DUI

Discussion in 'BS Forum' started by BeastBeach, May 11, 2015.

  1. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    The night of the Mayweather fight I went over to a friends house and had 4-5 drinks. When I left I felt I was fine to drive. On the way home I was pulled over. The officer told me he had pulled me over because I have an air freshener hanging from my rear view mirror. I said no problem, I'll take it down. He stated it was too late for that, and also when I pulled over I hit the curb a little bit. He said he smelled alcohol on me and asked how much I had to drink. I told him nothing. He then asked me to step out of the car for field sobriety tests.

    The first was my abcs. Nailed that one. The second was the one leg stand. I lost my balance on that both times I tried, although I do have some knee trouble. The third was the "follow the light" test. He then asked me to take the portable breathalyzer. I told him I wasn't going to take it because I felt the reason he pulled me over was illegitimate and that I did what he asked me to do and anything further would be harassment. I was cuffed and taken to the station.

    He again asked me to take the portable breath test. I refused again, to which he became a little hostile towards me and told me it was obvious i was on something. I told him I wanted a lawyer because he was being antagonistic towards me and I wanted somebody there I knew would be on my side. I sat there a while longer before I was put in the drunk tank for the night. I have been charged with refusal to take a breathalyzer and DUI.

    I have hired the best lawyer in the area but am worried, as there is a fair chance I will lose my job due to this. I haven't told my employer yet and am unsure as to whether or not I should do so. I am not required to unless convicted, but think it may do some good to be up front about it.

    The refusal would result in loss of license for a year with no chance at a restricted license to go back and forth to work. Although I was never offered the opportunity to take the evidentiary breath test which is the one they can use at trial. I was also not given a chance to speak with a lawyer when I requested one.

    Anyone have experience with this sort of thing and/or have any advice?
     
  2. Brook!

    Brook! Soft Admin...2018 Friendliest Member Award Winner

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    Sorry to hear this man. I hope someone experienced can give you some advice.
     
  3. Poeman

    Poeman Well-Known Member

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    I know I dont want sound like a ass but you took 4-5 drinks and you were impaired a little bit. So I hate to break it to you its a tough break and you got caught by the Cop.

    Anyways, it depends with your work situation if you are up front about it. I dont know how DUI's work in the workplace but if you are straight forward with your bosses and say you were illegitimately pulled over and are fighting it in court because of harassment then maybe they can understand.

    I wonder if the cops care about fighting these cases as much as they do if you are paying up.
     
  4. BrowningNagle

    BrowningNagle Well-Known Member

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    Sorry to hear about that Beast....

    I don't know if my advice will be any good and there might be others with much better but I'll share a little bit of what I think/if I was in your shoes:

    1) I wouldn't tell your employer yet. I guess that depends, you have to read the tealeaves on that one. Have you worked there a long time? Do you think they would be understanding? whats their track record in these situations? But really -I wouldn't tell them unless you down right had to. It's not really any of their business anyway at this point.

    2) Your decision to hire a good lawyer in the area is a good one. Two big mistakes people make when they are in that situation. 1) they go cheap on the lawyer or 2) opt for an out-of-town lawyer. a local attorney is more key than people realize. Local judges/attorneys are friends or see each other often, they are more apt to work something out. Judges can also throw the book at out-of-town attorneys just to make a statement. If I got a DUI visiting another state I would even hire a local attorney even If I didn't know him before I brought one with me from out of state. So good decisions there.

    3) I think your lawyer ought to be able to help you here. I am really surprised you weren't forced to take a blood test at the station. I know different states have different rules about the refusal to take breathalyzers. Seems to me that he would be able to easily get you out of the DUI because they never got any definitive proof, hence why I am surprised they didn't have you take a blood test. The refusal charge will be more difficult, but its possible they could work out some sort of plea deal- - classes, probation, $$, etc.. to lower the charge. It will be a pain in the ass but thats the best case scenario at this point.

    You are at the mercy of the judge and your attorney's abilities at this point really but it helps that its only a first offense. I really think a savvy lawyer out to be able to help you here.
     
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  5. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    Yeah I know I shouldn't have driven home. Big mistake by me. I know people always have an excuse for these sort of things but this was literally the first time I had been out with friends since my daughter was born about a year ago. So I'm bummed out. We are also in the process of buying a house so now all of that is up in the air. The possibility of losing it all is really bothering me
     
  6. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    I wouldn't feel compelled to tell work if it wasn't for the home buying process. I kinda need to know where I stand for the loan. My court date has already been pushed to August so the bank won't wait that long for the result
     
  7. The Waterboy

    The Waterboy Well-Known Member

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    In Florida from what I have seen there will be a good chance to plead it down where it will not involve a DUI. If you can explain away the one legged stumble on the knee problem that is. One thing you have against you is probably a squad car video of the tests. Not taking the breathalyzer was a smart move. If the rest of the video looks OK besides the one legged stand you may be OK, just be prepared for the hefty attorney bill because it will probably take quite a few hours of back and forth.
    Just to be open I am giving my views from the shady side rather than the attorney side. Have quite a few acquaintances who have been in similar circumstances. It has been a while but I heard Palm Beach County was a little harder than Broward and Miami-Dade easier than both. Where are you located?
     
