Meet the Judge - California DUI Laws
20 years ago California DUI laws were very different it was not unusual to see someone in court with 5 or 6 or even 8 DUI’s who did not go to jail. But the California dui laws have changed. Now most drunk drivers go to jail. The second DUI already has a mandatory jail sentence.
Madd organizations try to help, but drunk drivers are increasing. As a result, California dui laws have increased in penalties. Over 80% of drunk drivers in California get a second DUI. California DUI laws now include stiff fines, court costs and restitution. The obvious solution is not easy for an alcoholic. Don’t take the first drink and then DUI will not be a possibility. But alcoholics don’t understand the first drink is the problem. Many believe they can drive better, or that the laws do not apply to them. This is the disease of denial: I don’t have a disease
The solution is recovery. A drug treatment program offers the important answers: how to get sober and how to stay sober. California DUI laws will continue to increase in severity. Our jails and prisons are filled with alcoholics and drug addicts who felt compelled to drive. The obsession to drive is directly connected to drinking. A sober person who may have a drink will also have some caution about driving and look for a designated driver. But an alcoholic will immediately get behind the wheel. When he takes the drink the drinks takes him.
The California DUI laws were designed to protect drivers who are otherwise harmed or even killed. In California now, the courts charge drunk drivers with murder or attempted murder. While the courts may not recognize the disease, they do recognize the damage to innocent people. And increasingly California courts are granting alternative sentencing to drug treatment programs, such as Yellowstone. Typically, court orders include at least six months of treatment.
We measure the first step of recovery at one year of sobriety. The big book of alcoholics anonymous states that if you think you have a problem with alcohol, you should stop drinking for a year. Many alcoholics cannot stop drinking even for a month or a week or a day. They need a program of recovery. Yellowstone has helped over 5000 men and women by introducing them to this 12 step program of recovery.
Drug treatment programs are essential and critical for alcoholics. Rehabilitation is the answer. Addiction recovery (including addiction to Alcohol) is possible for all of us. It is a family disease. Many of Yellowstone’s residents come from families we have already helped.
Families suffer too. The California DUI laws, supported by MADD, are designed to help ease their pain. A family harmed by a drunk driver may want more severe penalties than California DUI laws provide, particularly if a family member dies. Recovery from drugs and alcohol ensures that we will never get a DUI again, that families of our victims will never suffer again, that the California DUI laws will protect us from those alcoholics who ignore sobriety as a solution.
California DUI laws protect the community against random and rampant drunk driving. The California freeways are not a safe place anymore on Saturday night. As more and more drunk drivers are arrested, they are filling already overcrowded jails and prisons. At Folsom prison, for example, over 500 men are waiting to be transferred to outside recovery centers such as Yellowstone. They are young and for many, the only charges were drinking or using drugs.
The problem is that the California DUI laws do not teach them how to stay sober. They are simply confined hoping to soon return to their cars. They must start a new journey, or they will return. 80% of inmates return to jails or prisons in one year. Treatment programs at Yellowstone are designed to start them on a new path, a new road, a new journey, recovery. The California DUI laws do not do enough. Imprisonment is only a stall. Some prisons, however now have their own substance abuse programs. These last from 3-6 months, as inmates learn how to qualify for outside programs such as Yellowstone. Our SASCA program is a successful solution for drug addicts and alcoholics who want to change. Only 20% of inmates return to jail or prison if they complete a treatment program.
Unfortunately, the California DUI programs will become more punitive. In some states now, mandatory prison time is a minimum requirement for drunk drivers. In some states, such as Texas, the penalty can be 10 years in prison.
In California, we have a solution, successful treatment programs like Yellowstone. After 12 years, we have learned enough about alcoholism to know that it turns everyone down the wrong path, ultimately leading to jails, prisons or death.
Every alcoholic or drug addict needs a treatment program. What keeps them away is the belief that their case is different. It is exactly the same: alcohol and drugs destroy our lives, our family’s lives and our community’s life. We all want a sober community. The California DUI laws are trying to ensure our safety at home and on the highway. We can do something to protect our community by demanding that our drug addicts and alcoholics get treatment before they hurt someone else.
