Judge Gives 78-Year-Old With 9 DUI Convictions Maximum Sentence

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — A 78-year-old man with 9 drunk driving convictions was sentenced to the maximum term of 3 years in custody after he pleaded no contest to felony DUI charges, the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office said.

A judge sentenced Alberto Salgado-Gonzalez, of Santa Rosa, on Oct. 30 after the septuagenarian admitted to driving under the influence of alcohol and acknowledging 4 prior DUI convictions within the past decade, the district attorney's office said in a statement.

In total, Salgado-Gonzalez now has nine convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol, the district attorney's office said.

Prosecutors said his most recent conviction stemmed from an April 28, 2024 arrest, when Salgado-Gonzalez crashed into a ditch. His blood alcohol level was a .21, nearly three times the legal limit.

Salgado-Gonzalez was under supervision, after serving a prison sentence, for a prior felony DUI conviction, the district attorney's office said.

Sonoma County D.A. Carla Rodriguez said in a statement that her office sought the maximum sentence of 3 years.

"Three years in custody, minus credits, is an insufficient sentence for someone that simply refuses to stop driving drunk," she said. "Nevertheless, that is the maximum sentence allowed for this offense, that is what we argued for, and that was what the court imposed.”

After Salgado-Gonzelez serves the 3-year sentence, he will be placed on post-release community supervision.