Can you get a Dwi if.......Serious educated experianced answers only please?

Question

A very good friend of mine was involved in an accident last night. The police came to my home looking for her because her listed home phone was my home phone {she doesnt have a local home phone just a cell phone} they told me that they had found her car rolled over in a ditch and a blood trail to the road in the snow but no body and asked had I heard from her. At that point I had not heard from her. They gave me their number and asked that I phone them if I hear from her. About 20 minutes after the officers left she called and told me she was okay and she had been in an accident. I told her the officers had been here and wanted me to contact them if I heard from her. I called back the officer to let them know I heard from her and he told me that he knew for a fact she was in a bar in another town{though she said she was in the one here in town}, that people saw her get behind the wheel of the car and she has a suspended license and that she was in a lot of trouble. That she would be

charged with the following:
DWI because there was alcohol all over the car where she had been mixing her drinks {there was a second person in the car with her}

Driving on a suspended license

Failure to report an accident

Leaving the scene of an injury accident {her nose was bleeding}

If I am correct from what I recall my mother telling me and she was a police officer almost 20 yrs that you can not charge someone with DWI or driving without an license unless you physically catch them because hear say will not stand up in the court of law. And how can she be charge with leaving the scene of an injury accident when it was ONLY her car involved in the accident {she hit a patch of ice going around a curb that 2 people have died at in the last few months} and the only injury was to her {not even the other person in the car} and it was a blood nose?

Should she get an attorney?

And one final thing. I do not drink I do not approve of it we are not close friends. I havent seen her since October to be honest and I was shocked to hear from her.

when i say "good friend" she will come in my time of need and I will go to her in her time of need but we NEVER just "hang out" hope you understand what Im trying to say

To all of you I know she has a problem with drinking which is why we do not hang out because I wouldnt allow it in my house, around me or around my children. There was a second person in the car and it was a guy who told her he is willing to take the rap for her if she wants him to.All I know is this should be a damn wakeup call for her she could have lost her life.

ddaringdave my friend is NOT me I have a newborn baby at home and a 13yr old little girl who at age 18 months almost lost her life to a drunk driver so I dont even touch the stuff never have never will. I did call the police and tell them I heard from her, told them she told me she was at the bar here and town and her and her friend and a 3rd person got into her car which she claims she was NOT driving to go to a town about 20 miles away to a bar there. After leaving that bar is when she claims the driver hit ice {she never told me if it was her driving or not} after they hit ice they hit the curb and she said she remembers rolling 2 times. How dare you even assume it is me that was in this accident I would NEVER allow alcohol into my system and her drinking is the reason we do not "hang out" now you stop making uneducated comments and answer the damn question I know wha can happen thanks to people that DUI I live with it every day regarding my 13yr old!

In response to one of the answers she and her friends all left the car behind said they didnt know what else to do since no one was hurt they all just "walked away". I personally dont know if she was drunk because WHEN I use to go out for a few drinks I never got drunk I'd have one or two and that was it but then again I never got behind the wheel of a car. As for the people at the bar how creditable are they when they too are drinking? I did tell the cops what she told me on the phone Ive not seen her or heard from her since last night I was just courious as to what could happen. I mean an open container doesnt mean she was drunk and if she was doesnt mean that one of the other two werent driving. I think she's in one hell of a mess the only thing i told her last night was "get an attorney"

In response to one of the answers she and her friends all left the car behind said they didnt know what else to do since no one was hurt they all just "walked away". I personally dont know if she was drunk because WHEN I use to go out for a few drinks I never got drunk I'd have one or two and that was it but then again I never got behind the wheel of a car. As for the people at the bar how creditable are they when they too are drinking? I did tell the cops what she told me on the phone Ive not seen her or heard from her since last night I was just courious as to what could happen. I mean an open container doesnt mean she was drunk and if she was doesnt mean that one of the other two werent driving. I think she's in one hell of a mess the only thing i told her last night was "get an attorney"

Answer 1

I have arrested and convicted persons who have driven drunk as many as 14 days after a collision.

What is mis-understood about DWI laws is it is a criminal offense. With any criminal offense one can obtain evidence through witnesses. These witnesses can testify as to the sobriety of the driver as the driver departed the bar. Evidence can be obtained from the scene through the collection of blood.
The blood if enough is found - and later by chemical analysis will provide a blood alcohol level.

True these types of cases are much more difficult to prove, but through personal knowledge they have been convicted.

these are just 2 examples and I have many more, but the answer your looking for is yes she can be convicted if the officers collect the proper evidence in the investigation

Answer 2

Yes, she can be charged with a DUI/ DWI. It is not hear say if the people in the bar saw her consuming alcohol. You also mentioned someone else was in the car. Is that person willing to say he/ she was driving the car? Were they intoxicated as well. I assume the police talked with that person, and they told them she was driving. That is not hear say, as that is an eye witness to what happened. I assume that person has also said she was drinking.

So, as far as leaving the scene of an accident, even if only one car is involved, it is an accident. Now, when I was a teen, I rolled my truck. It landed upright, and somehow me and my passenger were not hurt. Damage was actually almost non existent to my truck. I sat there a minute, we looked at each other, and cranked it up and went on my way. I technically left the scene of an accident. But, then again, I did not leave my vehicle behind, and there was really no evidence, or witnesses other than us, to the accident. You "friend" had an accident, lef the vehicle, and I guess another person there at the scene.

