Dui first offense in pa

[Tattoolove84]

Looking for advice for a family member who was recently pulled over. Car was in driveway and turned off walking to the house when a copy pulled in with lights off and told him to get back into the car. He complied and the cop then turned her lights on. She said he was being stopped for suspicion of dui for crossing the center line. He drank 4 beers about 1.5-2 hours prior. The cop then asked him to do a field sobriety test walk a straight line on a sloped driveway. He said he couldn't do that even if he wasn't drinking so he wanted the Bac. Copyright took him to a police station out of jurisdiction, and he sat there for almost an hour. Blew into the machine and it didn't work so waited about 25min ando tried again and it worked. He can't remember if the cop said what it was cause he was scared out of his mind. The cop then drove him home without any paperwork and told him thanks for the cooperation. What are his options or what can he expect. Was the traffic stop legal?

 

[quincy]

Looking for advice for a family member who was recently pulled over. Car was in driveway and turned off walking to the house when a copy pulled in with lights off and told him to get back into the car. He complied and the cop then turned her lights on. She said he was being stopped for suspicion of dui for crossing the center line. He drank 4 beers about 1.5-2 hours prior. The cop then asked him to do a field sobriety test walk a straight line on a sloped driveway. He said he couldn't do that even if he wasn't drinking so he wanted the Bac. Copyright took him to a police station out of jurisdiction, and he sat there for almost an hour. Blew into the machine and it didn't work so waited about 25min ando tried again and it worked. He can't remember if the cop said what it was cause he was scared out of his mind. The cop then drove him home without any paperwork and told him thanks for the cooperation. What are his options or what can he expect. Was the traffic stop legal?

"Copyright" took him to a police station? Autocorrect, perhaps?

Although it appears the stop and arrest could be legal if the officer saw him driving erratically, there are enough questions presented here, and enough of a penalty if convicted of a DUI, that your family member will want an attorney to review the facts should he be charged.

Perhaps the officer's intent was only to scare your family member so he doesn't try to drink and drive in the future.

 

[Tattoolove84]

Thanks

He crossed the center line once and told the cop he always does there because of a manhole cover that sits low in the road. It's literally not even 100yards from the house. Auto correct has a couple miss interpreted words in my post hopefully people understand what I mean

 

[quincy]

He crossed the center line once and told the cop he always does there because of a manhole cover that sits low in the road. It's literally not even 100yards from the house. Auto correct has a couple miss interpreted words in my post hopefully people understand what I mean

Even with the autocorrects, your post was understandable.

I suggest that your friend hire an attorney IF he is charged with a DUI (and he might not be). Based on what you have described, it is possible an attorney could help your friend get the charge dismissed.

Officers generally will not stop and ask people to do FSTs or breath tests just for the heck of it, however, especially in the person's driveway. The police officer might have been observing your friend's driving for some time and noticed more than just the single swerve around a manhole cover.

Whatever happened with the stop, it is hard to say what will happen now. Tell your friend to sit tight for now, to not speak to the police if questioned (he should exercise his right to remain silent), and to hire an attorney if charged.

 

[HighwayMan]

It seems as if you're family member has no idea what really happened to him.

The stop in the driveway was perfectly legitimate. If the officer saw him driving out on the street, which she apparently did, and had reasonable suspicion about the DUI or any traffic infraction, it doesn't matter where the stop occurred.

You mentioned a police station "out of jurisdiction" - that's irrelevant for testing purposes.

Until the family member figures out what happened to him he should lay off the booze when driving.

 

[STEPHAN]

Until the family member figures out what happened to him he should lay off the booze when driving.

And after, too.

 

[quincy]

Here is a link to Pennsylvania's Chapter 38, "Driving after imbibing alcohol or utilizing drugs" laws and penalties, for Tattoolove84's friend to reference should he find himself charged with a DUI:

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/75/00.038..HTM