First DUI (Marijuana)

[Mertron]

nevermind dont answer that

[Suvhater]

You think a lawyer is out of your price range? Wait until you see the fines and rate increases from court, dmv, insurance, etc. Where I live a DUI costs you about 10k in the end. Getting a lawyer saves you money sometimes.

[Titanss]

I will help you more than anyone on bg about this. You are fucked p much. A paid lawyer can't do shit about a DUI except maybe get it to a DWI and that is maybe. You will be able to get a temp license for work but it costs a shit load and it sounds like you have no money so gl with that. Btw it is 48 hrs in jail no matter what for DUI and a yr probation. Have fun

[Titanss]

btw getting a DUI for weed is very lol, I hope you are trolling because of 420

[Lucavi]

Your amazing Dallas owner can bail you out and pay off the judges.

Get to it.

[Pandora]

why are you guys so upset

[Snprphnx]

btw getting a DUI for weed is very lol, I hope you are trolling because of 420

not really. in virginia, DUI isnt intoxication, you can get DUI with a BAC of 0.0%. its Driving Under the Influence, which is a seperate charge of DWI, Driving While Intoxicated.

to the OP. First offense of either in VA is bad. If you get a lawyer, you can typically expect a large fine, upwards of $1500, 6 months of ASAP (Alcohol State Awareness Program), and 1 year restricted license (to/from work and actually emergencies) and 5 years probation.

[Zalius]

So I got pulled over for speeding in South Carolina 60 in a 45, had a small joint about 1gram or so. I had smoked in the truck about 30minutes or so before I got pulled over, the officer smelled it and asked me to perform the field sobriety tests. Apparently I failed. I was issued a ticket for DUI 1st and Simple Possesion, not for speeding.

This was my first time ever getting pulled over after just getting my license a month before, I was pretty nervous and shakey I informed him of this. I did not feel high at all or even under the influence but he told me the tests said otherwise so.

I go to the police station he books me in I sign all the paper work. Now I do the breath test because I was not drinking alcohol, but I refused the urine test he tells me my license is suspended in SC If I choose to do so. The officer informed me that he would not be attending the hearing by the DMV for such actions so I would get my license back for said time until proven guilty for DUI. Moving on arrested, booked transported to local county jail bonded out next day 1600$.

so here are my questions regarding the situation

1. The officer told me I should fight it in court to get it reduced to reckless driving
due to my age (19) and lack of criminal history (none what so ever). What are the chances of this happening?

2. I can't afford a paid lawyer, everyone I have called is way out of my price range. How well are the court appointed attorneys? Will this greatly decrease my chance of getting my charge reduced?

3. If charged with DUI is there anyway I can keep my license as it is needed for my job, and such a charge will probably be the end of it for me.

Thanks for the help in advanced, if you have any questions about the situation and would like to help feel free to pm/post thanks.

he did NOT piss test you, you admitted that you WERE nervous and shaky - it's your first time getting pulled over and you're 19, and you did NOT feel under the influence.

you made a poor judgement call - it happens dude. what's important now is that you understand a few things:
1. you admit to going 60 in a 45. yes, this was stupid and it's something teenagers do.
2. you admit to smoking weed in your truck. yes, this was stupid and it's something teenagers do.
3. you were giving a DUI in place of the ticket - you do not believe that were intoxicated enough to be impaired. they do not have any toxicological evidence that says how much marijuana is/was present in your system. A piss test is also a bad indicator but it does not tell an officer how immediately high you were at that very moment, it just gives him a snapshot of your usage in piss form.

you need to know WHY you failed that sobriety test. if it wasn't obvious to you why you failed, you're allowed to ask what the standards are and dispute any mistake that you feel the officer has made. if there is a dashcam and you were very much mellowed out and kept calm and STILL feel like you should have passed the sobriety test, push for your speeding ticket.

the most important part of this is that you admit that you made a mistake to the judge and that you understand that you were pretty stupid.

im gonna level with you. that was fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucking dumb. lots of people do shit like it all the time but don't get caught, cops know this and will often push these things a lot harder than they deserve to be pushed in the name of law enforcement as opposed to human nature and stupid mistakes. if you can keep calm and be extremely honest about the situation without being a little crybaby bitch (don't listen to that advice bro...why would you want to live the life of someone that cries for petty bullshit), they will probably respect you more for it.


don't fucking smoke in your truck. if you do, blast the air on full with all of the windows down for a couple minutes and always keep a spare air freshener (the little trees work best...haha little trees).

bunch of useless trolly dipshits in this thread. good luck bro, get your shit together and seriously don't fucking smoke in your car its a bad idea

[Pandora]

appreciate the response^

[Kohan]

I'm one of the most hardcore advocates of marijuana legalization that you'll find on BG, most likely. In fact, many of my largest and most thoroughly-researched posts cover that very subject. I don't imbibe, but the reasons aren't ethical; I've spent time and money on the legalization effort instead.

With that said, I think you were a total fucking idiot, and I never advocate driving under the influence. It's exactly the kind of irresponsible behavior that undermines the legalization effort. It will inevitably happen, as irresponsible people will be irresponsible people, but that doesn't mean it has to be acceptable.

