California’s New DUI Laws: Braun’s Law and Why a Third DUI Will Soon Be a Felony

On September 25, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of four DUI bills aimed at repeat offenders. Headlines described them as a crackdown, and some early reports said the changes took effect the day they were signed. That is not accurate. The two bills that change criminal penalties take effect on January 1, 2027, and the two bills that change DMV rules do not start until January 1, 2031.

The details matter if you have a DUI on your record, a case pending in Orange County, or a plea offer on the table. We read the chaptered text of each bill on the Legislature’s website so you can see exactly what changed, what did not, and when each change starts. This article explains Braun’s Law (SB 907), the new third-DUI wobbler (AB 1546), the DMV changes in AB 1685 and AB 1687, and what all of it means for someone facing a DUI in Orange County today.

Quick Answer

California’s new DUI laws, signed September 25, 2026, make two big criminal changes starting January 1, 2027. SB 907, known as Braun’s Law, requires courts to give the “Watson” murder warning whenever a DUI charge is pleaded down to a different or lesser offense, and it increases penalties for hit and runs by drivers with a DUI-related conviction in the past 10 years. AB 1546 makes a third DUI within 10 years a wobbler that can be charged as a felony, instead of a misdemeanor only. Two other bills add DMV points and a 72-month suspension rule, but not until 2031.

Key Takeaways

• Four bills were signed on September 25, 2026: SB 907 (Chapter 443), AB 1546 (Chapter 444), AB 1685 (Chapter 445) and AB 1687 (Chapter 446).
• None of the bills is an urgency measure, so under the California Constitution SB 907 and AB 1546 take effect January 1, 2027.
• Braun’s Law extends the Watson advisement to plea deals that reduce a DUI, which makes a later murder prosecution easier if a future impaired-driving crash kills someone.
• Under AB 1546, a third DUI within 10 years can be punished by 16 months, 2 or 3 years, and a felony third DUI then makes any later DUI within 10 years prison-eligible.
• AB 1685 (DMV points) and AB 1687, known as Irene’s Law (72-month suspension), are written to become operative January 1, 2031.

What Governor Newsom Signed on September 25, 2026

According to the Governor’s announcement, the Governor signed the bills in Los Angeles on September 25, 2026. The Legislature’s records confirm that all four were approved by the Governor and chaptered by the Secretary of State that same day.

Bill	Author	Chapter	What it does	When it starts
SB 907 (Braun’s Law)	Sen. Bob Archuleta	Ch. 443, Stats. 2026	Watson advisement on reduced DUI pleas; tougher hit and run penalties with a recent DUI-related prior	January 1, 2027
AB 1546	Asm. Nick Schultz	Ch. 444, Stats. 2026	Third DUI in 10 years becomes a wobbler; fifth DUI in 10 years becomes a straight felony	January 1, 2027
AB 1685	Asm. Tom Lackey	Ch. 445, Stats. 2026	Three DMV points for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated	Operative January 1, 2031
AB 1687 (Irene’s Law)	Asm. Tom Lackey	Ch. 446, Stats. 2026	72-month suspension for DUI causing injury with four or more priors in 10 years	Operative January 1, 2031

Why the effective date is January 1, 2027

Each bill’s status page on the Legislature’s site lists it as a “Non-Urgency” measure. Under Article IV, Section 8 of the California Constitution, a statute enacted at a regular session goes into effect on January 1 following a 90-day period from enactment. For bills signed on September 25, 2026, that date is January 1, 2027. AB 1685 and AB 1687 go further and state in their own text that they become operative on January 1, 2031.

What did not make it into the final law

Early descriptions of SB 907 on its author’s Senate website listed five reforms, including enhancements for repeat felony DUI convictions, adding gross vehicular manslaughter to the violent felony list, and full consecutive sentencing for multiple victims. The chaptered version of SB 907 amends only two Vehicle Code sections, 20001 and 23635. If you read an article claiming Braun’s Law adds a three-year enhancement or makes vehicular manslaughter a violent felony, it is describing an earlier draft, not the law that was signed.

SB 907 (Braun’s Law): Murder Exposure After a Prior DUI

According to its author, SB 907 is named for Braun Levi, an 18-year-old who was struck and killed by a suspected drunk driver while walking in Manhattan Beach on May 4, 2025. The author’s office states that the accused driver had a prior DUI arrest that was pleaded to a hit and run, so no Watson warning was ever given.

