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Aggrevated DUI

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Buck1206

Junior Member
Arizona

My husband was sat out in his truck on our own 5 acres of land. (private land). And had that evening had a few beers and was listening to the radio. The neighbour called the cops and my husband was arrested for aggrevated DUI, and disordely conduct, due to radio noise. When the cops found him, he was asleep in his truck with radio on. My husband was NOT driving, allthough the keys were in the ignition, due to radio being on. His license is suspened due to a dui a few years ago, and he has not been driving, but he got arrested for agrevated dui. We did not know and hadnt heard that you can get a dui while on your own private property, while sat in vehicle. He could now face 4months to a number of years jail time ect. :(:mad:
Can anyone give any advice or has been in this situation.
Many Thanks
Buck1206What is the name of your state?
 


CdwJava

Senior Member
He will need to speak to an experienced DUI defense attorney if he wants to have any hope of minimizing potential penalties.

Why someone would drive into a field, turn on the radio, and pass out is a mystery to me, but to each his own.

Yes, it is illegal to drive intoxicated even on private property ... at least I am not aware of a state that specifically exempts private property from DUI or related statutes. AZ and CA have a lot of very similar laws, so I am not surprised that DUI is applicable on private property there.

- Carl
 

Buck1206

Junior Member
Why someone would drive into a field, turn on the radio, and pass out is a mystery to me, but to each his own.


- Carl
Not a field,(dont get many fields here in the desert), wish we did. :D just a short way back from the workshop, like i said he had a few beers and fell asleep, passed out, what ever you want to call it. It was raining, so had a few beers in the truck, listening to some music.
Thankyou for advice... It just seems crazy that u can get aresserted for dui while on your own property, and not hurting anybodyt else
 
Talk to a lawyer. I have no idea how it would play out for your husband, but one of the first considerations in a DUI defense is whether or not the the officer had a legit reason to pull you over.

In a case like this, I would want an attorney's opinion on whether or not the officer had a valid reason to come back onto your property and investigate.

I'm guessing that the fact that there was a complaint and the cop could probably hear the music means it was completely legit, but I don't really know the specifics of those types of laws. Worth looking into anyway.
 

Buck1206

Junior Member
but one of the first considerations in a DUI defense is whether or not the the officer had a legit reason to pull you over.

.
He wasnt driving, just sitting in his truck in his truck on our property, he hadnt been driving, as his licsense is suspended.
 

BigMistakeFl

Senior Member
BigMistakeFl

Right; talk to a DUI defense lawyer about "probable cause".

Check out al-anon for yourself, just in case. They're in every phone book everywhere. (Even Arizona fields!)
 
He wasnt driving, just sitting in his truck in his truck on our property, he hadnt been driving, as his licsense is suspended.
While he may not have been driving in a technical sense, he was in control of the vehicle by legal standards and therefore meets the "driving" requirement to be charged with DUI. Furthermore, if his license is suspended, be may be facing a driving under suspension charge, but I'm not really sure (I don't know if you need to have a valid license to drive a vehicle on private property).

When I said you should question the legitimacy of the "stop", I'm referring to the fact that the police cannot simply come into your home or onto your land without some legally sanctioned reason for doing so. That said, don't hold your breath on this as a sound legal defense... there are a lot of reasons they can legally come onto your land, and it sounds to me like they had several reasons, but you should still ask about it.
 

Buck1206

Junior Member
While he may not have been driving in a technical sense, he was in control of the vehicle by legal standards and therefore meets the "driving" requirement to be charged with DUI. Furthermore, if his license is suspended, be may be facing a driving under suspension charge, but I'm not really sure (I don't know if you need to have a valid license to drive a vehicle on private property).

When I said you should question the legitimacy of the "stop", I'm referring to the fact that the police cannot simply come into your home or onto your land without some legally sanctioned reason for doing so. That said, don't hold your breath on this as a sound legal defense... there are a lot of reasons they can legally come onto your land, and it sounds to me like they had several reasons, but you should still ask about it.

