San Diego, Blythe, Temecula, Redlands, Indian Wells, Joshua Tree, Desert Hot Springs, Orange County, San Bernardino County, West Covina, Inland Empire, Ontario, and elsewhere in north, central, and southern California state.

We defend against all types of charges, from traffic tickets and drug crimes to sex crimes and white collar criminal offenses. Our legal team’s practice areas include personal injury and family law in addition to criminal law and domestic violence.