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DUIs are misdemeanors?

seminole97

HR Legend
Jun 14, 2005
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Paul Pelosi - husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was arrested at 11:44pm on Saturday night in Napa County and booked hours later into jail on two counts - driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol content level of 0.08 or higher, both of which are misdemeanors.

I just assumed everywhere was draconian about that stuff nowadays.
 
Pretty much everywhere they are misdemeanors.
I guess the MADD propaganda worked on me.
Never one to drink and drive, because was never much for drinking, but I thought you got tossed under the jail if they managed to catch you before you had been in a wreck.
 
I don't think you are looking at getting hit with f-bombs until subsequent DUIs in most states, depending on circumstances. Most first time offenders will get a substance evaluation and have to do an alcohol education, surrender their license for a year, and get probation. Also possibly intoxalock if/when they get a work permit and while on probation.
 
I guess the MADD propaganda worked on me.
Never one to drink and drive, because was never much for drinking, but I thought you got tossed under the jail if they managed to catch you before you had been in a wreck.

I think you have to kill someone to get the felony charge.
 
In Iowa I believe after the third one in 14 years it's a felony. Doesn't mean you aren't seriously F'd if you get one. It was 14 years when I got one over 20 years ago.
 
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I guess the MADD propaganda worked on me.
Never one to drink and drive, because was never much for drinking, but I thought you got tossed under the jail if they managed to catch you before you had been in a wreck.
You’re a smart man. I don’t do it anymore, but back in the day, I’m just lucky I didn’t get caught. Not being a broke college student and having access to ride sharing is a really good thing.
 
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My old boss used to tell me….if you get caught once, you might have just been unlucky. If you get caught twice….you have an alcohol problem.
Once again I'm going on my memory from over 20 years ago but I had a coworker get 2 in 10 days. When you get arrested for a DUI you got a paper that allows you to drive for 10 days. I'm guessing to get your affairs in order to when you won't have a license. Well this idiot got one while driving in that 10 day period of time.
 
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Last Saturday night at 2am I got a phone call from a buddies GF saying they were in jail. Her for OWI and him for public intoxication.

she asked me if she should do the breathalyzer. I asked if she was drinking and she said only 2 over 5 hours. I said then yes you should blow. She said she always heard not to blow because then they couldn’t prove you were drunk.

I said you will lose your license if you don’t. She ended up blowing 0.0. WTF?!

the next day I asked my buddy how they both got arrested. He said she was driving so slow that he said he could walk faster than her. So he got out at a stop sign a block from their house and fell down. So he just sat there and she honked the horn because he left the door open.

cop rolled up and asked her to take a field test that he said she failed. Then arrested him for pub intoxication. Idiot.
 
Last Saturday night at 2am I got a phone call from a buddies GF saying they were in jail. Her for OWI and him for public intoxication.

she asked me if she should do the breathalyzer. I asked if she was drinking and she said only 2 over 5 hours. I said then yes you should blow. She said she always heard not to blow because then they couldn’t prove you were drunk.

I said you will lose your license if you don’t. She ended up blowing 0.0. WTF?!

the next day I asked my buddy how they both got arrested. He said she was driving so slow that he said he could walk faster than her. So he got out at a stop sign a block from their house and fell down. So he just sat there and she honked the horn because he left the door open.

cop rolled up and asked her to take a field test that he said she failed. Then arrested him for pub intoxication. Idiot.
Idiot is the cop. MYOB asshole, one block from the house?
 
How is the officer supposed to know he was one block from his house? And….what difference does it make?
By talking to them. Difference? Go arrest people actually doing harm. Couple of drunks a block from the house just need a hand to get to the door.
 
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The police are not supposed to pick and choose which laws they enforce.
The police are there to protect & SERVE. The SERVE part is where the the public servant takes time to talk to the citizens, have a conversation, and assess the situation.

She blew 0.0 and the cop says she failed her field test. Bullcrap. Just another douche with a badge looking to make arrests and assert his authority.

He should have done the right thing, realized these people were no danger to themselves or others and assisted them home. Instead he wastes the public's time on this stupid incident.
 
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Paul Pelosi - husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was arrested at 11:44pm on Saturday night in Napa County and booked hours later into jail on two counts - driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol content level of 0.08 or higher, both of which are misdemeanors.

I just assumed everywhere was draconian about that stuff nowadays.
A co-worker with a CDL got an OWI about 8 years ago, lost his CDL for a year, got another OWI recently. Lawyer fought it for him for 6 months. State told him he's not eligible to get his CDL back for another 10 years now. His pickup now outfitted with alcohol sensor so he can drive to work. Employer made job changes for him to accommodate his situation. He'll be retired before the 10 years is up.

Both times he got nailed, it was after picking up a 6-pack and drinking on the way home from work.
 
They say the average person drives under the influence 80 times before being caught, so 240 times according to that stat.
I have heard that when pulled over you have up to 2 hours to consult council before you step out of the vehicle. I try my damndest to not push the line but knowing you could kill an hour calling a lawyer is handy info. Is this true?
 
