If you were arrested in Ridgecrest California for a DUI or any other criminal offense, Criminal Defense Attorney Matthew Ruff can help. For over 25 years Matt and his team have been fighting and winning cases in Kern County and throughout California.
☎️ Call Matthew Direct at 661-327-7833
( You will NOT be “passed off” to a secretary)
The local Superior Court is located at 132 E. Coso Avenue, Ridgecrest CA 93555. The Court serves areas adjacent to the city, such as Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and Rosamond. Our Law Firm defends clients arrested for a criminal charges, including drunk driving and driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
Do I need a Lawyer For My DUI in Ridgecrest? Well, if keeping your driving privileges and maintaining a clean record are important to you the answer is yes. Matthew can help to keep you driving and eliminate all or most of the severe consequences that flow from a conviction for DWI. If you were driving to or from Mammoth Mountain and were pulled over on the 14 Freeway near Inyokern or the 395, you will likely be in the Ridgecrest Court. Matthew and his team has been handling cases in this Court for 30 years and know the prosecutors and judges that will be assigned to the case.
How do you beat a DUI in Ridgecrest? One way is to challenge the initial stop or contact by arguing the officer detained or arrested you without sufficient probable cause. This attack is done by filing a motion pursuant to Penal Code 1538.5. Our lawyers have been successful in getting driving under the influence cases thrown out and dismissed for violations of our client‘s Fourth Amendment Rights in many cases in Kern County. In one case, for example we defended a client stopped after a tip came in from a 911 call that our client was driving drunk. The client was pulled over by officers on the 14 Freeway and was arrested for DWI. Our attorneys filed a motion to dismiss asserting the officer lacked probable cause to stop our client based on the anonymous phone call reporting a drunk driver, the Court agreed and the case was DISMISSED!
Another common way to beat a drunk driving case is to challenge the breath test. In California, the law requires police officers to adhere to regulations known as “Title 17”. These regulations govern the administration of breath testing throughout the state. In many instances, the officer fails to follow the rules and a challenge can be made on the results. Our Law Firm has been successful in getting breath test results suppressed in many cases.
☎️ Call Matt for a Consultation at 661-327-7833
A Ridgecrest DUI Attorney can help you in a variety of ways. First, we can help save your driving privileges to allow you to drive to work and important appointments. In many cases our lawyers can work out a resolution that allows you to be reinstated with FULL DRIVING PRIVILEGES, no restrictions on work or school. Second, we can keep you out of jail in most cases. We have a high success rate of winning DMV hearings and getting charges reduced.
How are the Judges in Kern County, Ridgecrest Court? The judges in Kern county tend to be a bit more conservative than in Los Angeles. However, most bench officers are fair and give litigants an opportunity to be heard.
Can I be Found Guilty of DUI just because a breath machine said I was above .08? Not always, you see in some cases the machine simply gets it wrong. For example, if you have a slightly elevated body temperature due to illness the machine will falsely report your BAC as being higher than it actually is. The machine assumes everyone taking the test is of “normal “ body temperature, however if your temperature is even 1-2 degrees higher than normal because of a slight fever or flu the results will be inflated as much as .01, making a true .07 BAC a .08 on the machine.
Matthew’s team is based in both Los Angeles and Kern County. We have been fighting and winning drunk driving cases in these counties for 30 years. If you live in LA and were driving through Kern to get to a ski resort or play in the snow and while making the trip you were pulled over and arrested for DWI, Matthew and his team can help.
Our attorneys also handle cases near the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake. For 30 years we have defended clients arrested at the security gate of the base for crimes including DUI, possession of concealed weapons and firearms, drug possession and other misdemeanor and felony charges. Recently we represented a client detained at the security gate and charged with possession of a loaded concealed gun in his vehicle. Matthew was able to get this charge completely dismissed in court.
We also vigorously defend clients stopped and/or arrested coming from or traveling to the Mammoth Ski Resort on Highways 395 and 14. The CHP aggressively enforces traffic laws on these stretches of highway and we have fought cases ranging from speeding over 100, reckless driving to felony gun possession and other serious offenses.
How can a Criminal Defense Attorney Near Ridgecrest Help Me? Having a lawyer on your side can make all the difference. The laws in California are very complex and fraught with pitfalls. The District Attorney will run roughshod over you unless you are defended by a skilled lawyer who can go head to head and fight your case using innovative defense strategies and experts in the field.
What is the difference between a DWI (driving while intoxicated) and a DUI (driving under the influence) in Kern County? There is no real difference between the 2 terms. The word DWI is another term to describe the offense of VC23152a of the Vehicle Code which prohibits someone from driving at a time they are impaired by alcohol to the degree they can no longer drive a motor vehicle safely. Both are often used to refer to the same crime, however the DWI is used more often in Southern States whereas the latter is more commonly used in the Western region of the country.
Is Urine Testing for drugs reliable in a DUI case?
No, although urinalysis can detect the presence of drug compounds, the mere presence cannot predict levels of impairment at the time of driving. Put another way, the mere presence tells us nothing about when it was consumed, how much was consumed, or what effect it had on the person’s ability to drive.
I was arrested in Kern County but do not live near the Court, Can a local Ridgecrest DUI Attorney Help?
Yes, if you are facing an upcoming Court date for a misdemeanor criminal charge such as driving under the influence one of our private lawyers can appear for you and represent you without you needing to personally appear. For 30 years our team of local attorneys have defended good people charged with offenses that can often be favorably resolved.
Heading to Mammoth For a Ski Trip? Know this before you go: The CHP patrols the roads leading up to the ski resorts and they are trained to detect any signs of impaired motorists such as weaving, straddling lanes, driving too slow, unsafe lane changes and other driving behavior that indicates possible impairment. The officer is looking for “cues” which give him a reasonable suspicion the driver is intoxicated. If you are pulled over and asked to perform field sobriety tests, be advised you do not have to comply with that request. YOU HAVE THE OPTION TO REFUSE FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS. It is advisable you do not attempt to perform these “tests”. If you are arrested for DWI call a lawyer immediately to challenge the basis for the stop and arrest. A ski trip up to Mammoth does not have to end in a conviction for drunk driving. For 30 years we have been defending good folks charged with DWI and DUID, let us help you.
☎️ Call Matthew Directly 661-327-7833