  8. NotSatoshiNakamoto

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    Just ask your lawyer about the employment situation.
     
  9. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    I'm actually in Virginia lol. Yeah I am worried about the one leg stand because that is the thing that will be obvious if there is video. I don't know if there is or not yet. The other tests won't be obvious or not whether I passed based upon the video. I have a documented medical history of knee problems so I'm hoping that I can use that in my favor(even though that wasn't an issue on that night)
     
  10. Umphpool

    Umphpool Well-Known Member

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    Hang in there man, extremely smart getting the lawyer the rest is a waiting game
     
  11. Charlie Kelly

    Charlie Kelly Well-Known Member

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    I think you may have screwed the pooch by submitting to that stupid sobriety "test" and then refusing the breath test, I'm not much of a drinker but I have friends that have beaten it the opposite way and I also love in a place where they have forced blood tests because of the success rate of refused overall tests.

    If you were confident about your sobriety you should have either submitted to the breath or opted for blood which is an option in many states, not sure about yours. That you submitted to the fail worthy street test and had problems is going to hurt you
     
  12. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    Yeah I feel dumb about that now. I didn't think about it until after the fact
     
  13. Charlie Kelly

    Charlie Kelly Well-Known Member

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    Nothing you can do about it now but I think your best route is challenging the heck out of it and seeing if you can get the cop.to no-show in court. You would be surprised at how many arresting cops don't bother with court appearances. It may not help your employment situation but that is the least of your worries at this point
     
  14. 74

    74 Well-Known Member

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    I was once charged w/ a DUI in VA. I don't really have any advice it really comes down to luck in court but here's my story, I'll share it cuz it's the same state, maybe you can get something from it.

    I had driven a half hour through very windy roads and was almost home, driving on a straightaway I looked down at my ipod too long and veered off, hit the side of the road. My SUV flipped a few times and landed right side up in a ditch. it's pretty crazy being in a vehicle that's rolling but I was fine, even had a bunch of red bricks in the back but none of them hit me. I thought about trying to run but I figure I'd take a minute to see if I could get the car going again. I was trying to push it out when a cop rolled up. Then I could see in the headlights it wasn't in a ditch but on some guys front lawn and the wheels on one side were knocked off. The cop gave me some field tests and I did well (he told me later that I passed them all) but I reeked of booze and just destroyed my vehicle so he cuffed me and took me in. They took my BAC with the breathalyzer machine at the station, it was .27. Thing is I was very nice and cooperative, just being thankful for being ok and not hurting anybody, and having a good sense of humor with the cops. I got the best lawyer in town and a bunch of written character references. My prosecutor ended up being a friend or former coworker of my attorney, something like that, and the cop said something nice about me. They reduced the charge to reckless driving. I was pretty young still so that helped with getting some mercy. I had a restricted license for six months and had to go to some drug abuse class once a week for six months. Also had to do one day in jail but since I was cuffed to a cold metal bench all night they counted that as time served. I was very lucky, yeah, but chill out, nobody got hurt. just get the best lawyer you can.
     
    #14 74, May 12, 2015
    Last edited: May 12, 2015
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  15. BrowningNagle

    BrowningNagle Well-Known Member

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    Wow that's amazing.
     
  16. IDFjet

    IDFjet Well-Known Member

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    Sorry to hear about this--I'm sure its real tough on you right now.

    Getting a local lawyer was very wise. This will most likely end up in a plea bargain. If you are lucky it may even end up in a deferred prosecution agreement. Ask your lawyer about this.

    Do not say anything about this to your job or your bank. Go ahead and get the loan and close on a house. Under the worse case scenario if you end up getting fired, things will still work out--maybe you will start your own business.
     
  17. Poeman

    Poeman Well-Known Member

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    Did you go retainer or hourly with lawyer?

    Fucking cant stand bad lawyers, they are leeches when they only care is dragging things out
     
  18. BeastBeach

    BeastBeach Banned

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    Retainer. 4200 bucks lol

    Went ahead and told my boss this morning and I most likely won't be fired so things are looking up at the moment
     
  19. kbgreen

    kbgreen Well-Known Member

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    Good luck, I have no Idea how the laws work in Virginia, but I wanted to wish you the best.
     
  20. NY Jets68

    NY Jets68 Well-Known Member

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    You folks must have shit luck.

    My brother and I spent from mid afternoon until after midnight drinking at a 99 restaurant and then a strip bar (which we were physically thrown out of) in MA. We lived in NH, a good 45 minutes away. My bro got behind the wheel, drove about 5 miles and then pulled over saying he was too drunk to drive. So I get behind the wheel and drive as carefully as possible until the last few miles. I get pulled over 100 feet from the entrance to our apartment complex. The cop ask us to get out of the car and all I see is 2 blobs in uniform with lights flashing. The cop says "Have you been drinking? We clocked you doing 45 in a 25 and 45 in a 35, what's your hurry?" My answer, "I wanted to get home before I hit somebody". After looking at our licenses and seeing we were almost home, the cop says, "Next time slow down".


    True story.
     
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