You don't necessarily need a BAC done to prove intoxication. In criminal matters, there must be enough evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Most juries, and judges, will not have much doubt, given that she can be placed in a bar, behind the wheel of a car, and unable to control that car, and that she left the scene of the accident for some reason. Ice on the road or not, you must maintain control of your car.

But, given all the other charges she is facing, I doubt it will be challenged much if her attorny motions to have the DUI charge dismissed. In the hands of the right DA, and there could also be charges of felony evading as well as interferring with a police investigation. So, the DUI is, maybe not the least, but not the only worries she has.

Answer 3

If she gets a lawyer she will not be charged with a dwi. She will be charged with leaving the scene of the accident with more than five hundred dollars worth of damage. It also depends on what statement she gave to the police when they did track her down. If she admitted to having alcohol in the car ALREADY open then she will get charged with an open container. However, if she is smart she will tell them that the bottles broke when she got into the car accident. She can also tell them that after she got into the wreck she panicked and went to a bar to have a few drinks to calm down. She should say that she had a nervous break down and just didnt know what to do. The fact that she has a suspended license and all of that.. Well that will come up again and a fine will be worked out. When she goes to court she should have ALL of the bills that she is currently paying that way the payment plan that the court comes up with will not be overwhelming..... P.S. Every one makes mistakes.... Hopefully she can make the best of the situation and get things taken care of... I really hope this helps....

Answer 4

The answer will unfortunately be dependent on the laws that apply in the jurisdiction where the driving and crash occurred. I can give some idea of how a case like this might go in the jurisdiction where I work, but it would really not be any help to you as the traffic laws in Australia relating to drink-driving offences are significantly diffferent to the U.S.

For what it's worth, the charges described (or at least, the equivalents here) would all be possible and even probable except for the DWI; although we can charge on visual evidence of drink-driving without breath or blood test results, it is difficult to do and in the scenario you describe it's unlikely the necessary evidence would be available to the police. But as I already indicated, the relevant laws there might have other avenues to pursue a DWI charge that might cover such a situation.

However, I do think she would be well advised to get some legal advice. And if she's not that close a friend, she doesn't sound like a particularly upstanding member of the community for you to continue associating with.

Answer 5

Regardless of the fact she was the only one involved in the accident, she most definitely can be charged with leaving the scene. The DWI part will most likely get tossed out in court unless she showed up at the hospital a short term later and blood was drawn proving she had alcohol in her system. But again, a good attorney could get that thrown out. If her license was already suspended...yeah, she's screwed there. Unless (I think) she can prove someone else was driving her car (which I'm going to guess she'll be hard pressed to do). Okay, now as for the officer saying she was in a bar in town and she says she was in another town - first of all, why does it matter WHICH bar she was at and second of all, I'd be not believing much that comes out of your friend's mouth.

Answer 6

Her best bet is to get an attorney. The police can't prove DWI because they would need to place her behind the wheel of the car, show that she was in control of the car at the time of the accident, and give her a blood/alcohol test within a specific time frame after the accident. If they can prove she was driving, she could get cited for leaving the scene of an accident, or driving on suspension. That would be the worst. But they would need concrete proof of the amount of alcohol in her blood. If they can't find her, there can be no test. Or at least nothing that will show how much alcohol was consumed.
Now, if she turn herself in, she will be given a blood test which by law, she will have to submit to. They can take the current blood/alcohol level, consider the amount of disipation and be able to figure what her alcohol content was at the time of the accident. Not too difficult.
Yes, they probaby know that she was drinking prior to getting into her car, and yes, alcohol probably was a factor in the accident, but proving it is something else.
She does need a lawyer.

Answer 7

Some people do not believe in Divine Influence no matter what happened, I do feel sorry for them because there has never been any need for God to Communicate with them. I am telling you the truth without God's intervention I should have been dead at least 5 times. Let me tell you this purpose is God's plan is why we are all alive right now. I am no Preacher could quote scriptures won't give ammunition to Misrepresentation of the Scriptures by another person that answers. But think back how many times in your quiet time you could feel a drawing of your self to something or someone, this could be a calling from God to you sometimes answer the call. there have been many religious wars, but Jesus said Doctronies come from Man not from God. And that what wars are about Religions not Jesus or God themselves.

Answer 8

You'd have to check the laws of your state, they vary.

I'm in NJ, and I believe you can be charged with DWI if there are clear signs of alcohol use in the vehicle. If there is an open container, you can also be charged.

Also, here you don't even have to be above the legal limit to be convicted. If the state can show that you were impaired, that's enough.

She will probably face a bunch of charges, including leaving the scene of an accident.

Your friend needs help. The DWI is the LEAST of her problems. It's actually a SYMPTOM of her problems.

Love JAck

Answer 9

She needs a good lawyer. They can charge her with the trade center bombings if they want to. They have to Actually PROVE it all. If they haven't arrested her by now then there's no way they're going to make the DWI stick and I'm sure they know that. She should still hire a lawyer though because there's a good chance that she could get out of all if not most of this.

Answer 10

I don't think that the police have much of a case. Your friend should get an attorney if they do charge her with anything. She also should refuse to answer any questions about the accident so as to not help them with building a case against her.