The deadline nobody tells you about.
A California DUI is two separate cases. One is criminal, and a Davis arrest is heard in Yolo County. The other is administrative, run by the DMV, and it decides whether you keep your licence.
The DMV case has a 10-day deadline from the date of arrest to request a hearing. It runs whether or not you have spoken to anyone. If that window closes without a request, the suspension proceeds without anyone putting your side of it.
If you are inside those ten days, call now and we will deal with the rest afterwards. (916) 277-8299.
How to choose a DUI attorney in Davis.
I'm Chris Parkhurst, Esq., State Bar number 203402, and I've been defending DUI cases in Northern California since 1999. You work with us directly rather than with an intake team.
In my opinion the question worth asking any attorney is simply whether they have appeared in the courthouse your case is going to, and how recently. For Davis that is Superior Court of California, County of Yolo. Knowing how that court runs its calendar and how that District Attorney's office evaluates a DUI is county-level knowledge, and you earn it by being there.
What you've actually been charged with.
Most California DUI arrests are charged under Vehicle Code section 23152. Whether it is a misdemeanour or a felony depends on your record and on whether anyone was injured — an injury allegation moves it to a different section entirely.
I am not going to set out penalty ranges here, because the range that applies to you depends on facts I would need to read. For how the charge works, see DUI defense. For your licence, see licence suspension. If you hold a commercial licence the threshold is lower and the consequence is your job — see DUI and the commercial driver.
Who stopped you in Davis.
Davis is a university city, and that shapes DUI enforcement here more than anywhere else in Yolo County: a large student population, heavy bicycle traffic, and Interstate 80 running along its edge.
The agencies working here:
- Davis Police Department — 2600 5th St, Davis, CA 95618. (530) 747-5400
- California Highway Patrol — working Interstate 5 and Interstate 80
The report drives the case. Who wrote it, what equipment they used, whether body-worn footage exists and how field sobriety testing was recorded all vary by agency, even though the courtroom does not. So when you call, tell me who stopped you and where.
Where a Davis case is heard.
Superior Court of California, County of Yolo
1000 Main St, Woodland, CA 95695. (530) 406-6700
Prosecuted by the Yolo County District Attorney, 301 Second St, Woodland, CA 95695. (530) 666-8180.
Someone arrested here is generally booked into the Yolo County Detention Center, 140A Tony Diaz Dr, Woodland, CA 95776. (530) 668-5245.
That charging decision happens after the arrest, not during it, and the gap before filing is where the most can usually be done. For the wider county picture see Yolo County.
What I look at first.
- The DMV request. If the ten days are still open, that gets done before anything else.
- The reason for the stop. Whether there was a lawful basis to pull you over at all is where a surprising number of these cases turn.
- The testing. Breath and blood results depend on equipment, calibration, timing and procedure. Each of those is checkable.
- The report itself. What it says, what it leaves out, and whether it matches the footage.
- Your record and your job. What a good outcome looks like is not the same for everyone, and a commercial licence changes it completely.
Around Davis.
My Sacramento office is at 701 E Street, and I appear in Yolo County. In many cases I appear for you and you do not have to be there at all.
Other places I serve in this county:
Davis covers ZIP codes 95616 and 95618, with a population of around 65,973. If you were stopped near Toad Hollow, UC Davis Arboretum Teaching Nursery or Solar Intersections, or anywhere on the through-roads, that is the ground this page covers. Tell me the cross street when you call — where exactly you were stopped decides which agency wrote the report, and sometimes which county files the case.
Davis questions I hear most.
How long do I have after a Davis DUI arrest?
Ten days from the arrest to request a DMV hearing. That is separate from the criminal case, it runs on its own clock, and nobody at the roadside is required to remind you. Miss it and the suspension proceeds with nobody arguing your side. See the DMV hearing.
Where is a Davis DUI case heard?
At Superior Court of California, County of Yolo, 1000 Main St, Woodland, CA 95695. (530) 406-6700. Prosecuted by the Yolo County District Attorney.
Who would have arrested me in Davis?
The Davis Police Department, at 2600 5th St, Davis, CA 95618. If you were stopped on Interstate 5 and Interstate 80 it may have been the CHP instead, and that changes what paperwork exists.
Where would I be booked?
Generally the Yolo County Detention Center, 140A Tony Diaz Dr, Woodland, CA 95776. (530) 668-5245.
Is a DUI always a misdemeanour?
No. It depends on your record and on whether anyone was injured. Which section gets charged changes the exposure substantially. See felony DUI.
What will it cost?
It depends on the charge, whether it resolves before filing and whether it goes to trial. I quote a flat fee for a defined scope, agreed in writing before you pay anything. The consultation is free.
Being arrested is one of the more frightening things that happens to people, and the waiting afterwards is often worse than the arrest. I treat my clients the way I would want an attorney to treat my mother, if she met with one.
Call (916) 277-8299. The consultation is free.
