Pulled over parked sleeping at DUI PLeASE Help!

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
California

I have an agreement to appear 7-19-2010 and just received a notice from the District Attorney to inform me that a criminal complaint charging me with a violation of 23152A, and 23152B has been filed against me.

Does that mean that the District attorney has already received the results of my blood test and decided to charge me??

What can I do? Do I have a right to ask for my blood test results before I appear in court and who can I call?

I was pulled over on the side of the freeway sleeping when the officers knocked on my window which then resulted in my arrest for a dui. I refused the breathalizer test and opted for a blood test.

Was that the right choice or worse?

I remember being puzzled as to why they didn't read me my miranda rights when they arrested me. Do I have a case to fight? They didn't hand me a ticket, but I received a "release from custody on written promise to appear" after they released me from the holding cell.

Please help!! ANY advice GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!!

 

[Isis1]

Awwww.

You are being charged with a DUI. You were released on your OR. You will have an arraignment date. Which you will need to decide if you are going to plead guilty, not guilty, or no contest. You will be offered to request public defender if you cannot afford counsel.

You should get yourself an attorney. Your blood test results will be available during the discovery process.

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

Thanks 4 ur quick response

You mentioned that I can get my results at "Discovery"... What is that? Is it tomorrow when I go to my first appearance for my promise to appear or is that at the second date I received from the District Attorney?

Also, you mentioned that I am being charged.. Is that because when I request a blood test they have to assume that I am guilty or is it because the district attorney has received my blood test result and is now charging me??

Because on the "Release from Custody on Written Promise to Appear" the officers had marked 23151 (A) and 23152 (B) as my violations, but I had only taken the blood test prior to booking and they could not possibly have received the results of my blood test yet.

Please clarify

 

[CdwJava]

Does that mean that the District attorney has already received the results of my blood test and decided to charge me??

It is obvious they have decided to charge, but we cannot possibly know if the blood test results are in. For whatever reason, the DA feels that you are likely to have a BAC of .08 or higher, so they ether have the results or have good cause to believe the results will show a BAC of .08 or greater.

What can I do? Do I have a right to ask for my blood test results before I appear in court and who can I call?

You can ASK the police or the DA for whatever you want ... they will likely deny you that information, however. Your attorney can obtain that information via discovery. Likely, he will get all the relevant reports and paperwork about the time of arraignment.

If you cannot afford an attorney, the court will appoint one for you.

I was pulled over on the side of the freeway sleeping when the officers knocked on my window which then resulted in my arrest for a dui. I refused the breathalizer test and opted for a blood test.

Was that the right choice or worse?

Blood is thought to be more accurate.

However, I see a potential weakness in the case already depending on how long you had been asleep.

Were the keys in the ignition? Was the engine running? Was the key in the "Accessory" position?

I remember being puzzled as to why they didn't read me my miranda rights when they arrested me. Do I have a case to fight?

Miranda generally only applies after you have been taken into custody and THEN the police interrogate you. Most arrests never will require Miranda even though many agencies might have a policy (not pursuant to law, just local preference) that says they will read them. Few agencies in CA have such a policy.

They didn't hand me a ticket, but I received a "release from custody on written promise to appear" after they released me from the holding cell.

Effectively it is the same thing.

You mentioned that I can get my results at "Discovery"... What is that? Is it tomorrow when I go to my first appearance for my promise to appear or is that at the second date I received from the District Attorney?

Discovery is sort of an evidence collection phase where the state must turn over everything it has on the matter to the defense. That would mean they have to give your attorney the reports and the test results. If you have an attorney at arraignment, he or she should get that info then or will be told how to obtain it. The practice varies slightly by county ... in my county, the defense will get a package at the arraignment.

Also, you mentioned that I am being charged.. Is that because when I request a blood test they have to assume that I am guilty or is it because the district attorney has received my blood test result and is now charging me??

You are being charged because the DA believes he or she has sufficient probable cause to believe a crime was committed and that you committed the crime, and, that they have sufficient evidence to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. That does not mean they DO, just that the DA is expressing that belief by the filing of charges.

Because on the "Release from Custody on Written Promise to Appear" the officers had marked 23151 (A) and 23152 (B) as my violations, but I had only taken the blood test prior to booking and they could not possibly have received the results of my blood test yet.

