I'm quite certain my lawyer had very little to do with the DA rejecting my case altogether. There wasn't much to be done until charges were filed and even then, a motion to surpress would have been pointless. I probably didnt even need to retain counsel to begin with, or I could have at least waited until my arraignment to see if charges were actually going to be filed. And only paying $1000 was because I had shopped around and found an attorney whose retainer fee would be considerably less if NO charges were filed. Had they moved forward, it would have cost me $4500. And yeah, it is a joke because it should have never happened. I had zero alcohol in my system, and I wasn't on drugs. I still wound up in handcuffs all because some cunt got over zealous.
You would be surprised what can be done prior to the formal acceptance of charges. But hey, what do I know...it's only my livelihood. Granted, the work I have chosen to do is in the post-conviction realm, but I still know who to dial up in MANY different offices around the State should the need arise. And, by avoiding arraignment, it also minimizes the damage to the criminal history. Yes, arrests can show by themselves but many agencies will not report to the State or national databases until the charge has been accepted by the State (ie. the County attorney or the District attorney). There are any number of things that can lend to PC on a DWI arrest...one need not be over a threshold and people often forget that even over-the-counter medications can contribute to a conviction for impaired driving. Oh, and even the $4500 would have been cheap...at least it is in the areas I am involved with. Money spent to make something go away as early as possible is ALWAYS money well spent.
I'm curious, what can be done before arraignment where the only evidence that can be used against me is a chemical test? I'm almost positive once my negative results hit the DAs office my case was stamped as rejected. I doubt my "cheap" lawyer had anything to do with that. Sure, $4500 may seem cheap to some but that's a pretty staggering number when you didn't actually commit a crime. I think most would be bitter paying $1000 when they know didn't do anything wrong.
If True. When I get weed tickets I get a get a lawyer just to keep it off my record. I still have to pay the original fine but I'd rather lose $1,000 than have ANYTHING on my record
Yep use to be dumb as fuck. Got a DUI and took two months in jail (one month on good behavior ) and got it dropped to a reckless driving for that. Still had to pay for a shit ton of classes. Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk
They did a urine test, but only found an extremely small amount of THC. I hadn't smoked in a few days.
The whole thing was fucking stupid and a giant waste of a thousand bucks. There are details in this thread somewhere.
It's been almost 15 years since mine but I still think back about the stupid decisions I made that day. I had been drinking all day at a horse race so was fairly well gone by the time i left Camden, SC. I picked up a 6 pack and finished it between Columbia Sc and Brunswick Ga. I stopped and bought a 12 pk there, and then headed into FL, trying to get down to Jacksonville before the clubs closed. Got pulled doing 92 in a 55 on 9A just before the Dames Point bridge. In all of this there was no weed, just alcohol. I got booked and blew a 0.146 2 hours after getting pulled over. Spent the night in jail, very efficient court the next day and pleaded no contest. 6 months no license, about 500 in fines and court costs, 50 hrs community service and 6 months probation. Silver lining because I was adjudicated that next day I could not be talken to NJP by the military because they still recognized double jeopardy. I got shit ovals that cycle though. That has changed since then and young sailors now in a similar situation get double fucked. Came back to bite me in the ass because when I moved to another state, however. I couldn't transfer my license. FL still showed my suspension as I had not paid for reinstatement. (I didnt live there so I figured why should I have to pay.. ) had to get a court runner and pay extra to get that taken care of.
I got a DUII and I blew a 0.0 I had cannabis in my urine and I hadn't even smoked that day. I am sure it was a lot bc I dab every day. It took me 3 months to pee clean and I couldn't start diversion until I could pee clean. Cop said I went over the center line, which I know I didn't. I fell on slippery grass on the side of the road doing a field sobriety test and broke my back.