Our San Bernardino County DUI criminal defense lawyers were very interested to read about a brewing fight between the city of Huntington Beach and one of its businesses. As the Huntington Beach Independent reported Feb. 2, the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control is investigating a bar called Baja Sharkeez after data from the city showed the bar was the most likely to have served a DUI arrestee's last drink. Over a 22-month period, 72 drivers named Sharkeez; 52 named Hurricaines Bar & Grill and 33 named Killarney Pub & Grill. The city is tracking this data as a way to combat its unusually high number of DUIs, which many blame on the proliferation of bars downtown.
Huntington Beach police chief Kenneth Small wrote to the state about the bar's high number of patrons with DUIs. In that letter, Small said he believed the high numbers reflect a carelessness by the Sharkeez management toward public safety. That claim was vehemently denied by Ron Newman, who co-owns the Sharkeez in Huntington Beach and four others. He said the restaurant has a policy of cutting off people who are obviously intoxicated - and has never been penalized for failing to do so - but cannot control what they do on the road. He also suggested that drivers might have been to other establishments after his, since downtown Huntington Beach is walkable. And he questioned the finding that the Newport Beach location had no DUI arrestees at all. He complained that Huntington Beach officers wait outside the restaurant for patrons to climb into cars.
As Seal Beach drunk driving criminal defense attorneys, we have some sympathy for Newman's arguments. Newman's employees can cut off people who are clearly drunk, but not everyone is a sloppy drinker - and he's right that he can't control what they do after they leave. In fact, drinking establishments have a strong self-interest in cutting off patrons who've clearly had too much, because they can be legally liable for any accident those people might have later. Sharkeez and other bars can also get in trouble with the state if they over-serve, which is what Smalls appears to be trying to do. We also think authorities should be careful about relying on Huntington Beach's data, because that data was self-reported by arrestees. Self-reported data is notoriously unreliable, and drunk people who are under arrest may be especially likely to lie.
Howard Law, P.C. represents clients who are facing prosecution for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and related crimes. One of the most inconvenient aspects of being arrested for a DUI is also the most immediate: the "automatic" suspension of your driver's license. In fact, the suspension is not completely automatic, because drivers can contest the suspension and sometimes even win. However, they need to start right away, because they have only ten days from their release to request a DMV hearing. Our Dana Point intoxicated driving criminal defense lawyers take care of this whenever we can take the case soon enough, then coordinate the defense of your license with the defense of the underlying case.
If you've been arrested for drunk driving in California and you're ready to fight it, call Howard Law, P.C. now for a free consultation on your case and your options. To set up a meeting, send us a message online or call 1-800-872-5925.
