Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
My question involves criminal law for the state of: NC
While at my home I lost balance falling backwards hitting my head on the concrete. Unconscious for a moment the police were called. I was intoxicated at home. Did the police have the right to further investigate me about drinking and or driving a vehicle?
Were they trespassing?
Did the police have the right to perform a handheld breathalyzer on me at home?
Intoxicated and with a head injury even if admitting to driving that day, can it be used against me?
How do the police know what my BAC was if and when I drove a Car if I was not tested then?
How do they know I drove a car?
Can I fight this case and win, how?
Re: Charged with DWI at Home Not Caught Driving or in Car What My Defense to Win My C
So you have actually been charged with DWI and not plain public intox or something similar?
How long had you been at home when you had your accident?
No, they were not trespassing as someone apparently called 911 cause your drunk butt fell down and busted your head.
If you admitted to driving that day, that's how they know you drove a car.
You need an attorney.
Re: Charged with DWI at Home Not Caught Driving or in Car What My Defense to Win My C
What is your age (it makes a difference)?
Anything you say can be used against you.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
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RIDDLER32
Can I fight this case and win, how?
I don't know if you can win it or not but without an attorney you certainly won't.
While you are at it get some treatment for your alcoholism.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
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RIDDLER32
My question involves criminal law for the state of: NC
While at my home I lost balance falling backwards hitting my head on the concrete. Unconscious for a moment the police were called. I was intoxicated at home. Did the police have the right to further investigate me about drinking and or driving a vehicle?
There is no law that prevents them from investigating any suspected crime. The methods they use to investigate may be regulated or limited in certain circumstances, however. Whether the officers violated any of your rights depends very much on the details of what happened after they arrived.
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RIDDLER32
Were they trespassing?
Quite likely, no. The police are allowed to enter upon private property when they receive a call about a person who may be injured or otherwise in need of immediate help in order to see what the situation is and determine what assistance may be needed. Moreover, if you or any household member voluntarily admitted them into the home they were thus invitees to the property, not trespassers.
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RIDDLER32
Did the police have the right to perform a handheld breathalyzer on me at home?
They are permitted to ask you to do the test. You could have refused to do it. Whether that refusal would violate your state’s implied consent law again depends on all the details of what happened.
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RIDDLER32
Intoxicated and with a head injury even if admitting to driving that day, can it be used against me?
Assuming that you were not in custody at the time your voluntary statements to the police could be used against you even without giving you the Miranda advisement telling you that. You would do well in that kind of circumstance to tell the police you wish to exercise you right to remain silent and then say nothing more.
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RIDDLER32
How do the police know what my BAC was if and when I drove a Car if I was not tested then?
Unless your blood or breath was tested, the officers won’t know what your BAC was. But understand this: in pretty much every state, including yours, the DUI statute is in two parts. One part makes it illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or more. The other part makes illegal to drive if your driving ability is impaired by any amount of alcohol or drugs. That latter part a lot of drivers seem to forget. For that latter part, all the officers need is evidence that you had been drinking/taking drugs, that you were impaired, and that you operated a motor vehicle in that condition. If you admitted to drinking any amount of alcohol that is enough to establish that you had been drinking. Your fall and any other observations of your behavior may be enough to show you were impaired. Then all they need is to link you to driving a vehicle in that condition.
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RIDDLER32
How do they know I drove a car?
They can infer it from circumstantial evidence and/or testimony of witnesses. If your car engine was hot when they arrived and the keys to the car were in your pocket, for example, the logical conclusion would be that you had just been driving the car.
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RIDDLER32
Can I fight this case and win, how?
No way to know if you have a good defense without reviewing all the details of what occurred. But if you want your best chance at a good outcome I suggest you consult a good DUI attorney if you have been charged with a DUI offense.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
Thanks for the response.
I am not disputing I was intoxicated at my home. I don't see how they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that I drove a car or what my BAC was at an earlier time if I was not caught driving a car.
Whether the cars engine was hot or not still does not mean I drove the car. Even if my car was seen on the road does not mean I was the one driving it.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
We don't know the state's case against you. They are free to try and prove it. It is possible, depending on the full facts, that they could swing a conviction. You will need a competent DUI attorney to represent you.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
You still haven't answered my question. What is your age?
They don't have to see you driving. The statement that you drove is more than enough to convict you. As Free9man, you're not in any condition based on your intoxicated and injured state to understand at the time what the evidence actually is. If you're just being investigated, your best move is to keep your mouth shut. If you are charged, you need an attorney.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
Get help for your alcoholism. If you are getting so plastered that you fall and hit your head, you have a drinking problem.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
20+ years driving experience. Never arrested. Never to Court. Never in trouble with the law.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
Well, there's a first time for everything. Seriously, get an attorney and preferably one who specializes in DUI/DWI. If you have a drinking problem, get help for that too.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
OK, now that you've finally given me an indication that you are over 21, I can answer some of your original questions.
To start with, the police are free to investigate potential crimes. As you were not driving or going anywhere at the time, this doesn't even require an articulable suspicion for them to start asking you. And no, since this is consensual (you were not arrested, yet), they don't have to inform you of your rights. Since you were over 21, they can ask for a PBT. You aren't obliged to comply. A PBT can not be used to support a DUI, though it may lend them probable cause for other actions. As I stated, if you stated you are driving, they can testify you said that in court, and if there's indication that you were driving in the intoxicated state that they were observing you, that can be sufficient for conviction.
So, anyhow, are you charged with anything yet?
I do agree, that you fit the psychiatric definition of a substance abuse. I suggest you get medical/psychiatric help. If you're charged, you need a lawyer.
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
Arrested and charged with DWI that night and released same night. Lost license for 30 days. Interviewing attorneys, seeing a counselor for drinking, sober 16+ days.
Any more answers out there or opinions?
Re: Can You Be Investigated for Drunk Driving After Falling at Home
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RIDDLER32
Thanks for the response.
I don't see how they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that I drove a car or what my BAC was at an earlier time if I was not caught driving a car.
The police do not have to prove anything beyond a reasonable doubt in order to arrest you. They only need probable cause. If there is a "wheel witness", i.e. a person who can place you in control of a vehicle, and you were observed as exhibiting clear signs of impairment as you walked into your home and then proceeded directly to the fall, yes, they could potentially make the case for probable cause. If you were home for two hours and then the police came to your door to investigate somehow, that's an entirely different matter. Details matter.