Should I plead guilty to a DUI-marijuana charge?

[Sgt. Slaughter]

I have no job because I am a full-time student, and now since I can't drive it's going to be next to impossible to find one. Furthermore, even if I get a restricted license I won't be able to pay for insurance, since my rates are going to go up from the DUI. On top of that I am going to be fined, and potentially go to jail for a few days.

All consequences of bad decision. You earned them. Driving is a privilege, not a right. You've violated the public trust and now will have to pay a penalty.

That's why I am not going to simply plead guilty. I'd rather put my money on a lawyer who can at least give me a chance of some sort of reduced sentence, or possibly a reduction of charges.

Just because you spend money on an attorney doesn't mean you now have some sort of chance at a reduction that was elusive before you hired him. It just means you're paying someone else to do the work for you.

"Under the influence" is not supposed to simply mean that I had THC in my system. It is supposed to mean that a person is impaired so as to be rendered incapable of operating their vehicle with the same degree of safety as they otherwise would be.

Ah, so now you're a Drug Recognition Expert in addition to being an 18 year old college student! I'm sure the CHP officer who stopped, tested and arrested you was simply unaware of your 'mad skills.' CHP has some of the best impaired driving enforcers in the country. The Standardized Field Sobriety Tests as well as the Drug Recognition Expert programs were both started and studied extensively by medical experts in California before they were adopted all across the country as THE tests to perform and gauge impairment.

I was not impaired. If I had been too high to drive I would have hit the guy who was braking in front me, rather than being pulled over for following to closely.

That's not the legal definition of impairment in California. Good luck with that one in front of a judge.

As a side note, I think cops should be required to inform people that they don't have to answer questions, since most people aren't aware of that, rather than taking advantage of people's fears by letting them think that they'll be in some sort of trouble if they don't say anything.

That's the personal opinion of someone who got busted doing something illegal. All the laws are on the books. All your rights and responsibilities are too. In fact, many of them are in the DMV manual you have to read when you take your test for a driver's license. Maybe if you hadn't have been smoking, you might remember more of them.

[Citicop]

You took an illegal drug and you drove, period. If you are looking for sympathy or advice in how to escape the consequences for your actions, you have come to the wrong place.

It does not matter what you THINK the law should be, or your interpretation of impairment is. I've heard every excuse there is in the book from drunk/high drivers I have taken to jail, and you sound no different from any of them.

You absolutely have the right to spend money on an attorney if you choose to do so. You may be successful in getting the fine reduced or something in doing so. But if you admitted to using drugs, and the officer observed signs of impairment, and they found THC in your system, then you are going to have a very difficult time getting much in the way of leeway from the court IMHO.

And the "I wasn't impaired because I wasn't in an accident" defense will go absolutely nowhere.

Lastly, everyone who has ever watched Law and Order, CSI, or COPS knows that they have the right to remain silent. If you forgot, maybe it IS because you were impaired.

Good Luck, and I honestly hope you learn from this before you injure or kill someone in a future incident.

-Citicop.

[RoadKingTrooper]

"Under the influence" is not supposed to simply mean that I had THC in my system. It is supposed to mean that a person is impaired so as to be rendered incapable of operating their vehicle with the same degree of safety as they otherwise would be. I was not impaired. If I had been too high to drive I would have hit the guy who was braking in front me, rather than being pulled over for following to closely.

LOL or just maybe if you weren't "under the influence" you wouldn't have been following too closely.

[GoDirectly2Jail]

Not going to read this thread because I'm sure everyone has been thorough in their responses, just wanted to comment on the thread title of whether the OP should plead guilty to his DUI charge in a forum full of cops is like a sheep asking a bunch of wolves whether lambchops sounds good for dinner...

[deputywave]

I have no job because I am a full-time student, and now since I can't drive it's going to be next to impossible to find one. Furthermore, even if I get a restricted license I won't be able to pay for insurance, since my rates are going to go up from the DUI. On top of that I am going to be fined, and potentially go to jail for a few days. That's why I am not going to simply plead guilty. I'd rather put my money on a lawyer who can at least give me a chance of some sort of reduced sentence, or possibly a reduction of charges.

You don't have a job and probably won't have one anytime soon. You don't have a job and won't be able to pay for insurance, even if your rates don't go up. You don't have a job and probably won't be able to pay your fines. What money are you going to put on a lawyer?

You were high when you posted this. PWI is a misdemeanor here. Your arrest is forthcoming.

"Under the influence" is not supposed to simply mean that I had THC in my system.

Actually, it is.


IBTL

[Safety Steve]

Yes you should plea guilty! We need that high conviction rate! Be Safe.

[greg72982]

Yes you should plea guilty! We need that high conviction rate! Be Safe.

Yep I need that new toaster.

[Creeker]

I can save you a buncha money right now.

Don't go to court, don't pay your fine, don't pay for a Lawyer.

Go home and climb right back into the crib, because I can see that Society is going to be supporting you for the rest of your life.

Spend your life playing Nintendo, as I am fairly certain you are probably the best driver on your memory disk in Super Mario when you are high.

[patchcop]

PWI is a misdemeanor here. Your arrest is forthcoming.

PWI = Posting While Intoxicated??????

Is it only a misdemeanor when the poster is under the influence of illegal drugs or also when he is under the influence of beer? I think than some of us will have a problem from time to time.

I 2nd your comment

[SnapShawt]

You came here, admitted to guilt, asked for advice, and you were given good words of advice in a polite and thoughtful manner. Then you decided to tell us what the law is and how we should do our jobs. That is where polite and thoughtful ends.

You have no grasp on the legal definition of intoxication. You can obviously read, and should have been long able to know the laws in your state as well as your rights when arrested or simply when being encountered by the police for any reason. We don't hold class on the side of the road. It is YOUR responsibility to know the law and your rights, not ours to teach them to you. It is obvious that you don't because you have displayed an extreme ignorance of them. Is it really that difficult to say, "Hey, I've consumed an intoxicating substance, and though I may not FEEL high/drunk/whatever, it's safer to not drive in case I am more impaired than I think/feel."

You put others (more importantly) and yourself (secondarily) in danger by your actions. Actions have consequences. Violations of law have punishments.

How did you get the legal definition of intoxication wrong? How did you misinterpret the law? Well, we're not holding class here either. Exercise your ability to read so that you don't look like an idiot thinking he's "teaching" anyone anything.

[Legoate]

As a side note, I think cops should be required to inform people that they don't have to answer questions

We are....Google "miranda". Read it, learn it, use your jail-lawyer skills to figure out how it applies to you (or doesn't).

Next time CHP pulls you over refuse to speak or roll down the window... I mean, it is your right isn't it?

[Cat_Doc]

IBTL

Heading that way, real quick.

[Ne_Smokey_Bear]

"Under the influence" is not supposed to simply mean that I had THC in my system. It is supposed to mean that a person is impaired so as to be rendered incapable of operating their vehicle with the same degree of safety as they otherwise would be. I was not impaired. If I had been too high to drive I would have hit the guy who was braking in front me, rather than being pulled over for following to closely.

LOL or just maybe if you weren't "under the influence" you wouldn't have been following too closely.

+1

I think you were lucky there was an officer there to stop you from seriously injuring yourself or someone else. Man up. I work with men your age who would gladly march into gunfire and you are worried about a DUI that you made the decision that ultimately lead to that result.