The only reason they came on to property, was because the neighbour said the radio in the truck was loud...So he got a disordly conduct charge.. My husbund has known a highway patrol cop for 20 years, and he spoke to him about it, he said if he would of got laughed at for this kinda deal. But the cop that arrested my husband was a rookie.. (first day on the job)... He said they would of normally asked to turn radio down.. And left it at that...
 

BigMistakeFl

Senior Member
BigMistakeFl

You can be charged with DUI for sitting in a car, in some states, just with the keys in your pocket even. And private property does not exclude a driver from DUI arrest. Again, speak with a lawyer about this. There needs to be "probable cause".
 

DUINews

Junior Member
All I know is that years ago I had a friend that fell asleep in their car with the keys in his pocket. He was awakened by a police officer and the officer just asked him if he was OK and he said he was. He explained to the officer that he had fallen asleep in his car and that his friends left him there as a prank. The officer told him that if he had the keys in the car that he could have been arrested for DUI. This was in South Florida.
 

Buck1206

Junior Member
Ok I have another question, call me a dumb ass, but do u need to have a licence to drive on your own property???:rolleyes:
 

CdwJava

Senior Member
Ok I have another question, call me a dumb ass, but do u need to have a licence to drive on your own property???:rolleyes:
No, a license is not required to drive on your own property. But licensing is not an issue with regard to DUI.


- Carl
 

Buck1206

Junior Member
My husband had to go to a pretrial deal yesterday, and we managed to get a basic police report. When he was arrested he was not read his miranda rights until 3 hrs after he was arrested. The orignal form whihc was printed out stating his detils and what he was arrested for, had 3 charges on. but when we got the basic report yesterday, it had been changed to 4 charges. Can they change this after the orignal paperwork had 3 charges on. We are seeing a lawyer next week, but I just want to get a idea of what to expect...
 
The fact that his Miranda rights were even read probably isn't good news for you. Miranda rights exist to protect you from being interrogated by the police without understanding the ramifications of answering their questions. In most DUI cases, what you say is irrelevant and so they don't even bother with Miranda rights. The fact that his rights were read (and then I imagine they asked him some questions), probably means that they were looking for something beyond a basic DUI. Defiantly consult with a lawyer to make sure you fully understand what the charges being brought against you mean.

As for them adding a charge: Yes, they can do this. The police don't exactly charge you with something; they arrest you for doing something they believe to be illegal. The question of whether or not it was technically illegal is then decided in a court. When it comes to court, you are charged by the prosecutor on behalf of the governing unit.

So, let's say you were initially arrested under suspicion of alcohol DUI, and then something comes to light after the arrest that leads the prosecution to believe you were also smoking pot; they can also charge you with smoking pot.

As with any charge, the prosecution still has to prove any charges they bring against you... it's not like they can just make up anything they feel like. However, if they're adding charges, they probably have a reason to do so.

And no, I don't believe you need a license to drive on private property, however the act of being in control of a vehicle, on private property or otherwise, still falls under the umbrella of implied consent.
 

PainInTheRear

Junior Member
some things I have learned.

I got a dui due to legal medications. It is going to be settled tomorrow finally. It has taken a long time and money to get through this but I went through the counceling and the whole bit. I still have one thing to complete - a victim impact panel but I completed the level 1 counseling with summary completion.

I did learn that you can get a dui even in a stopped vehicle with the engine off even in your own garage. It seems strange to me that you can't even sit in your own car on your own private property if on suspension or revocation, but it is the law. So if on suspension or revocation you don't even LOOK at your car or THINK about getting in it. You let your car set there and rot until your re-instated. Then there is another $250 reinstatement fee. Just found that out yesterday.

The cops hover around bars and watch for people. They can actually be sitting AT a bar waiting for people to come out. And once the person opens the door - they are taking control of the vehicle and instant dui. It stinks but it is the truth.

I have been driving since my dui which was back in May and this may be my last night as a free woman. Who knows. We will see what happens tomorrow.

Yeah and Miranda rights being read mean squat in a dui situation. In most cases the person is too intoxicated to understand them.

PITR
 
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