How can it possibly be legal to charge one person with three counts of OWI for one incident?

Question

My daughter was arrested last night for OWI. Apparently, she was involved in a property damage accident, and when the police arrived, they naturally discovered she had been drinking, which, obviously, she was. I can understand them arresting her for operating while under the influence, and I would think they would have charged her for causing the property damage, but they didn't do that- instead, they charged her as follows: Count 1- OWI- with prior, Count 2- OWI- testing point 1.5 or above (??) and Count 3- Just plain OWI.
This just doesn't make sense to me. Can someone please explain how this is legal in the state of Indiana? Or anywhere else? How can you legally be charged with more than one count of operating while under the influence for only one incident?

In response to answer #1, she's not a murderer, rapist, or thief. She's not a "danger to society". And this question had nothing to do with what she is or isn't, I am asking for information on the legalities of the charges.

Again, I repeat, (in response to davidmi711). I am not asking whether what she did was right or wrong, I am asking about the legalities of triply charging her for ONE incident. I certainly have my own opinions about what she did, and the right or wrong of it. But, that has nothing to do with my question. I am asking about legal matters, not moral issues, or what she could have done or might have done. I am well aware of what might have happened. The question is a legal question only, and her moral character or whether or not she has a problem, or what she might have or might not have done is not part of this question.

To all who have answered: I am not condoning what my daughter did. I am not a tightwad, cheapskate, or anything like it. I am upset, and angry, and frightened by what she has done. I have no intentions of bailing her out. I simply wanted to know WHY the police are legally able to charge a person more than one time for the same offense. It's the first time I've ever heard of it. I guess murderer's, thieves, rapists, and burglars are also charged in this manner? Correct me if I'm wrong.
I asked a simple legal question, trying to get an honest opinion, legal-wise, because I didn't understand. I'm not hiring her an attorney, but it's not because I'm cheap, or a tightwad. I am not hiring her an attorney, or bailing her out, because it's the right thing to do- let her sit in jail for a while and take her punishment for her recklessness. I call it "tough love". But "tough love" doesn't answer my simple question. I thought maybe you on Yahoo could.

Answer 1

In Wisconsin, a person will be charged for OWI (actual operation of the vehicle ) and for what they call PAC (prohibited alcohol concentration.)

So count 1 sounds like she has been convicted of OWI before (Wisconsin does this differently.) Count 2 would be like Wisconsin's PAC, and count 3 is for the actual OWI itself. So the three separate charges are related to operating a vehicle while intoxicated, but different in that they cover different areas of being intoxicated.

Answer 2

Think of the 3 charges as "layers" of the same crime. She got the 1st layer when she was charged with OWI. Then, the 2nd layer came because her blood alcohol level was .15 or higher (which is probably around double the legal limit, so she was VERY DRUNK and could kill someone), then the 3rd layer kicked in when they realized she has a prior OWI offense.

I am not an Indiana attorney (I practice in another state), but doesn't it make sense that repeat offenders (especially with such a high blood alcohol level) would get harsher charges? That seems to be what is happening here. Everyone makes poor choices sometimes, but it seems she didn't learn from the first one. That doesn't mean she is a bad person, but I do recommend you consult a OWI attorney in Indiana to get good legal advice on what to do.

Answer 3

The first two are just conditional add-ons for the last one -- apparently, each time you get arrested for driving drunk, the penalty goes up (as well it should, I might add). Apparently, also having a particularly high level of alcohol (testing above 1.5 as opposed to ..8, which I believe is the limit normally), gets you a stiffer sentence.

All that it means is that in addition to being a drunk driver, your daughter is a multiple drunk driver and is also willing to drive when she's more than twice the legal limit. It's ways for the police to crack down on repeat offenders and egregious offenders, both of which seem to describe your daughter.

Just be glad she didn't kill anyone, or herself, driving so drunk (again). And by the way, if she's driving like that more than once, she's ABSOLUTELY a danger to society. It's perfectly legal to add on additional time and penalties for not learning your lesson the first time you got busted for driving drunk. She could have really hurt someone!

You need to get her into rehab instead of ranting about how unfair it is -- consider this a wake-up call. Hopefully the next call won't be the cops calling you at 3 a.m. to tell you that she drunkenly plowed into a tree.


~ Edit: You seem to be pretty upset by this, and it's understandable, but the way you worded your question made it seem like you were upset about the three charges and not the fact that your daughter was behaving recklessly. You had to know that some people here were going to be pretty judgmental.

