Drug Crimes, Substance Abuse Lots of questions about a DUI arrest...

[ALB914]

My husband was arrested for DUI for prescription drugs on New Years Eve in Georgia. He had just spent 2 days at the ER with his dad and was exhausted and crossed the line on his way home. He passed all the sobriety tests. He allowed a search of the vehicle and the police found his bag of clothes and prescription medications that he has to take several times a day for depression and bi-polar disorder and a prescription narcotic that he had taken hours before he drove. As soon as they found those they arrested him and had blood work done. He went to court as scheduled but they had to reschedule it because they didn't have the toxicology report back. Since he was already on probation with another county, the DUI arrest was a violation and he was sent to jail to serve time before he was able to go to the 2nd court date. Now he has failed to appear since they would not take him to court in the other county. What will happen with the failure to appear? We have been told that the court will just place a hold on him and he will be transfered to the other jail until he goes to court. Will the failure to appear create a new charge against him now? How long will he sit in the jail after being transferred before he goes to court on the DUI? Also, he wants to plead guilty or nolo and just get it over with while he is in jail. Is there a way for him to do this? It is a first DUI offense if that makes a difference. I want to see the toxicology report before he pleads anything. I know that he will have the bi-polar medications in his system, he takes them every day and has for years. I don't know if the narcotic will show up because I don't know how long that lasts in your blood. I also don't know if the court looks at certain levels in your blood or if they just see it was there and it won't matter if it was enough to impair someone. Is there a way for me to get the toxicology report? I don't want to do anything until I see that. We have had a run of bad luck the past year and our savings are gone, I can't even get a job flippin burgers anywhere and he lost his job over this arrest. We can't pay if they give him fines. What happens then? Is there an alternative to the fines like community service or more jail time?

 

[army judge]

He should make no statements, confessions, or admissions. He should ask for a lawyer and work with his lawyer to lessen his eventual sentence. He will more than likely be revoked. As for all that stuff about the ER, his dad, and being tired, shut up about that. NONE of that will help.

He might get a pass for missing the court date due to being incarcerated, but that'll only hurt him at his revocation. Bottom line, all he can hope for is to lessen his pain and damages. He's going to receive some time, so he (and you) need to clam up tight. Stop talking, let the state prove their case.

Also, he needs to leanr not to ever again allow the police to search. A simple refusal MIGHT have stopped all of this.
Too late now.
Finally, he shouldn't be carrying any prescribed medication in anything other than the pharmacy supplied vial!!!

 

[ALB914]

I think I am a little confused. He was on probation with the state. Our understanding was that being on probation surrenders his right to refuse a search. I am almost positive that was in the paperwork, but I could be wrong. And if he refused wouldn't they just have called for the drug dog who would have alerted to the narcotics giving them cause to search anyways? All medicine was in its prescribed containers so that was not an issue. But the local city police believed he was impaired as soon as they found the bottles and arrested him and made him do a blood test. He spent the night in city jail and made bail. He reported the arrest, like he was suppose to do, to his probation officer. She decided to make him serve 7 months for probation violation for the arrest with the city. He waived his right to a revocation hearing and took the time the probation officer gave him because he was afraid that he would get his entire time left (several years) if he went before the judge. She told me personally that he gets 7 months but with good behavior it cuts it down to 3 months and when he gets out, he has to start reporting to her again (he was on non report). He has a release date with the jail for the end of the 3 months. So once he goes to court with the city, they have the authority to revoke the state probation? Or will going to court and being found guilty, if he does get found guilty, count as another violation and then it can be revoked? At the first court date he was told that he could not apply for a court appointed lawyer because they did not offer them for traffic court. We absolutely can't pay for a lawyer so it would have to be court appointed. If we were misinformed about a court appointed lawyer, who do I talk to about getting one? Can I even try? Or would my husband have to do that himself? I don't know what rights I legally have as his wife to even attempt to get any information or try to get things sorted out. I suspect none.