Alternative Sentencing


The Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf have been helping individuals charged with drunk driving crimes for over 40+ years. Mr. Wolf has both prosecuted and defended thousands of adults and juveniles charged with DUI, license suspension, drunk driving, driving while intoxicated and vehicular manslaughter crimes. Lawrence Wolf has been a pioneer in developing all forms of alternative sentencing such as house arrest and diversionary programs. He has established relationships with Judges and District Attorneys throughout Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura Counties.

Your drunk driving arrest depends on what the law enforcement officer sees, hears and does, but your future and freedom can depend on your defense attorney.

In many situations, a jail term is not always the appropriate sentence for someone charged with a DUI, and many judges will agree that are alternative methods of punishment which may benefit all concerned far more than incarceration. An experienced Los Angeles DUI defense attorney experienced in California DUI law will recommend any number of alternative forms of punishment, which may prove to be more beneficial than spending time in jail.

Listed below are a few examples of alternative sentencing, which may be available for people who have been arrested for drunk driving in California:

Sober Living Houses

Penal Code Section 2900.5 may allow you to live in a sober living house where you will participate in drug and rehabilitation counseling programs, which will count toward either monetary fines or fees you owe due to your DUI or toward jail time that you were sentenced with.

Work Furlough

In this situation, you are allowed to continue to go to your current place of employment during the day, but at night you must go to a court authorized facility. More information regarding work furloughs can be found by reading California Penal Code Sections 6260-6266.

Electronic Monitoring

While you will be able to continue going to school or work, there are numerous limits placed on the locations to which you may travel and the times which you are allowed to leave your home. You will be fitted with an electric monitoring device (typically worn around the ankle) which will notify law enforcement if you have defied any of the restrictions placed on you by the court.

Rehabilitation Facilities

For many people involved in drunk driving cases, there is a history of alcoholism and DUIs. Depending upon your circumstances, rather than serving a jail term, you may be sentenced to participate in a qualified drug or alcohol program at a rehabilitation center, in addition to submitting to customary drug and/or alcohol tests during your probation period.

Work release

In certain Counties throughout California, you may be eligible to participate in a work release program. The probation department will assign you to a job each day which is chosen by them (depending upon your physical ability), and at night you will be able to return to your own home.

Laws regarding alternative sentencing vary by location, so it is imperative that you discuss your California DUI case with an attorney who is familiar with jail alternatives and alternative sentencing throughout California. For more information about alternative sentencing in California, please contact experienced Los Angeles drunk driving defense lawyer Lawrence Wolf at the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf.

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Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Disclaimer: The felony, misdemeanor, traffic, criminal defense, drunk driving, DUI, theft, drugs, three strikes law, juvenile law, or other legal criminal defense information presented at this site should not be construed to be formal legal advice, nor the formation of a lawyer or attorney client relationship. Any results portrayed here were dependent on the facts of that case and the results will differ if based on different facts.