The short answer is that, yes, it's perfectly legal for the police to do what they did, and the longer answer is BECAUSE your daughter behaved recklessly more than once and was significantly over the legal limit, those additional charges were attached. And yes, murderers and thieves and rapists are charged the same way. Again, it's hard to explain that without reiterating that she was reckless.

Sorry if you're upset about the way people answered you, but you had to expect that a little... right?

Answer 4

Because she:
1) had a prior OWI, and now that she got busted again, the seperate charge is OWI with prior, meaning that she is now a repeat offender
2) had a test of 1.5 or above, which is also a seperate charge
3) was caught driving under the influence, which is also a seperate charge
They do that so that they have room for a plea-bargain, and more than likely, one or 2 of the charges will get dropped. You need to talk to an attorney in your state though, as laws vary.

Answer 5

Having driven a school bus for the last two years I can only say this. Children act atrocious on a bus. Under DOT regulations, if a driver allows the children to walk on the bus while it is in motion he is subject to a large fine. In TX it is $250 per student that is moving. Since the driver must have a CDL to drive the bus he can lose his job for allowing that conduct on the bus. I can also tell you that children lie or if you rather, stretch the truth. They will also stick together. We had children do this and the video showed just the opposite of what they all said was the truth. Yes, some drivers do things wrong and they let the children get to them and lose their tempers. Not being there I don't know what happened. Neither do you. As for calling the police, that is a personal choice but if the tape has been reviewed and found inconclusive, the police while have nothing further to go on than the school did and by calling them you may be inflicting undue stress on a possibly Innocent driver who is only;y trying to control his passengers.

Answer 6

This is "Lesser Included Charge"

From Answers.com:

A lesser crime whose elements are encompassed by a greater crime.

A lesser included offense shares some, but not all, of the elements of a greater criminal offense. Therefore, the greater offense cannot be committed without also committing the lesser offense. For example, manslaughter is a lesser included offense of murder, assault is a lesser included offense of rape, and unlawful entry is a lesser included offense of burglary.

The rules of criminal procedure permit two or more offenses to be charged together, regardless of whether they are misdemeanors or felonies, provided that the crimes are of a similar character and based on the same act or common plan. This permits prosecutors to charge the greater offense and the lesser included offense together. Although the offenses can be charged together, the accused cannot be found guilty of both offenses because they are both parts of the same crime (the lesser offense is part of the greater offense).

When a defendant is charged with a greater offense and one or more lesser included offenses, the trial court is generally required to give the jury instructions as to each of the lesser included offenses as well as the greater offense. However, a defendant may waive his or her right to have the jury so instructed. If the jury finds guilt beyond a reasonable doubt as to a lesser included offense, but finds reasonable doubt as to the defendant's guilt with regard to the greater offense, the court should instruct the jury that it may convict on the lesser charge.

It is not uncommon for a prosecutor and defendant to negotiate an agreement by which the defendant pleads guilty to the lesser included offense either before the trial begins or before the jury returns a verdict. Such a plea negotiation is generally acceptable to the prosecuting attorney because the evidence establishing guilt for the lesser included offense is usually strong. The defendant is generally willing to make such an agreement because the lesser included offense carries a less severe sentence.

Answer 7

It's not 3 counts of OWI, it's:
1 count of OWI
1 count of OWI with a prior conviction
1 count of OWI and testing above 1.5

Each is a separate crime with their own conditions and penalties.

Sounds like your daughter has a MAJOR problem. It would be more constructive if you helped her get treatment for being an out of control drunk instead of helping her beat the rap.

You said she "is not a danger to society". She certainly is. She caused an accident because she was drunk. She could have as easily killed someone. She is a menace and needs to be dealt with harshly.

Answer 8

Just hire an attorney, it is legal for the cops to charge her with more then what they did. However, when she goes to court, 2 of them will probably be dropped and she will be charged with OWI.

Answer 9

guess the cops just want someone that is that harmful to society off the streets as long as possible


EDIT:she may not be a murder or rapist...but she could run someone over with her drunken driving...i dont care that you dont want a judgment...im passing it...that is irresponsible behavior and yes...she is a danger to society and your seemingly nonchalant attitude doesnt help

get a lawyer you tightwad...youre so concerned about her well being???????? spend some bucks and get a real legal opinion instead of a yahoo one

Answer 10

They over charge all the time in the beginning so they have wriggle room to negotiate down when plea bargaining. I think it's unconstitutional because in my opinion, it's double jeopardy, but somehow they get away with it all the time. It makes it harder for defendants to negotiate plea bargains and puts more power in the DA's hands.