What a Watson advisement is

Vehicle Code 23593 already requires courts to advise anyone convicted of DUI under Section 23152 or 23153, or of a “wet reckless” under Section 23103.5, that driving under the influence is extremely dangerous to human life, and that “if you continue to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, and, as a result of that driving, someone is killed, you can be charged with murder.” The advisement is noted on the record and on the conviction abstract sent to the DMV.

That warning matters later. Murder requires malice, and under Penal Code 188 malice can be implied when the circumstances show an abandoned and malignant heart. A documented prior warning is powerful evidence that a driver knew the danger and drove anyway, which is the foundation of a second-degree “Watson murder” prosecution after a fatal crash.

What SB 907 changes

SB 907 amends Vehicle Code 23635, now titled Braun’s Law, in two ways that matter to anyone negotiating a DUI case:

1. If a defendant pleads guilty or no contest to a different or lesser offense as a substitute for an alleged DUI under Section 23152, the court must give the Section 23593 advisement.
2. The existing rule requiring the court to state on the record its reasons for dismissing a DUI, substituting a lesser offense, or striking a prior, and requiring the prosecutor to file a written statement of reasons, stays in place.

The practical effect: after January 1, 2027, a reduction from DUI to a non-DUI charge, such as a “dry” reckless driving plea or another substitute offense, will no longer avoid the murder warning. Pleading down still has major benefits, but it will leave a Watson advisement on your record.

Tougher hit and run penalties for drivers with a recent prior

SB 907 also rewrites Vehicle Code 20001, the felony hit and run statute. If a driver leaves the scene of an injury crash within 10 years of a separate conviction for wet reckless, DUI, DUI causing injury, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under Penal Code 191.5, or vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence under Penal Code 192(c)(1):

• Injury crash: the felony range rises to two, three or four years, instead of the general felony term.
• Death or permanent, serious injury: the range rises from two, three or four years to three, four or five years.

Our article on hit and run after a DUI explains how prosecutors already combine these charges.

AB 1546: Third DUI in 10 Years as a Wobbler

Today, Vehicle Code 23546 punishes a DUI committed within 10 years of two prior DUI-related convictions as a misdemeanor, with 120 days to one year in county jail and a fine of $390 to $1,000. Before the change, a DUI without injury could be charged as a felony only with three or more priors in 10 years (Section 23550) or a prior felony DUI (Section 23550.5).

AB 1546 changes the ladder starting January 1, 2027:

DUI within 10 years	Before January 1, 2027	Starting January 1, 2027
Third (two priors), VC 23546	Misdemeanor: 120 days to 1 year county jail	Wobbler: 120 days to 1 year county jail, or 16 months, 2 or 3 years under PC 1170(h)
Fourth (three priors), VC 23550(a)	Wobbler: 180 days to 1 year county jail, or felony term	Wobbler (unchanged in substance)
Fifth or more (four or more priors), VC 23550(b)	Wobbler	Felony only: 16 months, 2 or 3 years under PC 1170(h)

Under Penal Code 18, a felony is generally punishable by 16 months, two or three years. Because AB 1546 uses Penal Code 1170(h), a felony sentence for a third or fifth DUI is normally served in county jail rather than state prison. The fine range of $390 to $1,000 stays the same.

The ripple effect on future cases

AB 1546 also amends Vehicle Code 23550.5, which makes any new DUI within 10 years of a prior felony DUI a wobbler punishable by state prison. The new version counts a third DUI “punished as a felony under Section 23546.” In other words, a third DUI that is charged and sentenced as a felony becomes a prior felony DUI, and any further DUI within the next 10 years can be charged as a prison felony. How the third offense is resolved shapes the next decade.

AB 1546 also updates the child passenger enhancement in Vehicle Code 23572 so that the 30-day enhancement for a third DUI applies when that third DUI is punished as a misdemeanor. If you are facing a repeat charge now, our guide to a third-time DUI charge covers the current penalties in detail.

Longer Revocations and New DMV Points

The Governor’s announcement highlights longer revocations and new DMV points. Both are real, but neither applies to cases in the next several years.

AB 1687, Irene’s Law

AB 1687 adds Vehicle Code 13352.7. For a DUI causing injury under Section 23153 that occurs within 10 years of four or more prior DUI-related convictions, the driving privilege is suspended for 72 months. Reinstatement requires proof of financial responsibility and completion of a 30-month DUI program (or an 18-month program if a 30-month program is unavailable in the county). After 12 months, the person may apply for a restricted license if they continue in the program, install a certified ignition interlock device, and agree to keep it for a mandatory term of 72 months. The section becomes operative January 1, 2031.

