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First time DUI (drug) charge.. any advice?

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DerelictMyBalls

Greenlighter
Joined
Dec 14, 2009
Messages
48
Location
Australia, WA
Hi guys,

To make it short, a few months back I was charged with DUI with an illicit drug. The sad thing is, I only went to 'test' the pill to make sure they were not 'piperazines' with my tongue, and unluckily I was caught going home by a booze bus.

I was obviously 100% sober but because I had just 'licked' it as a form of testing only, the test results showed a positive result.

Now this is my first offense ever, and I have recently received my court summons date.

Now I'm just after opinions on what I should do? Admit guilty (even though I wasn't technically 'high', but I'm guessing this won't go through in court) and pay the fines?

The only thing I'm worried about is a convictions record, and seeing how this is my first offense, is there anything I can do? Is a lawyer crucial for my case? I'm OK with paying the fine, but if I can avoid the conviction record I'm definitely willing to pay extra.

All opinions appreciated, thank you.
 
P.S

I've been told by a few that getting a lawyer at this point might not be that beneficial? They said that the best thing to do for my case is to admit guilty (even though I wasn't high and I'm sure the police officers that tested me could see that). The reason for this being that it is my first ever offense.

Also, if I do admit I'm guilty, I will be writing them a letter to explain. Now is the important thing here to tell them something general and say I won't do it again? Or would it be better to explain to them I had just 'tasted' the drug to make sure they weren't something else, and that I wasn't high at all.
 
Lastly, the other thing I was worried about was a suspension of my license.

I have read up on legalaid.com.au and found this:

Can I ask the court not to fine me and not to disqualify me from driving?

For most drink or drug driving offences, the minimum penalty is fixed by law, so the court must impose at least the minimum fine and at least the minimum period of disqualification for the particular offence.

Is there any drink or drug driving offence I won’t be disqualified for?

While most drink or drug driving offences will result in you being automatically disqualified from driving, there are a few slightly less serious offences that do not result in automatic disqualification. They are:

* First offence of driving with illicit drugs in your saliva or blood, provided that you are not found to be impaired by the drug at the time.

Now, my charge was 'driving with illicit drug in oral fluid/blood', not 'impaired while driving'.

How good are my chances I won't get a suspension? I'm also planning to include in my plea of guilty character references.

Thanks all.
 
I know it is a bit late after the fact but did they confirm the saliva test with a blood test? I would have thought if you only "licked" it then the blood serum levels would be too low to convict.
 
They tested with both the swab + oral test, but no blood test. However they had the sample analyzed and it had tested positive so I'm leaning towards a plea of guilty seeing how it is my first offense.

This will obviously be backed up by various quality character references, and any additional information that may help me lower the sentence.
 
There's really no reason not to see a lawyer about this, you want to get away with as little as possible and a lawyer will help you do that.
 
Crankinit said:
There's really no reason not to see a lawyer about this, you want to get away with as little as possible and a lawyer will help you do that.
Click to expand...

True, but I'm a FT student and the fee's might be a little too much for me.

In addition, they already have the evidence, and while a lawyer may reduce my sentencing, I don't think there would be a huge deal of difference.

As stated above, there are mandatory sentences to a point and I *hope* with my clean background, quality references and plea in mitigation will result in a not too harsh sentencing. I don't doubt a lawyer would be beneficial, but in my case, I don't think the costs outweigh to what is most likely going to happen?

Anyways, besides the lawyer, how is my plan for now guys?

Thanks everyone your opinions are much appreciated.
 
I would have requested a blood test if I was you, I thought they had to do a blood test as confirmation as the road tests are very dodgy.
 
They had 2 tests basically, the second one was the more 'accurate' test to confirm the results of the first.

Anyways, I have no choice but to take it under the chin and hope for the best outcome.

Main question I had for you guys was that whether I should just include a general apology in my mitigation plea or actually tell the truth regarding my 'testing' using my tongue? Because I highly doubt that would work so I'm leaning towards a general apology.
 
I'd say talk to a lawyer and tell him what happened, I'm sure there is enough evidence that those tests aren't accurate enough and he should be able to argue the police did not fully go through procedure by not administering a blood test.
 
I know from first hand experience with drink driving, the onus is on you to request a blood test, the police are not obligated to even inform you that it is an option.
 
If Paris Hilton can get away with it OF COURSE you'll be fine :p , sorry man if what your saying is the truth , you got dealt a shitty deal :(
 
How much time passed between when you put the pill on your tongue and when you were tested? I was under the impression that they are screening for active metabolites in your saliva.
 
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I would say around 10-30 minutes; I had tasted them after my pickup and drove into the booze bus straight after.

Shitty luck yeah, but I also had other illicit drugs in my vehicle and frankly I was much more concerned about getting the hell out of there instead of trying to beat the charge as it could have been a much worse scenario.
 
headdah said:
you tested positive to both of the testss just from Licking 1 pill??? sounds a bit far fetched to me if u ask me.
Click to expand...

Yep, but doesn't it make sense since I had the pill licked with my tongue not too long ago? Around 15-30 minutes in between the two events.

The first tester was the one that showed the 'red line' to indicate positive/negative, and I remember the police officer saying and revealing it to me that it was a strong thick line. It was the one where I had to suck on stick like a lollipop for a few minutes.

I argued that I had not taking anything so they took me into the actual vehicle to do the second further testing with my saliva/oral, where they used some machine which took a while to read my results, but nonetheless it came up positive as well.

It may sound far fetched but it's ultimately a case of bad timing/luck.

I'm still leaning towards just admitting guilty and hopefully get away with a fine with no record seeing as it is my first offense. Unless you guys think getting a lawyer may actually yield a completely different outcome, not a less-serious outcome.
 
I'd get a lawyer. I'm a law student and work in a law firm and I have a reasonable understanding of this topic. The cost difference between a good and a bad lawyer isn't that much either, considering how much you would already be paying for an average solicitor and how valuable having a good solicitor/barrister combo is.

At least arrange to have a meeting - they will give you an honest opinion of your options, predicted outcome and costs etc. If you change your mind after that, simply say thanks but no thanks. You may have scored a free initial consultation or at the worst you will be out of pocket a few of hundred dollars. It's a small price to pay - think long term.

At the end of the day the only person who can tell you with any authority what your chances are is someone who actually knows what they are talking about and who has many years of experience. It's worth it.
 
Yeah since he didn't get a blood test, it's probably not gonna go well with the judge so guilty would be the best plea, but a lawyer might be able to help because he was genuinely not under the influence.

What were the police like? Did they seem to think you were acting strangely?
 
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