Our Fountain Valley DUI criminal defense lawyers have written in the past about the practice of charging DUI defendants with second-degree murder. This has been used in several recent Orange County drunk driving cases, including the ongoing high-profile case of Andrew Gallo, who is accused of killing Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and two other people. The practice is striking because murder is a far more serious charge than DUI manslaughter, the typical charge when alleged drunk driving leads to a death. But according to a Sept. 13 article from the Orange County Register, murder is also the charge in the trial of a Los Angeles man who is accused of killing a 29-year-old woman in a wrong-way drunk driving accident. Angel Herrera Leal, 30, could get 15 years to life in prison if he is convicted of killing 29-year-old Rebecca Moon.
According to the article, Leal had two previous drunk driving convictions from 2005 and 2007 at the time of the December 27, 2008 crash. He was driving even though his license had been suspended. He is accused of having a blood-alcohol content of 0.29 when he entered Interstate 5 at 4:45 a.m. and drove north in the southbound lanes. Near Disney Way, he crashed head-on into a car driven by Jisun Park, 29. Moon, a passenger in Park's car, suffered blunt force trauma to her head and died, and Park suffered abdominal injuries. Park was also charged with driving under the influence, although the article did not give details. Nonetheless, Leal was charged with third-degree murder in Moon's death. The Orange County District Attorney's office said the murder charge was appropriate because Leal knew from his previous convictions that driving drunk is wrong, but did it anyway.
As Carson intoxicated driving criminal defense attorneys, we do not buy this logic. Every American who is old enough to drive knows that driving drunk is illegal and dangerous. If this had been Leal's first drunk driving charge rather than his third, he would still have known it was wrong -- and could still have been charged with DUI manslaughter. That crime better fits the circumstances -- an accidental killing caused by gross negligence under the influence, rather than an intentional killing with "an abandoned and malignant heart." It's difficult to argue that Leal had those types of feelings for Moon, whom he had probably never met, or that he intentionally set out to kill someone when he got behind the wheel. Rather, he made an irresponsible decision to drive under the influence of a lot of alcohol, with foreseeable results. This is a crime that carries serious penalties of up to ten years in prison -- already a very serious penalty, even without inappropriate second-degree murder charges.
Howard Law, P.C. defends clients who are facing all types of California intoxicated driving charges -- including gross vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence. Clients charged with manslaughter or murder stemming from a drunk driving incident should get in touch with our Norwalk drunk driving criminal defense lawyers as soon as possible, because the penalties can include years in prison. But even a first DUI with no injuries or deaths can have severe negative effects on the defendant's life. A conviction for driving under the influence in California means probation, community service and/or time in jail, as well as mandatory alcohol classes, high fines, loss of your driver's license and more. The driver's license suspension alone can interfere with many people's jobs, leading to loss of income or the job itself.
If you're charged with driving under the influence in California, you should call Howard Law, P.C. right away. To learn more or set up a free consultation, you can reach us via email or call toll-free at 1-800-872-5925.