On a more merciful token, you recognize that what you have done was foolish, have literally paid for it, and within this discussion, you've already been given advice. As Titanss said, hardly anyone on these forums would know better than him. I have also defended myself in court before, and I agree with Zalius—honesty is important. At the same time, don't say more than you need to. Just don't be a bitch about what you do say.

If you lose your job as a result of this, that will be unfortunate, but consider it a life lesson. If you don't, consider yourself incredibly grateful, and in either case, never drive under the influence again.

[Dimmauk]

OP needs to call the 420lawyer. I actually saw this advertisement on a car today.

[Siatdiat]

I think everyone has reproved your behavior enough, so I will try and help you out a bit with a snapshot of what goes on in an average courtroom since you have probably never been in one before.

I recently had to go to court several times for a neighbor who was on house arrest and had started threatening to kill myself and other members of the community. Everytime I was there, it seemed like 75% of the cases that came up involved marijuana charges of some kind. In every case I noticed a trend. People who showed up to court in a sweat suit, and acted disrespectfully to the judge, or just seemed ignorant of how to behave properly in a courtroom, got the book thrown at them. I saw people with very similar first time charges get very different results because rather than be stupid, they came to court well dressed and groomed, were very respectful to the judge, and were clearly very upset about the ramifications their mistake could have on their lives. Many times those types had their charges dropped to something less severe, and penalties were much less than those who came in being asses. I think the bottom line is that there are so many cases regarding marijuana in some way that the court gets tired of them. Oh, and no matter how nice or respectful someone was of the judge, if they told an obvious lie, they would get fucked over too. I would suggest trying to find out about the attitude of the judge you are going to be standing before in advance to find out his attitude on cases like this, that can make a big difference in how you will want to represent yourself in court. A lot of the things I saw may not be the same for other judges in other areas, so researching what your judge will be like will likely make a huge difference.

Good luck, and don't smoke and drive anymore.

[Titanss]

I just told the little fucker what he needs to know. They fucking hate DUIs in the US thx to little bastards (like this guy) getting vehicular manslaughters after a few beers. You might be able to get a Pre trail diversion with a paid lawyer since it is your first charge but I am almost positive they won't do that with DUIs. Look man a consultation with a lawyer is free, go see what one says, he will tell you the same thing I have. If you get a DUI it is a mother fucker, I damn near never got my fucking license back even after all the probation and bullshit. If they would have just charged you with the weed you would have no problems

[Ashmada]

it's should have GOD DAMN IT ARE YOU HIGH OR STUPID

Thanks. You saved 8 kittens, there.

[Drakath]

One night of "fun", thousands of dollars!

[Cream Soda]

Reminds me of the time I shoulda got a DUI on my bike. Was biking drunk as fuck at 3am, about headed home (about 10 miles away). I got pulled over and the guy just had me flip over my bike and read the serial number to make sure it wasn't reported stolen, then let me go about my business.

[Tajin]

What show is that in your sigatar CS?

[hey]

What show is that in your sigatar CS?

yay for google image search

[Sepukku]

So I got my first ever ticket after 7+ years of driving yesterday and I was NOT high or drunk, so maybe you guys could advise me better... clocked at 35.4 MPH in a 15 MPH school zone; the road typically is a 35 MPH road and no kids/busses were in sight when the cop initially siren'ed me over to the side of the road and no kid or bus passed us - it was at 3:25 local time when I guess school zone time ended at 3:30 for that high school. I'm usually fine cause (A) I work weekends so this doesn't apply for 2 of my 3 work shifts and (B) I was early; I typically go by around 3:45 when school zone time is over.

How do I go about pleading to a judge for leniency and a lesser vehicle infraction / less license points / less fine? My ticket says I can plead guilty or plead not guilty. Plead not guilty is the one where I go before a judge; but it seems like the wrong choice cause I'm not actually DENYING I was going 35 MPH on the road. I know I was. But that seems like the only outcome where I see a judge?

Pennsylvania if reference is needed.

[RKenshin]

So I got my first ever ticket after 7+ years of driving yesterday and I was NOT high or drunk, so maybe you guys could advise me better... clocked at 35.4 MPH in a 15 MPH school zone; the road typically is a 35 MPH road and no kids/busses were in sight when the cop initially siren'ed me over to the side of the road and no kid or bus passed us - it was at 3:25 local time when I guess school zone time ended at 3:30 for that high school. I'm usually fine cause (A) I work weekends so this doesn't apply for 2 of my 3 work shifts and (B) I was early; I typically go by around 3:45 when school zone time is over.

How do I go about pleading to a judge for leniency and a lesser vehicle infraction / less license points / less fine? My ticket says I can plead guilty or plead not guilty. Plead not guilty is the one where I go before a judge; but it seems like the wrong choice cause I'm not actually DENYING I was going 35 MPH on the road. I know I was. But that seems like the only outcome where I see a judge?

Pennsylvania if reference is needed.

In most states (I think, if not all?), you can have a ticket dismissed on account of a good driving record.

The catch is you obviously can't do it if you had a different violation within the past 3 years, and that of course means you can only do this once every three years too.