Patrick J Silva

Silva & Silva

Attorneys at Law

*   22 Years of Top Level DUI Experience in Rancho Cucamonga​​

​​ Rancho Cucamonga DUI Lawyer Patrick J. Silva

 "My name is David and when I got my 3rd DUI I hired Pat Silva to fight for me and he did! He got my 3rd DUI dropped, all I had to do was plead no contest to a few moving violations. I had a bac of .17 and he still got it dropped that's why I call him the specialist! "   One of the best dui lawyers in the Rancho Cucamonga Courthouse.   ONLINE REVIEWS!

DUI Facts Drunk Driving Myths

 I am one of the best DUI Lawyers in the Southern California Region. As a DUI Lawyer I am willing to pit my knowledge of the blood science, breath science, field sobriety tests, pre-trial motions, and jury trials up against any lawyer. In fact, I teach other DUI Lawyers how to defend their cases twice a month. My success is based on hard work, the desire to be the best, and MOST importantly the DETAILS of your case. If you would like a "real" dui lawyer to take a look at your case I am willing to give you a 1 hour no-cost consultation.

DUI Lawyer explaining the DUI Facts about the Drunk Driving Myths. http://www.duilawyersanbernardinocourt.com, Visit our new site at http://www.victorvilleduilawyers.com , or our Riverside site at http://www.duilawyerriversidecourt.com, or our Rancho Cucamonga DUI Lawyer site at http://www.ranchocucamongaduilawyers.com,  or http://www.beatmydui.com

All we have is our word and good name. If we work together on your case I will do you a good job and you will be satisfied with my quality of work. http://www.duilawyerriversidecalifornia.com

Leader Amongst DUI Lawyers!  I teach other DUI lawyers on how to defend DUI cases. Who do you want working on your case? The Master or the Student?

LATEST VICTORY: Christopher B. was charged with a 3rd time DUI. His 2 priors were in another state. We filed a "Motion to Strike the Priors" asserting that the out of state dui's did not meet the California equivalency test. RESULT: His out of state priors were stricken from the record, so instead of facing a 3rd time DUI in California, he is now only facing a 1st time DUI. (This does not predict a similar outcome of your case but is intended to show the fruits of my hard work) Only a dui lawyer knowing the dui facts about drunk driving defenses could get a result like this.

Another One:  Daniel S. was charge with having a .20 BAC DUI and crashing his car. RESULT: We beat the DMV hearing and saved his license and his job. Last update 8/18/14:  We got the case dismissed in court! All this by a dui lawyer working the dui facts and beating the drunk driving myths.

One More:  Michael T. is a truck driver and had lost the DMV hearing while being represented by another attorney. This meant that because of the dui his Commercial Class "A" license was suspended for a year. Michael came to me, an experienced dui lawyer,  and I was able to overturn the DMV loss through the court system and ultimately get him back on the road driving his big-rig. The results of a hard working dui lawyer working up the dui facts and dispelling the drunk driving myths.

And One More: Jasmine:  was charged with a .09 BAC RESULT: DUI dismissed, she pled no contest to 2 traffic infractions.

​​​Drunk Driving Defense Litigation

Drunk Driving Defense Litigation - Phase One: What Are the Facts

The first phase in a successful DUI defense case is to challenge the cop's reason for allegedly stopping you. This can be done by contacting a San Bernardino County DUI lawyer

​No Probable Cause = No Evidence = No Case Against You

The 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution states that all men shall be free from unreasonable search and seizure. In order for the police to comply with the 4th Amendment they must have probable cause to stop you. Without probable cause the stop is illegal and all evidence obtained cannot be used against you in a court of law This means that all the evidence such as the breath test, blood test, and all field sobriety test cannot be used against you. This is known as the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine. Only a good dui lawyer working the dui facts can beat the bogus drunk driving myths.  

Examples of where the courts found that the cops did NOT have probable cause to stop you.

 Cracked windshield
 Tinted windows
 Object hanging from rear view mirror
 No front license plate (People v. White (2003) 107 Cal.App.4th 636.)
 Driving over the right shoulder fog line
 Driving over the gore point at a freeway exit
 Slight weaving
 No observation of you driving by the cop
 Weaving that is not pronounced or for a substantial period of time
 Illegal checkpoints
Taking of your blood sample without being arrested
Driving on private property PEOPLE V. KROHN (2007) 149 Cal.App.4th 1294

But then you ask, How do we fight the stop? In California, we use what is called a Motion to Suppress under Penal Code Section 1538.5. This motion will be heard in court similar to a trial. There will be a judge, prosecutor, myself, you, and the cop. The cop is put on the witness stand to testify as to why he stopped you. Once the prosecutor is done with his initial set of questions, I then get to cross examine the cop and prove that what he thought was a good reason to stop you was not justified under the law.

 ANOTHER RECENT SUCCESS STORY!! Hass E. was charged with a 2nd time DUI while he was still on probation for his first DUI. The DA alleged that he had a .28 blood BAC, an accident at over 100 mph, and charged him with a VOP.  Before trial the DA wanted Mr. E to do 120 days of county jail, 90 days of a SCRAM braclet, and a $2000 fine.  TRIAL:  We started trial and after we excluded some evidence through the Motion in Limine process the DA re-evaluated their case. RESULT:  DUI dismiss, Mr. E pled to a wet/reckless, NO jail time, NO scram, NO VOP, and a $800 fine. All the results of a hard working dui lawyer who knew the dui facts and the drunk driving myths.

