Possibility of lessening 14601.1a charge?

[traffictrouble]

California.

Hello,
I am 19 and on 06/20 I was pulled over for expired tags (now corrected) and blew a 0.05. I received a wet and reckless ticket and given a court date for 9/11.

In the meantime I have been driving myself to my college classes and work . On 07/22, 2 days after my license was considered to be officially suspended, I was pulled over for an unsafe lane change and received a ticket for 14601.1a . I had wrongly assumed I had to wait for my court date before it was officially suspended. I still had my D.L on me when I got pulled over the second time, it was not taken on the night of the dui, and I never received anything in the mail for either of the tickets. Yesterday I applied for a restricted license for work & school.

My question, given the above information could a public defender possibly lower the infraction or drop the 14601.1a ? for example, could they say I had not known my license was already suspended since I still had my license on me, never received anything at all in the mail, and the date it happened? Also, I understand its up to the DMV on whether or not I am approved for the restricted license but any opinions on if the driving on a suspended will affect their decision, assuming they find out about it before their decision is already made? And lastly, if I am approved for the restricted would that give me any leverage on the 14601.1a charge?

I truly appreciate any and all advice I may receive

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

The public defender is on your side. The prosecutor could potentially drop or lessen the charge, however, there is little incentive for them to do so. You are clearly guilty.

 

[traffictrouble]

Sorry I probably should have worded the first question better, I guess a better question would be do you think my public defender would be able to build any kind of defense given the above information?

 

[HighwayMan]

And lastly, if I am approved for the restricted would that give me any leverage on the 14601.1a charge?

One has nothing to do with the other.

You could have been charged with any of these it seems:

California Vehicle Code 23136 : California’s Zero Tolerance Law -- A Civil Offense

California Vehicle Code 23140 : Under 21 DUI with a BAC of 0.05% - 0.07% -- An Infraction

California Vehicle Code 23152 : Driving Under the Influence -- A Misdemeanor


I won't comment further because there are others here who know California law very well, but from what I read on the CA DMV website your license should have been taken right away.

 

[CdwJava]

California.

Hello,
I am 19 and on 06/20 I was pulled over for expired tags (now corrected) and blew a 0.05. I received a wet and reckless ticket and given a court date for 9/11.

You received a citation for VC 23103.5?!?! How is THAT possible?

You were under 21 and blew a .05. You SHOULD have been cited for VC 23140 (under 21 with a .05 BAC), or at LEAST 23136 (under 21 with .01). VC 23103.5 is typically charged as a downward plea from a DUI per 23152(a) or (b), but is not an offense that can be cited by an officer. If you were issued a ticket for 23103.5 then the officer FUBAR'd.

In the meantime I have been driving myself to my college classes and work . On 07/22, 2 days after my license was considered to be officially suspended, I was pulled over for an unsafe lane change and received a ticket for 14601.1a .

Why was it suspended? If it was suspended after 30 days, then I suspect you were cited for 23140 and failed to schedule a hearing with the DMV to challenge the citation.

My question, given the above information could a public defender possibly lower the infraction or drop the 14601.1a ?

Why should the DA drop anything? It's not likely to be charged as a misdemeanor, so you will have to pay the fines associated with the infraction and those can be considerable.

could they say I had not known my license was already suspended since I still had my license on me, never received anything at all in the mail, and the date it happened?

The document the officer gave you (when he should have seized your license) at the scene has all the information written right on it. If you failed to read it, then that is your problem.

Also, I understand its up to the DMV on whether or not I am approved for the restricted license but any opinions on if the driving on a suspended will affect their decision, assuming they find out about it before their decision is already made? And lastly, if I am approved for the restricted would that give me any leverage on the 14601.1a charge?

Receiving a restricted license will not change the 14601.1 charge. But, it is doubtful that you will receive a restricted license until this is cleared up.

Understand that any car you drive can be impounded for 30 days (and may cost nearly $3,000 to get out of impound). And anyone who allows you to drive their car without making a reasonable effort to determine if you have a valid license can be charged with a misdemeanor criminal offense. So, you might want to get a hold of the local bus schedule for a while.

Understand that 23140 is an infraction punishable by a fine and administrative penalties only. No public defender will be assigned. And if the 14601.1 is charged as an infraction (and they typically are) then no public defender will be assigned.

If you were originally charged with 23103.5 by the officer then SOMEONE screwed up, and you may very well be able to slip out of this with the help of an attorney unless they amend the charges by the arraignment date next week or continue the matter until a later date.

 

[traffictrouble]

So I Checked the ticket and your correct it is 23140 that is written on it. I guess the reason I thought it was a wet and reck already is because the cop had told me that night it wasn't going to be a DUI and not to stress too much.

So It looks like may get off with no misdemeanor charges? That's ultimately what I'm hoping for.

I am currently working on driving arrangements for work but for school I'm out of luck since my campus is 8 miles away and the nearest bus route for it is 5 miles from my house. At this point If I don't get the restricted I'm worried I'll be forced some days to drive myself again and risk jail and impounding my car


Thank you for taking the time to reply to all my questions I really appreciate it!

 

[HighwayMan]

...for school I'm out of luck since my campus is 8 miles away

So? That's a nice walk. Or probably a 10 minute cab ride.

You're in class, what, 3 hours a day? Plenty of time for walking or hitching rides.

At this point If I don't get the restricted I'm worried I'll be forced some days to drive myself again and risk jail and impounding my car

Good luck. Hopefully one of these days you won't have a license anymore. Keep up the stupidity and you'll learn the hard way.

 

[NellieBly]

I have a 63 year old friend who walks two hours a day minimum.