That is because the officers suspected - likely due to your level of impairment - that your test results would indicate a BAC of .08 or greater.

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

Arraignment?

Thank you so much for your thorough responses to my questions!

You mentioned that the discovery is at the arraingment.. Is the arraignment the first appearance that I make or is the arraignment as of the date that the district attorney is requesting my appearance?

Quote:
However, I see a potential weakness in the case already depending on how long you had been asleep.

Were the keys in the ignition? Was the engine running? Was the key in the "Accessory" position?

The last drink that I had was between 1:00- 1:15 a.m. and I awakened at approximately 4:30 am with the blood draw at about 5 a.m. I've heard that time is the only thing that releases the alcohol from your system. I'm 5'2" about 235 1bs and I had only a small amount to eat before and nothing to eat after.

The keys were in the ignition. I truly wish that I would have thought have taken them out of the ignition before I pulled over to sleep My car does not have an accessory position that I know of?

Thank you for your assistance with my questions and I am extremely grateful for any advice!!!!

 

[Isis1]

Did you not go to your hearing this morning??

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

California time

I have not attended my court appearance yet. It's at 1:30 pm today and it is currently 11 a.m. here in California.

Is my first appearance the "arraignment"?

I'm so nervous! Courtrooms are scary as it is I was never one to get in to trouble or get sent to the principal's office. I usually tried to stay out of trouble. On this one hindsight is 20/20 only a little too late

Do you know if I have to say anything about that night? Can I just refuse to say anything and present myself as "Not guilty" for now? My father says that I am innocent until proven guilty and that I should leave the job of proving guilt up to them. I'm hoping that they reveal my blood test results to me prior to the judge asking me to plead guilty or not guilty.

 

[StevenJ_420Law]

I would say they have your test results back or they would have just waited to file. That is how they were able to charge you with both 23152 a b.

You can ask the DA for your test results (he’ll be at the table when you get called up) but you aren’t technically entitled to discovery at arraignment, but he may just tell you.

All judge is going to do is call your name and read your charges and ask you to plead.

Are you going to get a lawyer?

If you are going to talk to a lawyer, plead not guilty and judge will set another court date. You can tell him you are getting an attorney.

IF you want one appointed because you cant afford an attorney, ask him for a public defender and plead not guilty. They will likely do some financial stuff to make sure you are eligible.

If you want to just pay it/do the DUI thang, plead guilty or nolo and judge will sentence you.

Your arraignment is only going to take a few minutes today but it’s the beginning of a long expensive road to get out from under this.. but its not the crime of the century so take it easy and no forget to breathe.

GL

 

[StevenJ_420Law]

Do you know if I have to say anything about that night? Can I just refuse to say anything and present myself as "Not guilty" for now? My father says that I am innocent until proven guilty and that I should leave the job of proving guilt up to them. I'm hoping that they reveal my blood test results to me prior to the judge asking me to plead guilty or not guilty.

With a not guilty plea, judge will not be interested in anything you have to say. He will set another court date and you are out of there. (and do the PD thing if necessary).

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

Thank you 4 ur reply!

In regards to: "If you are going to talk to a lawyer, plead not guilty and judge will set another court date. You can tell him you are getting an attorney.

IF you want one appointed because you cant afford an attorney, ask him for a public defender and plead not guilty. They will likely do some financial stuff to make sure you are eligible."

Thank you for clarifying this. I'm going to ask the District Attorney for the blood test results if possible. Can I ask the judge for a continuance to seek my own attorney and IF I can not find one that I can afford THEN ask to see the judge for one to be appointed to me? Is this an option and how do I go about it?

I would first like to see if I can find an attorney before i settle for a public district attorney. I am going to plead not guilty.

Thanks again! I'm going to be taking deep breaths and praying all the way down to the courthouse.

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

Sorry, I did not understand this: (and do the PD thing if necessary).

What is the "PD" thing?

 

[StevenJ_420Law]

You can ask judge for a continued arraignment to give you time get your own attorney, then you wont need to enter a plea. Thats pretty standard and no big deal.

 

[CdwJava]

The last drink that I had was between 1:00- 1:15 a.m. and I awakened at approximately 4:30 am with the blood draw at about 5 a.m. I've heard that time is the only thing that releases the alcohol from your system. I'm 5'2" about 235 1bs and I had only a small amount to eat before and nothing to eat after.

