Contra Costa County DUI Lawyer

Robert Tayac is recognized as being among the top driving under the influence (DUI) defense lawyers in California. He and the DUI investigators and experts who work with him represent clients accused of driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) or driving with a blood alcohol level at or above the legal limit (DUI) in Contra Costa County. The Contra Costa Superior Courts are located in Walnut Creek, Martinez, Richmond, and Pittsburg. The most serious DUI cases and DUI cases involving juveniles are handled at the Contra Costa Superior Court in Martinez.

Misdemeanor DUI cases stemming from DUI arrests which occur in Clayton, Concord, Danville, Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda, Pleasant Hill, San Ramon, and Walnut Creek are handled by the Contra Costa Superior Court located in Walnut Creek. If a misdemeanor DUI arrest occurred in El Cerrito, Hercules, Pinole, Richmond, or San Pablo the case will be handled at the Contra Costa Superior Court located in Richmond. DUI arrests occurring in Martinez will be handled at the Contra Costa Superior Court located in Martinez.

As well, there are unincorporated communities in Contra Costa County which include Alamo, Bay Point, Blackhawk, Canyon, Crockett, Diablo, Discovery Bay, East Richmond Heights, El Sobrante, Kensington, North Richmond, Pacheco, and Rodeo. If a DUI arrest occurred in one of the unincorporated communities of Contra Costa County, the DUI case will be handled by the Superior Court branch which handles cases from the nearest incorporated community.

A California criminal DUI defense lawyer representing a person arrested for driving under the influence or driving with a blood alcohol level at or above the legal limit of 0.08% in Contra Costa County must appear at the Contra Costa County Superior Court located in Walnut Creek, Martinez, Richmond, or Pittsburg. In addition, a person arrested for a DUI in Contra Costa County will have a separate California DMV license suspension action stemming from a driving with a blood alcohol level at or above the legal limit arrest. The legal limit for a person 21 years of age or older in California is .08% blood or breath alcohol. This second California DUI case will be before the Department of Motor Vehicles’ Driver Safety Office located in Oakland or the Contra Costa County DMV office in El Cerrito. The Contra Costa County DUI criminal case is entirely separate and independent of the California Department of Motor Vehicles DUI case.

DUI lawyer Robert Tayac specializes in driving under the influence defense in Contra Costa County, California and is a current or former member of professional organizations whose focus is related to this practice area, including the National College for DUI Defense (NCDD), California DUI Lawyers Association (CDLA), National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), California Attorneys for Criminal Justice (CACJ), and California Public Defenders Association (CPDA). Additionally, Robert Tayac has tried DUI cases in Contra County and is familiar with the specific procedures and local rules of the Contra Costa County Superior Courts. This law firm only accepts California DUI or California DMV cases and do not represent clients in any court or tribunal outside the State of California.

DUI arrests in Contra Costa County usually initiate two separate cases. The first case is the Contra Costa County DUI criminal case which will be prosecuted by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s office at the Superior Court located in Walnut Creek, Martinez, Richmond, or Pittsburg. The Contra Costa County District Attorney will usually charge a person with at two separate criminal violations following a DUI arrest made made in Contra Costa County by a California Highway Patrol officer, Contra Costa County Deputy Sheriff, or local police officer of Antioch, Brentwood, Clayton, Concord, Danville, El Cerrito, Hercules, Lafayette, Martinez, Moraga, Orinda, Oakley, Pinole, Pleasant Hill, Pittsburg, San Ramon, Richmond, San Pablo, or Walnut Creek.

The first Contra Costa County DUI charge is for driving under the influence of alcohol, medication or drugs in violation of California Vehicle Code section 23152, subdivision (a). The second Contra Costa County DUI charge is for driving with a blood alcohol level (BAC) of .08 percent or greater in violation of California Vehicle Code Section 23152, subdivision (b). If a Contra Costa DUI arrest involved an accident resulting in an injury to a person other than the individual arrested for driving under the influence, a more serious misdemeanor or felony DUI will usually be charged by the Contra Costa County District Attorney alleging a violation of California Vehicle Code section 23153, subdivision (a) and California Vehicle Code section 23153, subdivision (b).

The second case is a Department of Motor Vehicles administrative per se (APS) case, in which the arrested person’s privilege to drive in California is at risk of being suspended. Drivers arrested for DUI driving with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or higher in California have only 10 days from the date of arrest to request a DMV administrative per se (APS) hearing. If a DMV hearing is not requested within ten (10) days of the arrest, any California driver’s license issued to the person arrested will automatically be suspended thirty (30) days from the date of the arrest for a minimum of four (4) months.

If the person arrested in Contra Costa County for driving under the influence (DUI) has an out of state driver license, the privilege of that person to drive within the State of California will be suspended indefinitely thirty (30) days from the date of the arrest and may not be restored until a California DUI school is completed. Additionally, a driving suspension imposed by the California Department of Motor Vehicles for a DUI will usually have an effect on the out of state driver’s license.

California DMV hearings are technical and complicated. For that reason the DMV hearing should only be handled by a lawyer having extensive experience handling California DUI and California DMV cases. To suspend a driver’s license, the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the California Highway Patrol officer, local police officer, or Contra Costa County Deputy Sheriff had reasonable cause to believe that a violation of California Vehicle Code Section 23152 or Section 23153 was committed, that the California DUI arrest and DUI detention was lawful, and that the driver had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 percent or greater. California DMV administrative hearings can be won, but usually only by an attorney with specialized knowledge of the hearing process, the type of evidence presented and familiarity with the possible defenses.

The stakes are high in a Contra Costa County DUI case. A person accused of driving under the influence faces the possibility of jail, large fines, driver’s license suspensions, mandatory alcohol education classes, ignition interlock devices, and other punishment. For that reason, it is critical that a person who has been arrested or is being investigated for driving under the influence (DUI) in Contra Costa County have a qualified California DUI lawyer handling their case. If you or someone you know has been or may be accused of driving under the influence (DUI), or driving with a blood alcohol level at or above the legal limit (DUI) in Contra Costa County, please read the information contained in this website and call the office to discuss the case with me. After speaking with a me I welcome you to schedule an appointment to come in and discuss the DUI case further.

This law office is located in San Francisco Bay Area, close to Contra Costa County. I stand ready to assist you. Please take the time to call and talk to me for a confidential consultation.

Phone: 925-288-9800
Fax: 415-552-6099
Toll Free: 800-901-1888

Contra Costa County General Information

Contra Costa County (Spanish for: Against the Coast) is a suburban county in the San Francisco Bay Area of the state of California. Contra Costa County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood.

The county was originally to be called Mt. Diablo County, but the name was changed prior to incorporation as a county. The county's Spanish language name means opposite coast, because of its location opposite San Francisco, in an easterly direction, on San Francisco Bay. Southern portions of the county's territory, including the all of the bayside portions opposite San Francisco, and Northern portions of Santa Clara County were given up to form Alameda County in 1853.