Some trouble with the law

[Silva]

Well, last Tuesday I was arrested for driving under the influence. It's been really embarrassing for myself and my family who are pretty disappointed about all this. I've been beating myself over the head over just how preventable this could have been, and how much I did not pay attention to myself.

Now, the court hearing is at the end of March. From what I've heard, the punishment for DUI is a hefty fine (anywhere between $3000 - $6000), mandatory classes, and a suspension of my license for a year. The only thing I'm worrying about is the license suspension, as I still need to drive 30 miles to school four days a week. The fine might be a problem but I assume I can make separate payments.

If anyone of you knows anything about the law or the court system, is there any advice you can give to keep them from throwing the entire book at me? This is a first offense and it's being charged as a misdemeanor, but I think that without good enough representation, they can pretty much do whatever they want with me. What can I tell the courts to keep them from punishing me extra hard?

Also, was there any way I could have stopped this from happening in the first place (other than not drinking, of course)? I feel like I've made far too many mistakes (took a breathalyzer test on the street, gave the wrong registration card, could not speak properly out of anxiety). I wasn't even told my rights when arrested, could this help me in any way?

I know, I feel very sorry for what I have done, and I will take measures in the future to prevent something like this from happening again. If there is any help you can give me at this point, it will be very appreciated.

[This One]

I'm only about halfway sure of this [I'm no law major, for sure], but I believe the law only requires you to be Mirandized when you're going to be interrogated by the police either in the car or at the station after you've been arrested. So if they didn't interrogate you, it's most likely why you didn't hear your rights. The Miranda rule is there to help you prevent against self-incrimination, and if they didn't interrogate you, you can't incriminate yourself. I'm also pretty sure they can take blood samples from DUI drivers without a warrant.

Don't know if that helps, but that's all I know about the law. Definitely check with someone who knows the system better, if you know anyone like that.

Best of luck.

[Silva]

Well I talked with a lawyer yesterday, and you were right about the miranda, This One. It seems that what's most likely to happen is a $1900 fine, $400 classes for three months, and a suspended license for at least 7 months. Not as bad, but still bad. The only thing I worry about is the likelihood of the judge giving me a much more harsh penalty. Plus they only give restricted licenses to people with jobs, so I can't get one to drive myself to school. It's my last semester too, I'm graduating this year. I need to see if they'll give me an exception, or at least not suspend my license until after I get out of college.

The only thing I need to wonder from here is, would it be better if I hired to lawyer to represent me? Or would it not make a difference? And whether I plead guilty or not guilty would make any difference, I don't think there's much of a way out of this at this point.

[EJP]

They don't have to tell you your Miranda rights at the exact moment they are going to arrest you. They can wait until booking before they tell you them. Unless you have it on tape that they didn't tell you your rights, I think your SOL. Also if you try to play that card without evidence, they'll just use the "You were drunk/intoxicated" card. I can't give you a lot of legal advice for this because I don't know but honestly I think you're screwed.

Oh and if you want to avoid another DUI in the future, get a friend who doesn't drink. That or stop drinking, get a tattoo on your forearm that you can only read when drunk that says "If you can read this, don't get in your car", or only drink at bars. Believe it or not but in California (Last time I checked) if a bartender sees that you are really drunk they have to by law take your keys away. Failure to do so can result in many different things... but I'm not too sure on this so... look into it if you are interested.

[Silva]

Well that's weird, because I go to bars all the time, and they never take my keys, ever. The night I got arrested I was driving home from a bar too. I think that's because I can hide my drunkenness pretty well, from anyone whose not a cop at least.

On another note, I've hired a lawyer that my dad knew. He can keep them from stripping me of my license until at least mid April. So I have until then to figure out how I'm supposed to get from downtown San Diego to San Marcos four days a week. Shit still sucks here.