Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol (DUI)

The federal government has tried to standardize state laws via the granting or withholding of federal highway construction funding, see www.nhtsa.gov . Virtually all states now enforce a 0.08 per mil blood alcohol level and drinking age of 21. How "strict" any locality is in a given case depends on a number of factors such as the attitude of the officer and whether the defendant can afford bail/lawyers. The only places where drinking and driving is tolerated, if at all, are some portions of rural Western states where there are very few vehicles on the roads.

Re: Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol (DUI)

Each state has its own DUI laws. Which one is most strict depends upon what you consider strictness, so there is no easy answer for your question.

Some states set the legal limit for blood alcohol content lower than others, and setting a low threshold can be considered being strict.

Different states set different penalties, but no state has a on-size-fits-all punishment. It is possible for state A to punish some types of DUIs more seriously than state B and other types less seriously.