Street racing and showing off a car's speed are charged under Vehicle Code 23109, which covers both a speed contest and an exhibition of speed. I am Joel Brand, and this statute matters in the DUI world both as a charge that can accompany a DUI and as a favorable reduction from one. Here is how it works.
The text of the law
Vehicle Code 23109. (a) A person shall not engage in a motor vehicle speed contest on a highway or in an offstreet parking facility. As used in this section, a motor vehicle speed contest includes a motor vehicle race against another vehicle, a clock, or other timing device. For purposes of this section, an event in which the time to cover a prescribed route of more than 20 miles is measured, but in which the vehicle does not exceed the speed limit, is not a speed contest. (c) A person shall not engage in a motor vehicle exhibition of speed on a highway or in an offstreet parking facility, and a person shall not aid or abet in a motor vehicle exhibition of speed on a highway or in an offstreet parking facility.
Two different offenses in one statute
Section 23109 contains two distinct prohibitions. Subdivision (a) is the speed contest, racing against another vehicle, a clock, or a timing device, commonly called street racing, and it is the more serious of the two. Subdivision (c) is the exhibition of speed, accelerating or driving to show off the vehicle's power or speed, sometimes called "speedex." Exhibition of speed is the lesser offense, and it is the one that matters most as a DUI reduction.
What the prosecution must prove
For a speed contest, the state must show an actual race or timed run, not merely fast driving. For an exhibition of speed, it must show that you accelerated or drove specifically to display the vehicle's speed or power, which is more than ordinary acceleration. That intent-and-conduct requirement is a real defense opening: a quick start from a light, or simply driving fast, is not automatically an exhibition of speed, and the prosecution has to prove the showing-off element.
As a charge alongside a DUI
An officer who observes aggressive acceleration during a DUI stop may add an exhibition-of-speed count, and that observation can also be the stated reason for the stop itself. If the stop was not actually justified, challenging it with a motion to suppress can undercut everything that followed. Speed contest, by contrast, is the more serious companion charge and can carry mandatory jail and a license suspension on its own.
As a DUI reduction
The more valuable role of this statute is as a reduction. In the right case, a DUI can be negotiated down to an exhibition of speed under subdivision (c), which has real advantages: no alcohol notation on the record, generally light penalties, and no mandatory DUI program. Like a dry reckless, it is harder to obtain than a wet reckless and depends on the facts and the prosecutor, but where available it is an attractive outcome. The full menu is in reducing a DUI to reckless driving or exhibition of speed.
Why exhibition of speed is a clean reduction
For someone whose main concern is keeping a DUI off their record, an exhibition-of-speed reduction is appealing precisely because it reads as a traffic offense with no connection to alcohol. It is not a priorable DUI, it avoids the DUI program and the mandatory court license suspension, and it is far easier to explain to employers, licensing boards, and insurers. The trade-off is that prosecutors offer it only when the DUI has a genuine weakness, which is exactly what the defense investigation is for.
Penalties for the underlying offenses
As charges in their own right, these are not trivial. A speed contest conviction under subdivision (a) can carry mandatory jail, a fine, community service, and a license suspension, with steeper penalties if injury results. Exhibition of speed under (c) is a lesser misdemeanor with lighter exposure. The contrast is part of why (c) works as a reduction while (a) is treated as a serious offense.
The vehicle-impound and spectator angles
Street-racing enforcement has grown, and the statute and related laws carry consequences beyond the base penalties. A vehicle used in a speed contest can be impounded, and there are separate provisions targeting spectators at illegal racing events. Because the enforcement push has made these cases higher-profile, prosecutors sometimes charge aggressively on thin facts, treating ordinary fast driving or a single hard acceleration as a contest or exhibition. That gap between the aggressive charge and what the evidence actually shows is where the defense works.
How I use it
I look at whether an exhibition or contest was genuinely proven, whether the observation justified the stop, and whether exhibition of speed can serve as a clean reduction in your case. All of it comes down to the strength of the evidence, the same leverage I use across my top DUI defenses.
Why intent is the weak point in these charges
Both halves of this statute require more than fast driving; they require a specific kind of conduct and intent. A speed contest needs an actual race or timed run, and an exhibition of speed needs driving meant to show off the vehicle's speed or power. In the real world, much of what gets charged under 23109 is ambiguous: a quick acceleration away from a light, a loud engine, a single burst of speed that a witness or officer interpreted as showing off. The prosecution has to prove the intent and the qualifying conduct, not just that the car moved fast, and that burden is frequently hard to meet. I focus the defense on exactly that gap, because if the intent element fails, the charge fails with it.
Facing a speed-contest charge or a DUI? Let's talk.
Whether this is a charge to beat or a reduction to pursue depends on your facts, which is exactly what I review. Use the free case analysis on this page, or call me directly at (888) 271-6644. I answer my own phone, 24/7.