I need to know, this is serious, did I get totally screwed in court or what?

Question

A Poll,My story: Live in CA. Got .08 DUI,1 glass of wine. Pulled out from parking spot 20 ft to the street, turned right-drove about 15 ft, did a 3 point turn, backed up 20 feet. When I got out there were police officers standing there. I didn't get a field sobriety test, I was so scared and shaking, I asked for a minute to calm down and breath-he slapped the cuffs on me and arrested me right then. Evidentually another car had peeled out and they thought it was me. My 11 yr was with me also. Went to court, I was sentenced to 10 days jail or work release, AA meetings , Parent class & 1st offenders DUI classes w/ $2,222.00 fine. I had to go back to court and a different Pub.Def.& Judge said my sentence was 'excesive', they dropped the meetings, he couldn't overrule the other Judge. If you've had a DUI,may I compare yours w/ mine? I think I got reamed.
copy & paste below here & type in your answers.
State:
BAC Level:
Male or Female:
Age:
Days in jail:
Fine:
Other sentencing:

Chadness, I never drink, I haven't drank any alcohol since August, if you read my note, you'd see, i pulled my truck up and parked it, I was driving about 5 miles an hour. I did not endanger anyone. I will never take a small sip and get behind the wheel.

No, I don't think anyone has a grudge, I know a couple police officers and a Judges secretary there at the courthouse. I also have no other charges ever of any kind. One good point, My insurance did not go up, even with my SR 22, go figure!

I NEED TO LET you all KNOW THIS.-glass of wine held 1 & 1 third cups of wine, it was a stemmed water glass- alcohol content was 12% alcohol. I weigh 112 lbs. I was not impaired. I BLEW A .08, it use to be a .10. I HAVE NEVER BEEN IN TROUBLE BEFORE, I was extremley polite, well, more like bawling my head off. I pulled my truck away from the curb did a 3 pt turn and backed up! I wasn't driving reckless. For all of you out there that wrote to me like I was a big POS, you can go to hell, because you don't know me. I made a mistake,I never drink and haven't since & had I thought I was putting my son in danger, I NEVER would have got behind the wheel.. Some of you act like I'm a oozing sore junkie with needles laying aound my home, that is child endangerment! I have 6 kids, one is a police officer in San Diego, 23 yr old works in aerospace in SoCal, 1 is gifterd, 18 yr old is moving to Germany-paid his own way last summer, I'm not a bad mom- you have no idea how straight I really am.

Answer 1

I have handled many a DUI and I have to say, your sentence seems ridiculously excessive. But, it depends on a lot of things. I am not going to address whether you had one glass of wine or not, that is not the issue. The things that get you smacked with a sentence like that are your prior record, (which you didn't mention) and how you behaved when you were arrested. When the lawyer sits down to discuss a dwi case with the DA, we usually have the arresting officer there, who will say, "yeah, s/he was very polite and remorseful" or "yeah, s/he was a belligerent asshole". So that has to do with it.
I can't say whether it was your PD or not, because most of them are very good, but they won't usually go to serious bat for you.

Answer 2

Sorry to hear about your sentence. It does seem excessive considering. (I think this also shows the value of a good, repeat lawyer. I'm sure the P.D. was a fine person, but it sounds to me like you might have been able to get this dismissed or pled down... unless California doesn't allow that anymore.)
This reminds me of a Supreme Court case decided in the last few years where the Court declared that it was constitutional for an officer to take a person into custody (i.e. full blown arrest) for an offense which the punishment does not include ANY jail time. The woman was in Texas and driving a car somewhat wildly (because her kids were in the back and distracting her). The officer arrested the woman for some form of reckless driving that didn't carry a jail sentence. She was booked; someone had to come out and pick up her kids; she was humiliated. Court said that an officer shouldn't have to judge right there and then whether the offense that she will eventually be charged with carries prison time. I say -- Come on... okay maybe you don't want to lay down a regular rule, but arresting the woman for going over the centerline?

Anyway, the point of the story is that I wonder if the cops in that case and in yours were mostly concerned about the kid. And sometimes they can't tell the difference between "encounter with police" scared and "I'm really guilty and did something terribly wrong" scared.

Drunk driving has almost become like speeding -- except for the worst offenders (people who are CLEARLY impaired and a danger) it's the luck of the draw -- 1/4 of the drivers on a Saturday night are above the relatively low level of .08, and it's just whethe ryou're unlucky enough to do something to catch their attention and get pulled over.

