Riverside County Renews DUI Prosecution Grant as Officials Push for Stronger Impaired-Driving Laws

Riverside County is renewing its effort to tackle impaired driving with fresh funding from the California Office of Traffic Safety — the 11th consecutive year the county has received the grant. The program supports a specialized team of prosecutors dedicated to taking on DUI cases, a unit county officials say has dramatically improved conviction rates over the past decade.

“Essentially, our prosecutors get trained the same way police officers do,” said Daniel Fox, senior deputy district attorney for Riverside County. “They have a better understanding of what’s going on out on the street, and then they bring that knowledge into the courtroom.”

County prosecutors say the program has been pivotal. Riverside County sees roughly 10,000 DUI arrests annually, with 8,000 involving alcohol only. For years, the county has maintained a conviction rate between 92% and 94% — one of the highest in the state.

But even with high conviction rates, DUI-related crashes remain a statewide crisis. Riverside County currently ranks 44th out of 58 California counties for alcohol-involved crashes. A recent CalMatters investigation found that DUI-related deaths in California have surged more than 50% in the last decade, more than double the national increase.

CalMatters reporters uncovered a troubling pattern: repeat offenders slipping through gaps in the system.

“We found cases where people would skip court — just not show up,” the investigation found. “A warrant would be issued, but because it was a misdemeanor, no one went to pick them up. They’d get caught driving drunk again … and sometimes they’d kill.”

The renewed grant comes as the county continues to deal with the aftermath of a devastating case. Jose Villegas Sobre, the suspect accused of killing 14-year-old Liam Cantu in La Quinta, recently had his charges upgraded from vehicular manslaughter to murder. He was already on probation for a prior DUI.

“When we see repeat drunk drivers that end up killing someone … some will say, ‘I didn’t know,’” Fox said. “But you signed that document four, five, six times. How could you not know?”

In California, most DUIs remain misdemeanors unless a fourth offense is committed within 10 years or unless someone is injured. State leaders are now discussing strengthening DUI laws — including longer license suspensions after fatal crashes and revisiting when DUI offenses become felonies.

But even with legal changes, county attorneys say no system is perfect.

“You can be doing everything right in your life,” Fox said. “And at four o’clock in the afternoon, along comes an impaired driver — and everybody’s world is different.”