Erik Richard Bruner

Last year I was approached by an officer at a stop light for not having a front license plate. I was not a resident of California and was not required by my state to have a front license plate but I was pulled over anyways and put through several DUI tests. I was later arrested and charged with a DUI...... for the second time in my life. Also, to make matters even worse I blew a .15 which is the minimum amount considered as "high alcohol content". I knew I was in deep trouble if I didn't find a great lawyer. As soon as I got out on bail the next day I wrote out a play by play of the events of the night before and called all the top DUI attorney's in San Diego. Erik Bruner was by far the best attorney I spoke with because he walked me through every possible scenario and outcome of my case. He was clear in his communication and understood the impact that a conviction would have on my life. Based on similar cases he had worked in the past, he was able to put my mind to rest on my prior. He has extensive experience in striking prior DUI's from other states. He also let me know that he wasn't totally convinced that my stop was completely legal. He was relentless with that detail and was able to find recent law that had the potential to throw my case out all together. He communicated with me every step of the way. He counseled me on the deals that were brought to the table by the prosecutor and coached me through declining 2 different plea bargains that still resulted in a DUI. My case finally ended by me accepting a deal for reckless driving rather than a DUI. We pushed for a dry reckless but ultimately ended with a wet reckless charge. He was willing to still move forward with a motion against my stop and get my case thrown out all together but he couldn't guarantee how that would play out and was very up front with the best case and worst case scenarios. Knowing that his motion would be directly effected by officer interviews I decided to take the deal. All in all, I couldn't be happier with Erik and how he handled my case. In summary: I started out facing charges for a 2nd DUI with high BAC which involved a mandatory ignition device placed on my car for 1 year, 30 day suspension, potentially a week in jail, 5 years of probation, 9 months of alcohol classes, 5 days of picking up trash on the side of the road and ended up with reckless driving which requires, 3 years of probation and 3 months of alcohol classes. To anyone else in a bad situation I highly recommend that you reach out to Erik as soon as possible. He is very upfront and honest. If he can help you he will. Thank you, Erik! I sincerely hope I never have to see you again!

Mr. Bruner had a close and respectful relationship with the City Attorney, making her more amenable to negotiation with him given their mutual respect. I had a pretty nasty looking police report associated with a drunk in public (escaped twice from the handcuffs by sliding my hands through, was quite... nasty to the officers, the whole gamut), and he managed to get me an offer to have the entire case dismissed, provided I simply attend a number of AA or NA meetings over a pre-specified time period, after which the whole incident just disappears. Very happy with this result. Had spoken with another attorney who acted like it was the worst thing ever and negotiation would be really tough, practically acting as if they'd throw me in jail for being drunk in public a while back. Mr. Bruner literally got me off with nothing but a few AA meetings, so I was shocked when we received this offer. GREAT JOB ERIK!

I was charged with DUI in November of 2012 and retained Erik in December. Erik handled my case with the utmost professionalism and my best interest in mind. I had a prior DUI in the state of Michigan and the DA wanted to charge me with a 3rd DUI. Erik researched the laws and ensured that the DUI ...in Michigan was not part of my case in CA. I didn't know that was possible. Erik's knowledge, aggresiveness and personnal attention to detail makes him one of the best. He breaks the mold when it comes to lawyers. HE CARES!! I will continue to retain him no matter what my legal needs are. I trust him that much.