Drunk Driving Defense Litigation - Phase Two - Discovery Request

​​In our Phase Two we focus on obtaining ALL of the documents you are entitle to. In the legal world we use a fancy name and call this "discovery." You are entitled to a substantial amount of documents. Such as, police report, witness statements, lab document, breath results, blood results, and much more. The prosecution will usually give us the police report and breath or blood results without much problem. 

We then go a level deeper in our request. If you did any kind of breath testing we then request copies of all documents associated with every machine you tested on. This would include, repair invoice, calibration proof, maintenance records, gas records, just to name a few.

If we are fighting a blood test case we then request copies of ALL Gas Chromatograms that were performed on your blood. This usually results in us obtaining 60 plus additional pages of documents. Once we have these documents we can have our Nationally Recognized Expert review the documents for any problems in the testing. The procedure is called Gas Chromatography when they test your blood for the presence of alcohol. The process of Gas Chromatography is the process of separating the chemicals in your blood.

We Know the San Bernardino, Riverside, & Orange County Courts

As a DUI lawyer work day-in and day-out in the local DUI courtrooms within the Inland Empire. As a DUI lawyer I  have made trusting relationships with the judges, Deputy DA's, and the court staff. I am well respected and known in all the Local courthouses, from San Bernardino Central  DUI courts, to Pomona DUI courts, from Victorville dui courts to Temecula courts, from Riverside dui courts to Banning dui courts. Not every courtroom in every courthouse handles DUI's. It is important that your dui attorney knows who to talk to and the best approach to handling your dui case. I also represent good folks who need my level of experience and will manage cases in Orange County and Los Angeles County.

WHAT INFORMATION DO I NEED TO ANALYZE THE DUI CASE?

In order to properly analyze your case we need a sit down face-to-face meeting which will typically last about an hour. Typical information that I need includes, your name and date of birth, age, height, weight, date of incident, time of incident, which police agency, how many cop cars on scene, how many cops in each car, did you call the DMV for a hearing within 10 days. This is just the background information.

Next we deal with the reason for the stop. My focus then shifts to each fact inch by inch of the dui arrest. We look at whether or not the officer had reasonable suspicion for stopping you for an alleged dui. As I mentioned above, you are protected by the 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution and you have the right not to be stopped unless you have at a minimum violated a traffic code. 


WIDMARK FORMULA. Erik Widmark was the original creator of the algorithmic formula which is used today to calculate your blood alcohol concentration. During our office meeting I will show you exactly what your BAC was at the time of driving based on your alcohol consumption. It is very important that we know exactly what you were drinking and when. We will use this and additional information in our computer program to produce a graph of your blood alcohol level.

STANDARDIZED FIELD SOBRIETY TEST. I am Certified in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing. I have taken the same course that many Police, Sheriff, and CHP Officers have taken. However, as an dui attorney who knows the dui facts, I am trained to to execute the test perfectly. I have memorized the exact language of the SFST and well as the validating clues associated with each test.

HORIZONTAL GAZE NYSTAGMUS. This is the eye test. But did you know that most officers don't even know the most basic elements of the test? In order to do the test properly the officer must make 7 passes on each eye. If the officer does the test correctly he will have taken 86 seconds at a minimum to complete the eye test. The Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test is one of 3 test recognized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as being a "standardize field sobriety test."

How did the SFST come into existence? Back in 1975 the NHTSA gave a research grant to the Southern California Researh Institute which was lead by a Dr. Marcelline Burns. The study was 2 years in length. The purpose of the study was to identify which of the field sobriety test being used across the country had any reliability in determining if a person was over a .10 BAC. However, if you read the actual study one will find that the BAC limit which the officers used as their arrest decision point was .08.

Remember, back then the legal limit was .10. At the conclusion of the study they stated that there were 3 field sobriety test that could be reliable. They were the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, Walk and Turn, and One Leg Stand. HOWEVER, the NHTSA Manual states that in order for the validating clues taken from the test to be valid, the test must be done EXACTLY as prescribed in the manual. That is found on PAGE 19 of SECTION 8 of the NHTSA Manual.

Back to the HGN, first the officer must give the test according to NHTSA standards and secondly the officer must be able to articulate all 6 of the validating clue. The validating clues must be articulated as "lack of smooth pursuit", "distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation", and "onset of nystagmus prior to 45 degrees."

LACK OF SMOOTH PURSUIT: The cop can produce a false indication of lack of smooth pursuit if he moves the stimuli ( his finger) across your field of view too fast. If the officer moves his finger at a rate of 1 second for every 30 degrees of angle this could affect the eye's ability to track the finger.

DISTINCT AND SUSTAINED NYSTAGMUS AT EXTREMES. This 2nd part of the test requires the officer to "hold" his finger out to the far extremes, to the point where no more white is showing out of the corner of your eyes, he must hold it there for 4 seconds, the officer must do this twice on each eye, by the time the officer is done it would have taken the officer 20 plus seconds just to complete this portion of the HGN test.  In reality, it takes approximately 1 minute and 26 seconds to complete the entire eye test​​​​.