AB 1685 and DMV points

AB 1685 amends Vehicle Code 12810 so that a conviction for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under Penal Code 191.5(a) carries three violation points. It also adds that conviction to the records the DMV must disclose for 10 years. Ordinary DUI convictions under Sections 23152 and 23153 remain two points. These changes also become operative January 1, 2031.

Neither bill changes the DMV’s administrative per se process that follows a DUI arrest. You still have only 10 days to request a DMV hearing, and the defenses described in our guide on how to win a DMV hearing still apply.

What It Means for a Pending Orange County DUI

If you are facing a DUI in Orange County right now, the date of the offense and the date of any plea both matter.

The offense date controls the penalty

The California Constitution prohibits ex post facto laws, which increase the punishment for a crime after it was committed. A third DUI committed before January 1, 2027 remains a misdemeanor under the current version of Section 23546, even if the case resolves later. A third DUI committed on or after January 1, 2027 can be filed as a felony.

Your prior convictions still count

The 10-year look-back in Sections 23546 and 23550 asks whether the new offense occurred within 10 years of the prior violations that resulted in convictions. Nothing in AB 1546 limits that look-back to priors from after 2027. If you have two prior DUI-related violations within the last 10 years, a new arrest on or after January 1, 2027 exposes you to a felony.

Plea timing and Braun’s Law

The new advisement rule in SB 907 is triggered by the plea itself: it applies when a defendant pleads guilty or no contest to a different or lesser offense as a substitute for a DUI. Once the law is in effect, a reduced plea in an older case may come with the advisement, so if you are negotiating a reduction, discuss timing with your lawyer.

Where Orange County DUI cases are heard

Under the Orange County Superior Court’s designation list, misdemeanor DUI cases are heard at the justice center assigned to the city of arrest: the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana for Santa Ana, Orange and Tustin, the North Justice Center in Fullerton for Anaheim and Fullerton, the West Justice Center in Westminster for Garden Grove, Huntington Beach and Costa Mesa, and the Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach for Irvine and Newport Beach. Felony trials can be assigned to any justice center. Our Orange County DUI defense page covers how we handle cases in each of these courts.

Example Scenarios

A third DUI in Garden Grove in March 2027

A driver with DUI convictions from 2019 and 2023 is arrested in Garden Grove in March 2027. Because the offense occurred after January 1, 2027 and within 10 years of two priors, the District Attorney can file it as a felony under the new Section 23546. If it is sentenced as a felony, any new DUI before 2037 can be charged under Section 23550.5 as a prison-eligible felony.

A first DUI pleaded to dry reckless in 2027

A driver arrested in Costa Mesa for a first DUI negotiates a plea to reckless driving under Section 23103 that is not a wet reckless. Before Braun’s Law, that plea did not carry a Watson advisement. If the plea is entered on or after January 1, 2027 as a substitute for the DUI charge, the court must give the advisement. Our article on the first-time DUI charge explains the penalties and options in a first case.

A pending third DUI from August 2026

A driver arrested in Santa Ana in August 2026 for a third DUI in 10 years has a trial set for February 2027. The offense predates the law, so the maximum remains one year in county jail under the current misdemeanor statute.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did California pass a law making all repeat DUIs murder?

No. Braun’s Law does not create a new murder crime. It requires the Watson warning in more cases, which makes it easier to prove implied malice if a warned driver later kills someone while impaired.

Is a third DUI automatically a felony in 2027?

No. It becomes a wobbler. Prosecutors can file it as a misdemeanor or a felony, and the facts of the case, the priors and the quality of the defense all influence that decision.

Does a wet reckless count as a prior for the new third-DUI rule?

Yes. Sections 23546 and 23550 count prior violations of Section 23103 as specified in Section 23103.5, which is the wet reckless statute, along with Sections 23152 and 23153. Our page on wet reckless pleas explains how they work.

When do the new DMV point and suspension rules start?

January 1, 2031, according to the text of AB 1685 and AB 1687.

Do these laws change the legal blood alcohol limit?

No. None of the four bills changes the 0.08 percent standard in Vehicle Code 23152.

Getting Ahead of California’s New DUI Laws

These bills raise the stakes for anyone with a DUI history, but they also reward early, careful defense work. How a case is charged, what it is reduced to and when a plea is entered now carry consequences that reach years into the future.

At the Law Office of Sheny Gutierrez, our founder has more than 15 years of criminal defense experience in courts throughout Southern California and has completed NHTSA-approved training in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing and Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement. Our founder also serves as a criminal defense attorney for the Mexican Consulate. Se habla español. If you have a DUI pending anywhere in Orange County, or a history that these new laws affect, reach out for a free consultation. You can reach our office 24/7.