On average, your BAC will drop at a rate of about .01-.015 per hour that passes. The last drink time is important, but so is the total amount of alcohol you consumed. THAT is what will hang you. If you were at or above .08 at 5 AM, then you were likely between .12 to .16 when you stopped drinking.

The keys were in the ignition. I truly wish that I would have thought have taken them out of the ignition before I pulled over to sleep My car does not have an accessory position that I know of?

In CA just having the keys in the ignition does not necessarily equate to observed operation of the vehicle as required by the Vehicle Code. This may be a vulnerability in the prosecution's case, and leverage your attorney might use to extract a decent plea deal if you want it. But, the state may argue that if not immediately arrested, you would have posed a danger to the public (one of the exceptions to the presence requirement for DUI).

The PD is Public Defender (a court appointed attorney). This is usually done at the arraignment, and you will usually have a "not guilty" plea entered on your behalf in order to speak with assigned counsel or you can ask for a continuance to retain counsel.

Also, as a note, the DA may NOT have the test results, yet. If this is arraignment is the initial court date on the citation, you may have to go simply because of the citation. If the results are not back, the DA may ask to continue the matter. In my county we use the state DOJ labs and blood test results can take a month or longer to come back sometimes, though often they take about 3 weeks.

 

[Xtremely Gr8ful]

That's what PD stands for!

In CA just having the keys in the ignition does not necessarily equate to observed operation of the vehicle as required by the Vehicle Code. This may be a vulnerability in the prosecution's case, and leverage your attorney might use to extract a decent plea deal if you want it. But, the state may argue that if not immediately arrested, you would have posed a danger to the public (one of the exceptions to the presence requirement for DUI)

Thank you! That is really good to know. I plan on entering a not guilty plea and contesting it as best as possible. Even if I have to settle for a wet and reckless. I just can't get a dui I can't see being pulled over while I was asleep a justified cause for me not being able to get a good job. That's what is really worrying me right now. This is so out of character for me. It was my birthday weekend and my first weekend out since my fiance left me. It was supposed to be my opening a new chapter in my life night. Not supposed to be the worst birthday ever night

The PD is Public Defender (a court appointed attorney).

Thank you for clarifying what a PD is. I was stumped above. This is my first occurence.

QUESTION: If charged with a DUI of .08-.10 will I lose my license for a year or I thought I read somewhere that if I wasn't on DUI probation that it would be a suspended license of 4 months?? I don't know what the rule is in California.

Also, as a note, the DA may NOT have the test results, yet. If this is arraignment is the initial court date on the citation, you may have to go simply because of the citation. If the results are not back, the DA may ask to continue the matter. In my county we use the state DOJ labs and blood test results can take a month or longer to come back sometimes, though often they take about 3 weeks.

The arresting date was June 20th 2010. So it's been about a month. I'm hoping that the District Attorney only filed because of the arrest and not because of a bad blood test result. I went this morning to court and they failed to inform me that the letter that I received in the mail from the District Attorney had an updated court date. I thought I was supposed to attend both. When I went today, i wasn't on the calendar. The letter didn't tell me to disregard the Release from custody court date. My new court date is August 2nd.

 

[StevenJ_420Law]

Also, as a note, the DA may NOT have the test results, yet. If this is arraignment is the initial court date on the citation, you may have to go simply because of the citation. If the results are not back, the DA may ask to continue the matter. In my county we use the state DOJ labs and blood test results can take a month or longer to come back sometimes, though often they take about 3 weeks.

Without splitting hairs, but a cite date from the jail means nothing really in terms of a case with the court. A police/DA case and a cite/release and a filed court case, as you know, are all different things.

If the results arent back, a case isnt filed. Without a filed case, there is no need to ask the court for a continuance. The court has no interest in the matter until filed. They just file this case when they have their ducks in a row and then mail this guy a court date (if the SPA date passed) to his last known address and if he fta's .. get a warrant for his arrest by declaration of probable cause. If he has a SPA, he would just get his warrant right from the bench on FTA. Lab results do take awhile. It is very typical to have lab cases (meth, DUI' etc) get filed well after the SPA date.

I'd be interested in knowing a process significantly different than that... but that is how it works generally ...