P.S. DO NOT appeal your case. DO NOT. There is next to no chance that you'd win (unless you have proof that someone was out on a vendetta against you personally), so it takes time and money. And if you'd win, you usually go before the same judge for resentencing... And all the court would have to do is articulate better reasons for a sentence, and you might even get a HIGHER SENTENCE after an appeal. (e.g., wasting court resources and refusing to accept your punishment.)

Answer 3

I've never had a DUI or anything like it, but I'd love to know what the cop claimed he was arresting you for, since he didn't give you any type of field sobriety test.

I've had friends with DUI's ... let me see.

He was in Louisiana, his BAC level was .1, male, 22 years old, bailed out almost immediately, no additional jail, $500 fine, required to attend AA meetings for a year because he admitted to a drinking problem (the judge said if he hadn't admitted he needed help, it would have been a $1000 fine and required DUI classes PLUS the AA meetings).

It really does sound like you got reamed. Does the judge or anyone else at the courthouse or sheriff's office have any type of grudge against you?

Answer 4

A BAC of .08 is prima facia evidence of impairment in most states. That must have been a pretty big glass of wine to get you there unless you weigh 40 pounds.
Unless the officer was sandbagging the place you were drinking you must have done something erratic to make him suspicious of you. It must have been pretty obvious that you had been drinking for him not to do a field sobriety test before arresting you.
Most states follow a set sentencing guideline which may vary from state to state.
Typical Florida DUI sentence first offense:
State: Florida
BAC Level: .08 or Up
Days in jail: 0
Fine:$1000
Other sentencing:
High Risk Traffic School $500
DUI Countermeasures Program $500
6 months reporting Probation
Cost recovery: $500.00
Restitution if a crash was involved.
The judge might have thought that having your kid in the car was an aggravating factor which could account for the jail time.
You were fortunate that you didn't get caught in Indonesia, they execute drunk drivers there!

Answer 5

I think your sentence was a reflection of the fact that you were DUI with your child in the car. Since you are giving your BAC in this story, I assume that you are not contesting the fact that you were intoxicated. Some people get drunk on one glass of wine (how large a glass?) so there is no point there. The point is that you endangered yourself, your child, and other people and their children. People are slaughtered daily by intoxicated people making the same poor decisions. So, no, I don't think the sentence was excessive.

The 2nd judge probably gave you a lighter sentence because he is a heavy drinker, as lawyers often are. Who knows how many people he has come close to killing.

Answer 6

Since your BAC was .08%, its quite obvious that you are lying about having one glass of wine. The courts have taken judicial notice of the science regarding how much it takes for your BAC to reach .08%. For instance, I am 220 pounds and it would take me approximately 6-8 beers in an hour (or shots or glasses of wine) to reach .08%. No doubt the prosecuting attorney knows this, as well as the Arresting Officer, so any respect for you went right out the window knowing you are bold-faced lying.

Personally, I think your license should be revoked permenantly and you should go to jail for a year for the DWI alone. You should also be prosecuted for endangering the welfare of your child. I've seen first hand what people who claim to have had 'two beers' or 'one glass of wine' do to other motorists. Two summers ago I held the hand of a pregnant woman who was trapped in a car as she died. Her unborn child also died. This was all due to another motorist who got slapped on the wrist and allowed to keep driving after his first DWI conviction. This is no different than him assaulting someone with a gun.....when a gun is used as a weapon its considered serious but when people threaten others lives with a 2000 pound weapon its somehow deemed to be okay.

Answer 7

You were legally intoxicated with your 11 year old son in the car. No your sentence was not excessive. At .08 BAC you had a few glasses of wine. You are not an victim of the system.

Answer 8

You definitely didn't get "screwed." You should be thanking the court for being extremely leniant for your actions. A drunk person behind the wheel of a car driving 5 miles per hour can do just as much damage as drunk driver going sixty. It is possible to crash and hurt others no matter what the speed. I am suprised you weren't forced to go to parenting classes because of your drinking and driving with your child.

Answer 9

If the punishment you received means you won't drink & drive again, the answer is no, you didn't get screwed, the judge did you a massive favour. If you think you might drink & drive again yes you did get screwed, the sentence wasn't harsh enough.
I don't mean to be judgemental or high & mighty, I'm just giving you my honest opinion, it's against the law, you commited a crime & was punished. I just wish the judge that sentenced you would see the 'real' criminals that walk free every day.

Answer 10

Remember, you live in post Prop 13 People's Republic of California... The DUI is one of the most lucrative sources of revenue.

Cops will routinely rig the breathalizer to show DUI percentages, just cause they know what's best for the peon. (pay...pay...pay).

Move to another state, ALWAYS demand a blood test in a hospital, never blow.... well... almost never...