My son went camping with his buddies and cop saw beer. No proof of drinking. Can he be found guilty?

Question

My 19 year old son decided to go camping with a few of his buddies 2 weekends ago and the other guy bought a caseof beer. Another camper somehow backed into the guys car and did damage, so the cop came and saw the stupid kids with a case of beer. But no breathalizer tests were done. Just got the fine in mail over $200.00 Even thought my son left the house late, and just got there ( hard to find camp spot in dark) he was there when the cop showed up. Any chance he could win? I heard alot of kids go there and never get caught, and I know he doesn't like beer, but of course wanted to Sat night. with his buddies. He never camped out with the guys before. Not that I'm condoning all this but he sure has bad luck. A few weeks ago some lady found something on the parking lot surface and blamed it on my son since his car was parked there and he just pulled in and no proof where it came from since the shop was crowed with cars. I think she saw he is a teenager and he did it

Since he wasn't near his car, can he loose his license anyways? The cop said that night to me the boys were very compliant no argument from them.

He was not arrested at all. He may drink at his buddies, before but i never smelled booze on him. My husb has beer here sometimes and noone drinks it but him.

Answer 1

i would say that without any direct evidence or a confession, there is no basis to even pursue a criminal case.

your son could simply state that he did not drink and no one could prove otherwise - unless some other kid said he was.

this sort of persecution of our teenagers has gone too far.

here we have some kids out camping - and not driving - and the police are trying to make a case out of nothing and ruin the criminal records of kids at the beginning of their lives.

and for what?

the question we all have to ask is:
"is this what you want from your govt?"

to me the answer is NO.

cops should go and fight real crime and leave kids that aren't driving or bothering anyone ALONE!

Answer 2

In this situation if the alcohol was in the car of the person who bought it and that person is legal age, and a beer was not seen in your sons hands then you would have a case, and your son should not have got a ticket, especially after no breathalizer was taken.

It is the same as if you were to buy a case of beer, bringing it home from the store, u get pulled over for speeding, a case of beer is seen by your sons leg. Completely legal to have alcohol in the vehicle and have a minor also.

Answer 3

If he wasnt in the car and they failed to search his car he should be in the clear.

However there may be a reason for the bad luck-maybe he should reevaluate the way he treats people when they make accusations against him. Most cops will let you off on something minor like that as long as 1. the beer has obviously not been consumed while driving but is only for the camping trip 2. youre respectful and honest.

Answer 4

It's called Minor in Possession and relates nothing to the consumption of the alcohol.

If any of his friends are willing to cop that the alcohol was theirs and theirs alone then he stands a chance, but if they are all gonna blame each other it could be a hard one to figure out.

My advice, fight it without direct evidence he will likely win. Plus there is no harm in trying. It's not like he is being offered a deal to plead guilty which will be revoked if he contests it. It is your right and duty to argue something for which you are not guilty.

Answer 5

You are correct that your son had bad luck. Since he WAS there when the cop came, he is involved in the "underage possesion" charge. Not much you can do. I think fighting it would be a waste of money under the circumstances.

Answer 6

I think you might need to take a good long hard look at your son and make sure you know him.
Based on your questions, you have a different son who is being sued for a car accident, a daughter who is being sued for a car accident, and a son who is in trouble with the cops for something about throwing a condom out a car window. Sounds like maybe you should start helping your kids face the music instead of trying to cover their ears for them.

Answer 7

Yes. My brother was in a similar situation, he wasn't drinking, nor did it register on a breathalizer, but still got charged with possession of alcohol, even though it wasn't his house and he had not bought beer.

Answer 8

Was you son arrested? You did not say.
If not you should be able to request a hearing where the police must provide their evidence against your son. If they have no evidence that HE broke the law the fine should be dismissed.
Your son has a right to due process.....

Answer 9

Don't pay the fine. Contest it at court. It will be a bit time consuming but if you really believe your son is innocent then it's one course of action you can take.

Answer 10

It sounds like you may be a little niave about his going ons. Either that or he really does have bad luck, but im guessing he just has bad luck at getting caught.