NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – On Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, Judge Carlton P. Biggs granted an alternative sentence for a man convicted of driving under the influence after the jail twice refused to pre-book him due to medical concerns.
The accused’s privately appointed defense attorney, Niranjan Fred Thiagarajah, requested that the court allow his client to serve 120 days in the MOST (Monitored Outpatient Sobriety Treatment) program instead of in jail. He cited persistent health-related complications that made booking into jail unfeasible.
The accused had already pleaded guilty in July to driving under the influence of alcohol. In addition to the 120-day jail sentence discussed at Friday’s hearing, he was sentenced to five years of probation, fines, a multiple offender alcohol program, an ignition interlock device, and counseling. The jail stay began in September, with Friday’s hearing maintaining the sentencing process…