Practice Areas · DUI Defense
Underage DUI
San Diego DUI Defense
Underage DUI in San Diego
California has a zero-tolerance policy for drivers under 21. Under Vehicle Code 23136, a driver under 21 with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.01 percent or higher faces an automatic license suspension, and higher levels can bring criminal charges.
An underage DUI can jeopardize college, financial aid, and future employment. Crudo Law works to protect a young person's record and future, challenging the stop and the testing wherever possible.
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By the Numbers
Underage DUI, by the numbers
30%1
Young drivers ages 15-20 killed in 2023 U.S. crashes who had a BAC of .01 g/dL or higher (California's underage limit)
26% had a BAC of .08 or higher. From NHTSA's Young Drivers: 2023 Data fact sheet. Directly relevant to California's 0.01 zero-tolerance threshold for drivers under 21.
5.4%2
U.S. high school students who drove after drinking alcohol at least once in the past 30 days
Among students who drove. From the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey; 16.7% of all students rode with a driver who had been drinking.
1,3553
People killed in alcohol-involved crashes in California in 2023
A 4.5% decrease from 2022 but a nearly 55% increase from 2014, per the California Office of Traffic Safety.
7x4
Higher alcohol-related crash risk for youth who start drinking at a young age
Per MADD's Why 21 campaign; NHTSA credits the age-21 minimum drinking age with saving roughly 800-900 lives per year and decreasing crashes an estimated 16%.
Frequently asked
Common questions
What is the legal limit for a driver under 21?+
California's zero-tolerance law sets the limit at 0.01 percent. Any measurable alcohol can trigger a license suspension for an underage driver.
Will an underage DUI affect college?+
It can affect admissions, financial aid, and scholarships. Protecting a young person's record is a central goal of the defense.
Related practice areas
Sources
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Traffic Safety Facts, 2023 Data: Young Drivers (DOT HS 813 736) (2025). https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813736.pdf
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), MMWR, Transportation Risk Behaviors Among High School Students - Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2019 (2020). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7440196/
- California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), Alcohol-Impaired Driving (2023). https://www.ots.ca.gov/grants/alcohol-impaired-driving/
- Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Why 21? Minimum Drinking Age Saves Lives (2026). https://madd.org/why-21/
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