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My mother got a DUI after wrecking her Jeep no Breathalyzer no blood test Oklahoma

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Leut_Dan

Junior Member
Oklahoma

My mother had a brain tumor removed from her head the size of a golf ball, it also resulted in her loosing her right ear drum. This causes dizziness, confusion, stumbling over words, trouble comprehending or following a conversation.

She was on a road not far from her house, she passed out and hit a fence. She woke up to an officer who put her in a cop car and took her to jail. She was never breathalyzed, never blood tested, never asked to do either. She was also not taken to the hospital or looked at by a nurse even though she had two black eye's a bloody nose and a laceration on her arm.

They charged her with a DUI misdemeanor, she hired a lawyer who told her he would take care of it with no issues. I tried calling the lawyer 4 times with no response, today she called me and told me she has 12 months of probation, DUI school, victims impact panel, fines and court fees.

I feel like this lawyer took advantage of my mother, took her money and did not act in her best interests. What are your thoughts?
 


LdiJ

Senior Member
Oklahoma

My mother had a brain tumor removed from her head the size of a golf ball, it also resulted in her loosing her right ear drum. This causes dizziness, confusion, stumbling over words, trouble comprehending or following a conversation.

She was on a road not far from her house, she passed out and hit a fence. She woke up to an officer who put her in a cop car and took her to jail. She was never breathalyzed, never blood tested, never asked to do either. She was also not taken to the hospital or looked at by a nurse even though she had two black eye's a bloody nose and a laceration on her arm.

They charged her with a DUI misdemeanor, she hired a lawyer who told her he would take care of it with no issues. I tried calling the lawyer 4 times with no response, today she called me and told me she has 12 months of probation, DUI school, victims impact panel, fines and court fees.

I feel like this lawyer took advantage of my mother, took her money and did not act in her best interests. What are your thoughts?
Based on what you described above, your mother was not fit to drive a car. The attorney probably did the best he could for your mother.
 

adjusterjack

Senior Member
Hard to imagine that she would have been convicted had she gone to trial so I can only surmise that she accepted a plea bargain to avoid going to trial for whatever reason.

But let me ask you a few things Dan.

This can't be the first time that you are learning about your mother's accident and subsequent consequences.

Seems clear that her symptoms after the tumor removal rendered her incapable of handling all this herself.

Where were you on the day of the accident?
Why didn't you take her to the hospital after she bailed out?
Where were you on the day she hired the lawyer?
Why didn't you go with her to the lawyer's office then and any other time so you could be in on the discussions?
And where were you on the days she went to court?
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
I wonder why the OP thinks the attorney has any obligation to speak with him.
 

Leut_Dan

Junior Member
Hard to imagine that she would have been convicted had she gone to trial so I can only surmise that she accepted a plea bargain to avoid going to trial for whatever reason.

But let me ask you a few things Dan.

This can't be the first time that you are learning about your mother's accident and subsequent consequences.

Seems clear that her symptoms after the tumor removal rendered her incapable of handling all this herself.

Where were you on the day of the accident?
Why didn't you take her to the hospital after she bailed out?
Where were you on the day she hired the lawyer?
Why didn't you go with her to the lawyer's office then and any other time so you could be in on the discussions?
And where were you on the days she went to court?
This is not the first I've heard about it, as i stated i called 4 times with promises of a return phone call. This in the three weeks leading up to the court hearing. I called in the time periods suggested but the receptionist.

I would agree and it was the reason i wanted to talk to the lawyer, even though she said he had it handled.

I live 300 miles away, she was bailed out by a family member the next day.

I was 300 miles away, i hired a lawyer for her, however she already gave this lawyer money and he refused to return it.

Again i was 300 miles away, i have 0 vacation time and apparently this guy has very limited hours of operation.

I was 300 miles away in meeting all day, not that it would have mattered much on the day of the hearing.
 

Leut_Dan

Junior Member
I wonder why the OP thinks the attorney has any obligation to speak with him.
He has non however it is a common curtsy that most lawyers would be glad to bill for.

