## Felony DUI in California Most DUIs are misdemeanors. But California elevates them to felony status when specific aggravators are present — bringing dramatically harsher penalties and lifetime collateral consequences. ### California felony triggers 4th DUI within 10 years OR DUI causing injury OR DUI with prior felony DUI. ### Sentence range 16 mo, 2, or 3 yrs in state prison; 4-10 yrs for injury ## Common felony triggers across states **1. Multiple priors.** Most states elevate to felony at: - 3rd or 4th DUI within a defined window (5-10 years typical) - 3rd or 4th DUI lifetime in some states - Lifetime lookback states (CA, MA, MO, MT, NM, TX, VT, WI) — any prior counts forever **2. DUI causing injury.** Felony in nearly every state when: - Serious bodily injury - Permanent disfigurement - Loss of organ / function **3. DUI causing death (vehicular manslaughter / homicide).** Always felony, often most serious: - Vehicular manslaughter (negligent killing) - Vehicular homicide (with elements showing greater culpability) - Aggravated DUI homicide (high BAC, prior DUIs, child passenger, etc.) - Penalties commonly 5-30 years; some states up to life **4. DUI with child passenger.** Many states elevate or add separate felony charges when a child (typically under 14-16) is in the vehicle. **5. DUI on suspended license.** Driving while license suspended FOR a prior DUI elevates charges in many states. **6. Aggravated DUI.** State-specific catch-all for: - Extreme BAC (0.20+) - DUI on a school bus / commercial vehicle - DUI in a school zone - DUI with prior felony record ## Felony DUI consequences vs misdemeanor DUI **Felony adds:** - Prison time (vs jail) - Federal firearm prohibition (lifetime under 922(g)(1)) - State firearm rights loss - Voting rights restrictions (state-specific) - Employment foreclosed (most professional licenses, security, education, healthcare) - Housing restrictions - Immigration consequences (deportable for non-citizens) - Loss of right to serve on juries - Parental-rights consequences (custody) - Insurance — often uninsurable for years - Background-check exposure for life - Permanent record (without aggressive expungement / sealing) ## Vehicular homicide / manslaughter When a DUI results in death, charges typically include: - **DUI manslaughter / vehicular homicide** — gross negligence + DUI (Florida; commonly 2nd-degree felony) - **Vehicular homicide / vehicular manslaughter** (CA; PC § 191.5 with sub-categories) - **Aggravated DUI manslaughter / homicide** — with priors or additional aggravators - **2nd-degree murder** — for cases with extreme recklessness or prior DUI history (Watson murder doctrine in CA; similar in others) - **Watson murder** (CA) — when defendant had prior DUI conviction with attendant warnings, prosecutor can charge murder rather than manslaughter ## Federal firearm prohibition Felony DUI conviction triggers federal **18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1)** — banning firearm possession for life. Some states restore firearm rights via discharge from sentence; some require pardon; some never restore. ## Common defenses to felony DUI - **Challenges to prior convictions** — collateral attack on validity of prior DUIs that triggered felony status - **Lookback period** — was the prior actually within the statutory window? - **Causation in injury / death cases** — was DUI actually causal, or other factors? - **Standard DUI defenses** — calibration, traffic-stop legality, blood-draw chain of custody - **Intent / knowledge** — did defendant actually know they had priors of disqualifying nature - **Constitutional challenges** — 4th Amendment search, Miranda issues, right to counsel ## Plea-bargaining strategy Felony DUI cases that reach plea negotiations often involve: - **Charge reduction** to misdemeanor in exchange for guilty plea + treatment / classes / interlock - **Sentence-only bargaining** when reduction isn't available - **Diversion** — rare for felony DUI but available in some jurisdictions - **Cooperation** — testifying against others (rare in DUI cases) - **Substance abuse treatment** — courts increasingly favor treatment over incarceration ## Drug DUI / DUID DUIs based on drug use (DUID) — including legal prescriptions and marijuana — are increasingly common. State approaches vary: - **Per se DUI** — illegal at any specified concentration - **Effect-based DUI** — illegal when impaired regardless of substance - **Drug Recognition Expert (DRE)** evaluations - **Blood toxicology** — gold standard but slow ## What you should do Felony DUI cases are among the most serious DUI matters — with prison time on the table, the lifetime collateral consequences are worse than the sentence itself. Don't accept a plea at first appearance. Hire a California criminal-defense attorney with felony-DUI experience IMMEDIATELY. Most offer free initial consultations and accept payment plans. Many felony DUI cases that look bad can be reduced to misdemeanors with skilled negotiation — particularly when the priors are old or contestable. --- *This guide is general information about California law as of early 2026 and is not legal advice. Felony DUI law is fact- and prior-specific, with significant collateral consequences. Talk to a licensed California criminal-defense attorney about your specific case.*