Madd organizations try to help, but drunk drivers are increasing. As a result, California dui laws have increased in penalties. Over 80% of drunk drivers in California get a second DUI. California DUI laws now include stiff fines, court costs and restitution. The obvious solution is not easy for an alcoholic. Don’t take the first drink and then DUI will not be a possibility. But alcoholics don’t understand the first drink is the problem. Many believe they can drive better, or that the laws do not apply to them. This is the disease of denial: I don’t have a disease
The solution is recovery. A drug treatment program offers the important answers: how to get sober and how to stay sober. California DUI laws will continue to increase in severity. Our jails and prisons are filled with alcoholics and drug addicts who felt compelled to drive. The obsession to drive is directly connected to drinking. A sober person who may have a drink will also have some caution about driving and look for a designated driver. But an alcoholic will immediately get behind the wheel. When he takes the drink the drinks takes him.
The California DUI laws were designed to protect drivers who are otherwise harmed or even killed. In California now, the courts charge drunk drivers with murder or attempted murder. While the courts may not recognize the disease, they do recognize the damage to innocent people. And increasingly California courts are granting alternative sentencing to drug treatment programs, such as Yellowstone. Typically, court orders include at least six months of treatment.
We measure the first step of recovery at one year of sobriety. The big book of alcoholics anonymous states that if you think you have a problem with alcohol, you should stop drinking for a year. Many alcoholics cannot stop drinking even for a month or a week or a day. They need a program of recovery. Yellowstone has helped over 5000 men and women by introducing them to this 12 step program of recovery.
Drug treatment programs are essential and critical for alcoholics. Rehabilitation is the answer. Addiction recovery (including addiction to Alcohol) is possible for all of us. It is a family disease. Many of Yellowstone’s residents come from families we have already helped.
Families suffer too. The California DUI laws, supported by MADD, are designed to help ease their pain. A family harmed by a drunk driver may want more severe penalties than California DUI laws provide, particularly if a family member dies. Recovery from drugs and alcohol ensures that we will never get a DUI again, that families of our victims will never suffer again, that the California DUI laws will protect us from those alcoholics who ignore sobriety as a solution.
California DUI laws protect the community against random and rampant drunk driving. The California freeways are not a safe place anymore on Saturday night. As more and more drunk drivers are arrested, they are filling already overcrowded jails and prisons. At Folsom prison, for example, over 500 men are waiting to be transferred to outside recovery centers such as Yellowstone. They are young and for many, the only charges were drinking or using drugs.
The problem is that the California DUI laws do not teach them how to stay sober. They are simply confined hoping to soon return to their cars. They must start a new journey, or they will return. 80% of inmates return to jails or prisons in one year. Treatment programs at Yellowstone are designed to start them on a new path, a new road, a new journey, recovery. The California DUI laws do not do enough. Imprisonment is only a stall. Some prisons, however now have their own substance abuse programs. These last from 3-6 months, as inmates learn how to qualify for outside programs such as Yellowstone. Our SASCA program is a successful solution for drug addicts and alcoholics who want to change. Only 20% of inmates return to jail or prison if they complete a treatment program.
Unfortunately, the California DUI programs will become more punitive. In some states now, mandatory prison time is a minimum requirement for drunk drivers. In some states, such as Texas, the penalty can be 10 years in prison.
In California, we have a solution, successful treatment programs like Yellowstone. After 12 years, we have learned enough about alcoholism to know that it turns everyone down the wrong path, ultimately leading to jails, prisons or death.
Every alcoholic or drug addict needs a treatment program. What keeps them away is the belief that their case is different. It is exactly the same: alcohol and drugs destroy our lives, our family’s lives and our community’s life. We all want a sober community. The California DUI laws are trying to ensure our safety at home and on the highway. We can do something to protect our community by demanding that our drug addicts and alcoholics get treatment before they hurt someone else.
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