If you do not intend on giving me advice, please do not respond. I did not ask for help to be treated disrespectfully.

I simply want to know how other lawyers would have handled her case, as i think he was looking out for his own interested more so than hers.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
He has non however it is a common curtsy that most lawyers would be glad to bill for.
WRONG. The attorney is not allowed to speak with you about it without specific approval from your mother.

If you do not intend on giving me advice, please do not respond. I did not ask for help to be treated disrespectfully.
You mean, if I'm not telling you what you want to hear. Advising you that there's nothing you can do about it IS advice.

I simply want to know how other lawyers would have handled her case, as i think he was looking out for his own interested more so than hers.
Just about every other lawyer would have ignored you, just like this one did.


Really, it's not your business.
 

adjusterjack

Senior Member
I simply want to know how other lawyers would have handled her case, as i think he was looking out for his own interested more so than hers.
Have you asked your mother why she took the plea?

Her answer is what counts.

Not speculation on how other lawyers would have handled it.
 

Leut_Dan

Junior Member
WRONG. The attorney is not allowed to speak with you about it without specific approval from your mother.

You mean, if I'm not telling you what you want to hear. Advising you that there's nothing you can do about it IS advice.

Just about every other lawyer would have ignored you, just like this one did.


Really, it's not your business.
She asked me to talk to him, and made it clear to him i would be calling. I have never had a lawyer ignore a phone call or refuse to speak to me. This lawyer did neither he simply had his receptionist he would be in touch.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
Again, he's really under no obligation to speak with you. In fact, he saved your mom money.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
He has non however it is a common curtsy that most lawyers would be glad to bill for.

If you do not intend on giving me advice, please do not respond. I did not ask for help to be treated disrespectfully.

I simply want to know how other lawyers would have handled her case, as i think he was looking out for his own interested more so than hers.
I suggest you pay "other lawyers" to speculate on how they would have handled this situation.

I, not an attorney, would speculate that it will cost you a lot of money to find out ...nothing.

Unless the attorney client gave written permission for you to be kept informed....then the attorney COULD NOT DISCUSS this with you. To call you back would be a waste of billing hours.
 

Leut_Dan

Junior Member
Have you asked your mother why she took the plea?

Her answer is what counts.

Not speculation on how other lawyers would have handled it.
I did, she said she did not want to go to jail. I'm not sure where the idea of jail even came from considering the lack of any evidence that she had been drinking.

I asked what they discussed prior to walking to the court room. She said she asked what the plan was, he then asked her to sign some paperwork and told her "you hired me to do a job let me take care of it"
 

adjusterjack

Senior Member
I did, she said she did not want to go to jail. I'm not sure where the idea of jail even came from considering the lack of any evidence that she had been drinking.

I asked what they discussed prior to walking to the court room. She said she asked what the plan was, he then asked her to sign some paperwork and told her "you hired me to do a job let me take care of it"
I suggest you consult another criminal defense attorney about the possibility of getting the plea bargain overturned.

Only this time you need to figure out how to BE THERE during the process (if it's even possible) because if you let it happen in a vacuum, the results might not change.
 

quincy

Senior Member
A DUI can be charged if the driver is under the influence of drugs. It is possible, probably likely with the mother's medical history, that she is taking several.

It sounds to me that the attorney may have represented the mother well given the fact the mother should never have been driving if she had been experiencing the symptoms described.

I hope Leut_Dan encourages his mother to give up her car keys and find another mode of transportation. This accident did not result in any serious injury or death, and for that Dan (and the mom) should be grateful.
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
A DUI can be charged if the driver is under the influence of drugs. It is possible, probably likely with the mother's medical history, that she is taking several.

It sounds to me that the attorney may have represented the mother well given the fact the mother should never have been driving if she had been experiencing the symptoms described.

I hope Leut_Dan encourages his mother to give up her car keys and find another mode of transportation. This accident did not result in any serious injury or death, and for that Dan (and the mom) should be grateful.
I really like this post...:)
 

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