what can i look forward to?

[didbad]

What is the name of your state? WA.
HI there, I live in Washington state and I got a dui on board a navy base in San Diego last November. I received a letter from the base saying my driving priviledges are suspended for 1 year. I knew that was coming. Now I just received a notice from Central Violations Bureau in San Antonio Texas saying that I have to report to US District Court in San Diego. In the collateral(amount due) block, it says mandatory appearance required. Does anyone know what punishment I could be facing? Is it possible I havent received a prior notice to pay some sort of fine or is it standard for a person with a dui to automatically appear.
thanks

[Son of Slam]

Originally Posted by didbad

What is the name of your state? WA.
HI there, I live in Washington state and I got a dui on board a navy base in San Diego last November. I received a letter from the base saying my driving priviledges are suspended for 1 year. I knew that was coming. Now I just received a notice from Central Violations Bureau in San Antonio Texas saying that I have to report to US District Court in San Diego. In the collateral(amount due) block, it says mandatory appearance required. Does anyone know what punishment I could be facing? Is it possible I havent received a prior notice to pay some sort of fine or is it standard for a person with a dui to automatically appear.
thanks

Are you government property?





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[didbad]

i am not currently government property but i am retired military.

[fedcop110]

The base commander may suspend your driving priveledges on the base, but not off of the installation. It sounds like you were charged on a DD Form 1805. The CVB sent you a reminder notice. A DUI is a mandatory appearance, meaning the the officer/MP did not have an option on whether to impart a fine or court appearance. You will be appearing in front of a United States Magistrate Judge in the court that the base falls under, which in this case is San Diego. I am not sure as to what your mazimum punishment could be, but here is a link to what you were probably charged with.

[url]http://www.leg.wa.gov/RCW/index.cfm?section=9.91.020&fuseaction=section[/url]

In VA, if you have a good driving record you would more than likely have your driving license suspended for a year, have to attend an alcohol abuse education program, be on probation for a year, and have some sort of fine imposed. It's pretty much up to the magistrate. Even though you were charged with a state offense, you will be going to a Federal Court. Good Luck.

[RobertMiller]

Thanks for your posting. Your DUI occurred on Federal Grounds, making it a federal crime, and by extension, your appearance mandatory. California law, however, is used for the punishment aspect of the case.

18 U.S.C. § 13, the Assimilative Crimes Act, incorporates the substance and punishment, but not procedural aspects, of state law crimes on federal enclaves, and makes such crimes federal offenses, where the Congress or federal agencies have not legislated on the subject matter of the state law. The Assimilative Crimes Act transforms a violation of state law into an offense against the federal government. United States v. Press Publishing Co., 219 U.S. 1 (1911); United States v. Holley, 444 F.Supp. 1361, 1362 (D.Md. 1977). It is "a shorthand method of providing a set of criminal laws on federal reservations, by using local law to fill the gaps in federal criminal law." United States v. Prejean, 494 F.2d 495, 496 (5th Cir. 1974).

Under California law, specifically Vehicle Code sections 23152(a), and (b), your punishment can be anything from probation and minimum fines of $390, up to six months in jail, and fines of over $3,000.00. It's common, however, to negotiate in Federal court a reduction or dismissal of charges. Your blood alcohol level might also affect your case, since there are presumptions for these types of cases that the court will adopt, (see United States v. Sauls, 981 F.Supp. 909 (D.Md. 1997)).

If you'd like someone with experience in Military Base DUI cases, feel free to contact me directly.