Minor in Possession in Washington

Hello forum members,

I am 20 years old and I received a charge of minor in possession of alcohol (possession/consumption) on October 29th, 2006. My court date is scheduled for November 13th, 2006. I have a couple of questions regarding this charge, but in order to answer them, a story of the charge is required.

My roommate, some friends, and I went to a Halloween party on the night of October 28th (Saturday) and there was alcohol being consumed. While I did not consume any alcohol that night, I had some spilled on me due to it being a crowded party. My friends and I walked back to my apartment (my roommate stayed there) and when we got to my front door, I realized that I had forgotten my keys. My roommate's window was open so I climbed through the window and unlocked the door from the inside, letting my friends in. Twenty minutes later my roommate got back to the apartment and half an hour after that two police men knocked on our door.

My roommate and I went outside to talk to the police and closed our door behind us. They wanted to see I.D. so my roommate and I went back inside (without letting the police in), got our I.D., and went back outside. They then asked me what I was doing with the window, and I explained the situation of forgetting my keys. They then asked if I had been drinking, and I said that I had not been. One police officer asked if I wanted to take a B.A.C. test and I said "No sir I do not." He then shined a light in my eyes and told me to follow the light. Following this, he told me to stick out my toungue. I did, and he said that he could smell alcohol on me and that my eyes were telling him that I had been drinking. I told him that I hadn't, and he told my roommate to ask the other people inside if they had been drinking while I was going to be arrested. When my roommate went inside and closed the door, one of the police officers put his foot in the door so it wouldn't close completely. My roommate came back, said no one had been drinking, and one of the police officers made another coment about me being arrested. After a couple more minutes they left and told me that I would receive a letter in the mail.

On November 1st I received the MIP in the mail and I am going to plead not guilty at my court date. I have a clean record besides this (no tickets, I have never even been pulled over). Do I need to do anything before the court date? Hire a lawyer? Any advice would be appreciated. Sorry if this was a long post, I wanted to include all of the information

Best regards,
Reed

Any advice would be appreciated.



Here are some hints on appearing in court:

Dress professionally in clean clothes.

Do not wear message shirts.

Don't chew gum, smoke, or eat. (Smokers...pot or tobacco...literally stink. Remember that before you head for court.)

Bathe and wash your hair.

Do not bring small children or your friends.

Go to court beforehand some day before you actually have to go to watch how things go.

Speak politely and deferentially. If you argue or dispute something, do it professionally and without emotion.

Ask the court clerk who you talk to about a diversion (meaning you want to plead to a different, lesser charge), if applicable in your situation. Ask about traffic school and that the ticket not go on your record, if applicable. Ask also about getting a hardship driving permit, if applicable. Ask about drug court, if applicable.

From marbol:

“Judge...

You forgot the one thing that I've seen that seems to frizz up most judges these days:

If you have a cell phone, make DAMN SURE that it doesn't make ANY noise in the courtroom. This means when you are talking to the judge AND when you are simply sitting in the court room.

If you have a ‘vibrate’ position on your cell phone, MAKE sure the judge DOESN'T EVEN HEAR IT VIBRATE!

Turn it off or put it in silent mode where it flashes a LED if it rings. AND DON'T even DREAM about answering it if it rings.”

(Better yet, don’t carry your cell phone into the courtroom.)”


Here are six stories that criminal court judges hear the most (and I suggest you do not use them or variations of them):

1. I’ve been saved! (This is not religion specific; folks from all kinds of religious backgrounds use this one.)

2. My girlfriend/mother/sister/daughter/wife/ex-wife/niece/grandma/grand-daughter is pregnant/sick/dying/dead/crippled/crazy and needs my help.

3. I’ve got a job/military posting in [name a place five hundred miles away].

4. This is the first time I ever did this. (This conflicts with number 5 below, but that hasn’t stopped some defendants from using both.)

5. You’ve got the wrong guy. (A variation of this one is the phantom defendant story: “It wasn’t me driving, it was a hitchhiker I picked up. He wrecked the car, drug me behind the wheel then took off.” Or, another variation: “I was forced into it by a bad guy!”)

6. I was influenced by a bad crowd.

http://forum.freeadvice.com/showthre...687#post854687

Public defender’s advice

http://newyork.craigslist.org/about/.../70300494.html


Other people may give you other advice; stand by.

As you hadn't been drinking, you missed an opportunity to get a negative test result on the PBT (preliminary breath test). Now, instead, you need to try to convince the court that you smelled like alcohol because somebody at a party spilled it on you, and that you refused the PBT because you... didn't want to take it? Consulting a criminal defense lawyer couldn't hurt.

I thought that, because I was in my own apartment and not on public grounds, I had the right to refuse a PBT. I was unaware that an MIP could be charged without physical proof of intoxication.

I'll try to find a criminal defense lawyer and discuss what route to take.

What are the impacts of a conviction? Do they vary from case to case, state to state?

Thanks,
Reed

There's an overview of Washington State alcohol laws and their penalties here.

I talked to a criminal defense lawyer and he said that I could take a diversion program.

When I go to court (tomorrow) and I plead not guilty, how do I ask for a diversion program? Do I explain what happened that night to the judge, state whether I am guilty or not guilty, and then he or she will tell me what my options are?

Thanks for your help!

Your lawyer should be able to provide you with tips as to local court procedure.