Minor in Possession - Question

[stephanieann]

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

I'm 18 years old and a resident of Michigan. Last night I received an MIP (lucky me) with a BAC of .08. I do not remember what the last number was. Coincidentally, the state police officer did not write down my BAC on my ticket. Out of about 15 people, I'm the only one who had nothing written down under the BAC field on my ticket.

Can I somehow fight this seeing as it's not written on my ticket?
If not, what should I do?

 

[Perky]

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

I'm 18 years old and a resident of Michigan. Last night I received an MIP (lucky me) with a BAC of .08. I do not remember what the last number was. Coincidentally, the state police officer did not write down my BAC on my ticket. Out of about 15 people, I'm the only one who had nothing written down under the BAC field on my ticket.

Can I somehow fight this seeing as it's not written on my ticket?
If not, what should I do?

Not likely. You should contact a lawyer. I believe Michigan has a diversion program for first offenses.

 

[quincy]

What city/county were you ticketed in?

I agree with perroloco that you probably have no basis to fight the MIP - possession is pretty much possession regardless of the BAC - but you should consult with an attorney in your area anyway, to see if there is any way the ticket can be dismissed outright.

A conviction on a minor in possession charge will result in a misdemeanor on your record, and you can find yourself having difficulties getting school loans, personal loans and jobs, and a misdemeanor can affect your insurance rates, and your entry into Canada can be denied. An attorney can be your best insurance against this happening.

If you are a college student, many attorneys in and near college towns will offer student "discounts" or payment plans for handling an MIP.

If this is your first offense, you should be eligible for the diversion program, which keeps the misdemeanor from appearing as part of your criminal history, if you meet all the terms of the program satisfactorially and do not reoffend during your probationary period.

The terms of the program will include community service hours, alcohol/drug education classes, and all costs incurred as a result. The probationary period is generally 6 months, depending on the county where you were ticketed (one judge orders a 2 year probation). If you successfully complete all of the terms of the program, and do not violate any other laws during your probation, the MIP will be discharged and dismissed and there will be no public record of it to report on applications.

Diversion will require that you plead guilty to the MIP charge. If you do not meet all of the terms of the diversion program, the guilty plea can be entered by the court and you will wind up with the misdemeanor on your record. You DO NOT want this to happen.

Again, I recommend you have an attorney, or consult with an attorney, prior to your arraignment (your first appearance in court). If you do not have an attorney prior to this first appearance, you should plead NOT GUILTY and another hearing will be scheduled. Get an attorney or consult with an attorney before this next hearing. At this next scheduled hearing, you will want to ASK FOR diversion and it should be offered at that time.

Good luck.

 

[stephanieann]

Thank you so much for all the information.
I got the MIP in Gogebic County. Ironwood, Michigan to be exact.

So, it'd be a bad idea to plead not guilty and then fight it at the second hearing?
I keep thinking that since the cops specifically told me that I was probably the most respectful one there that maybe if I fight it, they might just decide to drop all charges.
It just really makes me wonder if I can get away with it since there was no BAC listed on the ticket. But, you're saying that doesn't matter, right?

- - -

EDIT!
If I'm correct, they don't have a case on me. Right? I mean, the ticket shows no BAC and there's nothing anywhere that says I even drank. To me, it just seems like a ticket without the validity of it being issued. They can't charge me for a MIP when there was no possible way that they knew what I blew - correct?
The BAC area is blank - for all they know, I could have blown straight zeros and they can't prove that I didn't. Right?

 

[quincy]

It is a good idea to plead not guilty at your first court appearance, and then consult with an attorney before your next scheduled hearing.

Whether you should fight the MIP will be something to discuss with the attorney you consult, to see what the odds are that your ticket can be dismissed outright or what the odds are of you beating the ticket in a trial. Go over with the attorney all of the facts of your stop, show him the ticket, and see what he says.

The missing BAC on your ticket does not mean that the police do not have a record of your .08 BAC elsewhere. And consumption of alcohol is not required to be issued a ticket for possession of alcohol. And the police have 14 people who were ticketed along with you, one of whom may say you were drinking with them.

By the way, if there were 15 of you ticketed, I imagine you were a pedestrian and not in a motor vehicle? Were you ordered by the police to take a breathalyzer, or were you given the opportunity to refuse to take the breathalyzer, or did you and the others take the breathalyzer without a thought as to whether you could refuse it or not?

At any rate, if the attorney you consult does not believe the ticket will be dismissed outright, and the attorney after a review of the facts does not believe it will benefit you to take the matter to trial, then, if you wish to be placed in the diversion program to avoid a misdemeanor conviction, you will have to plead GUILTY to the MIP at the subsequent hearing, AFTER being offered diversion. Then you just need to satisfy all of the terms of the program, do not reoffend during your probationary period, and the MIP will be discharged and dismissed.

Good luck.

 

[mistoffolees]

It is a good idea to plead not guilty at your first court appearance, and then consult with an attorney before your next scheduled hearing.

That may be a GOOD idea, but the BEST idea is to talk with an attorney before doing ANYTHING.

 

[quincy]

Well, true, and that is exactly what I advised in my first post, mistoffolees (if you read any of the previous postings). I was using the word "good" to go along with stephanieanne's use of the word "bad."

It is always best to speak with an attorney first, and this would be especially the case if stephanieanne is hoping to get the ticket dismissed entirely based on a technicality.

But, as a note, it can be difficult in an area with colleges to get an appointment with an attorney prior to the arraignment on an MIP. The attorneys stephanieanne contacts, if they are unable to see her before the arraignment, almost certainly will advise her to plead "not guilty" at the arraignment and then they will set up an appointment with her for after this first court appearance. They will handle the pretrial conference and help to ensure she is offered diversion.

 

[stephanieann]

Again - thank you for all the help and information!

Yes. We all took a PBT - except for the few that were 21 years of age or older.
He specifically said "Will you take a PBT?" and everyone consented to it.
I'm pretty sure some weren't aware that they have a right to deny to take it.

I'm any case - I live in a small town with plenty of attorneys available.
I'm calling my family attorney tomorrow and then speaking with the district attorney.
Although, I have to say - the only record they have of my number blown is on a little white memo pad (no carbon copy).

This is what I was told by someone else ::
"They have no proof that you drank, nor can they prove what your BAC was. The cop could easily be seen as an unreliable source even if he shows the memo pad. He could have written down a false number in that memo pad - there is no BAC on the ticket and there's no possible way they have grounds for charging you."

This person also compared it to a speeding ticket: "It's just as if they give you a speeding ticket and don't put your speeding MPH amount on the ticket. They can't charge you with a speeding ticket if there's no proof that you were even speeding."

 

[quincy]

I am not sure who this person is who is telling you the police have nothing to support your MIP, but I would not rely on that information too much.

A minor in possession is not a ticket for consumption of alcohol. You do not need to have a BAC to get a MIP. All you need for an MIP ticket is to have alcohol within your possession or control. An open bottle of alcohol being passed among the 15 of you is enough to support a minor in possession charge. In addition, the police officer's word and a pad of paper showing your BAC could be enough to result in a misdemeanor conviction.

That said, I am glad you are contacting your family attorney. The attorney can let you know what the chances are of you having the ticket dismissed without you having to go through the diversion program to do so. I am thinking your chances are not that great, especially since the officer ticketed the others in your group with recorded BACs and may have their word to support his that you were drinking, but then I could be wrong.

It is certainly worth an attorney's review.

Good luck.