sending into county attorney?

[brendan_670]

Friday night i was diving home from a friends house and rolled my car on a gravel road. I figured I would leave it til morning to take care of, and just walked back to my friends house. At 6:00, i am woke up and talking to two state patrol. They breathalize me, I blow a .081. (Im 19) They didnt make me sign anything and said they are going to send a report into the county attorney and see if he wants to charge me. My question is, would they have to cite me right away? Or is what they told me legit? It just seems like they would have cited me right away.

If someone could shed some light on this that would be awesome and put my mind at ease.

Edit- This is in Nebraska

 

[davew128]

Have you considered AA?

 

[HighwayMan]

Typically the state has up to a year to file charges in a case like this. Nebraska may be different but it's probably about right.

You should be finding out shortly whether you will be charged.

 

[HighwayMan]

Just curious - how did they find you at your friends house if you left you car at the scene?

 

[brendan_670]

well they called my parents, and they had a good idea where I was because the car was pretty close to the house i stayed at..And what do you mean have I considered aa? would that help the case?

 

[HighwayMan]

What time did the accident occur?

 

[brendan_670]

2:30 -3:00 am

 

[CdwJava]

My question is, would they have to cite me right away? Or is what they told me legit? It just seems like they would have cited me right away.

No, they do not have to cite you right away.

Yes, they can submit the matter to the DA along requesting a complaint based upon their information or belief that you were operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. And with a BAC of .08 a few hours after the rollover, it is clear you were even more impaired at the time of the collision. Whether they can show that you had consumed the alcohol before or after the collision is the question. That might depend on what you or any witnesses said.

If nothing else you may face a zero tolerance violation for consuming alcohol underage. You might also face charges related to the collision alone.

 

[asiny]

And what do you mean have I considered aa? would that help the case?

By A.A. they refer to Alcoholics Anonymous. If you blew a .081 three hours after the accident, I can only imagine that you had a much higher alc. content at the time.

You have an over-drinking problem- by getting behind the wheel of your car and rolling it you could have easily have killed someone.
If you voluntary entered a treatment program the court may be more lenient, especially if this is your first legal altercation.

 

[DUIAttyPCho]

I'm a California lawyer, but to answer your question, no the police do not have to cite you with a crime immediately. In your case, a DUI. It is quite common for the police to not cite you and send the police report to the District Attorney for determination on if a case should or should not be filed against you. As most of you are already aware, the police determine arrest, and recommend charges. It is the prosecutor who decides if charges are actually going to be filed or not. Once the case is filed, then it is sent to the Superior Court, at which point the case finally becomes a criminal matter.

It is quite common in a case like yours for the police to dispense with actually citing and arresting you. What the police did when they found your car is run the registration to see what address and phone number it went to. Hence, the police called your parents. Your parents essentially told him that you had the car last they saw, and so they were able to deduce that you drove the car. They then were able to find out where you were from your parents (your friend's house).

When the police had you blow into the breathalizer, they got the evidence they needed to charge you with DUI. Chances are the District Attorney will file on you. You should be receiving a letter in about 3 months notifying you that charges have been filed, and it will list what court and what date you need to appear. Rolling your car is quite a big deal. You leaving the scene also didn't help your case either. Plus, you are under age. So, the cards are really against you in this situation. Save money for an attorney while you still can. You have 3 months to save up. You will need one.

Jail may be in your future. Really consider going to AA. That will at least show the Court you learned your lesson and won't make bad decisions like drinking, rolling your car, and leaving the scene. You are lucky you didn't die or get someone else hurt. I wish you luck! And try not to do anything that has a good chance of killing you.

 

[HighwayMan]

I would think that the time span between the accident (if that was even determined accurately) and the encounter with the driver would be a huge problem as far as proving intoxication at the time of the accident is concerned.

 

[DUIAttyPCho]

Yes, the D.A. has some problems with respect to measuring the BAC
at time of driving, but it's a problem he can get around. You can still calculate
BAC at time of driving by estimating time of accident and time of blow. Here is the calculation:

Assume accident happened at 9pm. 2 hours pass, officers have def blow into machine. Per hour, there is a drop of .02 BAC. So in two hours BAC drops .04.
Assuming machine is off by .01, def BAC at .11. Even if def's alcohol was rising at time of accident, after one hour, rising defense is negated, as rising BAC goes up in 30 mins and drops in 30 mins.

And, assuming DA had major problems with BAC, it only affects the
b count. He still has a strong case for the a count. Roll over accident tends to show under the influence. Also factor is def is under 21, and fled scene. Also parents and Def admit driving. Jury likely to convict on a count a.