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The police are there to protect & SERVE. The SERVE part is where the the public servant takes time to talk to the citizens, have a conversation, and assess the situation.

She blew 0.0 and the cop says she failed her field test. Bullcrap. Just another douche with a badge looking to make arrests and assert his authority.

He should have done the right thing, realized these people were no danger to themselves or others and assisted them home. Instead he wastes the public's time on this stupid incident.
You weren’t there….all you have is a second hand, one-sided account. There is a good chance there is more to the story.

In any case…..don’t be falling down drunk in public. Problem solved!
 
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I have heard that when pulled over you have up to 2 hours to consult council before you step out of the vehicle. I try my damndest to not push the line but knowing you could kill an hour calling a lawyer is handy info. Is this true?
No man. Try this, and you will be in pain shortly. If you know you’re drunk, don’t do the field sobriety or breathalyzer, act as sober as possible and kind so video evidence is lacking. No license, but you could fight it with an attorney.
 
You don’t have to take the breathalyzer test, or do the sobriety tests at the location where you were stopped. Those are mostly used to assess the level of intoxication, and to build up evidence to use against you in court. You will not lose your license in Iowa for refusing to do so. They most likely will arrest you and take you into the station.

Once you are at the police station, you have two hours to contact a lawyer before you have to blow into the machine there. That’s probably when you need to determine how much you had to drink and when, such as if you pounded a couple drinks or shots right at last call, your BAC may actually be higher than when you were driving. Your liver can only filter roughly .02 percent of alcohol out of your blood per hour. If you think you have a chance to get below .08, or even under .15 to be eligible for a deferred judgment, it’s best to try to contact a lawyer to delay the test. This all is meaningless if you were in an accident, or have a prior DUI. Also, if you refuse that test, you will most likely lose your license.

This is in Iowa, not sure about other states. The main point, when in doubt, call an Uber.
 
You don’t have to take the breathalyzer test, or do the sobriety tests at the location where you were stopped. Those are mostly used to assess the level of intoxication, and to build up evidence to use against you in court. You will not lose your license in Iowa for refusing to do so. They most likely will arrest you and take you into the station.

Once you are at the police station, you have two hours to contact a lawyer before you have to blow into the machine there. That’s probably when you need to determine how much you had to drink and when, such as if you pounded a couple drinks or shots right at last call, your BAC may actually be higher than when you were driving. Your liver can only filter roughly .02 percent of alcohol out of your blood per hour. If you think you have a chance to get below .08, or even under .15 to be eligible for a deferred judgment, it’s best to try to contact a lawyer to delay the test. This all is meaningless if you were in an accident, or have a prior DUI. Also, if you refuse that test, you will most likely lose your license.

This is in Iowa, not sure about other states. The main point, when in doubt, call an Uber.
Maybe this is the two hour thing.

Thank you
 
I have heard that when pulled over you have up to 2 hours to consult council before you step out of the vehicle. I try my damndest to not push the line but knowing you could kill an hour calling a lawyer is handy info. Is this true?
That is false and is one the people misunderstand. The officer has 2 hours from time of stop to get a sample of breath, urine or blood. That doesn't mean the suspect has 2 hours to provide a sample. Case law dictates that once at the place of detention you must allow a reasonable amount of time for the suspect to make phone calls or to give a sample that the officer request. The courts have ruled 20-30 minutes is considered a reasonable amount of time to talk to whomever or to wait for someone to return a phone call to you.

If on a traffic stop and the officer has probable cause or reasonable suspicion to conduct standardized field sobriety test, you must comply. You can't just sit in the vehicle and stall and have no right to make phone calls to your attorney or anyone else until you are placed under arrest. You have every right to refuse SFST and or the PBT, but you can't just sit in your car and not comply.

Now I'll confuse you a little bit. There is a difference between OWI DOT implied consent and a criminal arrest. Implied consent which is the revocation of your driver's license the officer has 2 hours from time of PBT or arrest whichever comes first. However, if a officer doesn't get a sample within 2 hours, they can call a expert from the state that will testify what their BAC was at the time of stop or arrest by some fancy formula. OWI's can be confusing for people including some officers.
 
That is false and is one the people misunderstand. The officer has 2 hours from time of stop to get a sample of breath, urine or blood. That doesn't mean the suspect has 2 hours to provide a sample. Case law dictates that once at the place of detention you must allow a reasonable amount of time for the suspect to make phone calls or to give a sample that the officer request. The courts have ruled 20-30 minutes is considered a reasonable amount of time to talk to whomever or to wait for someone to return a phone call to you.

If on a traffic stop and the officer has probable cause or reasonable suspicion to conduct standardized field sobriety test, you must comply. You can't just sit in the vehicle and stall and have no right to make phone calls to your attorney or anyone else until you are placed under arrest. You have every right to refuse SFST and or the PBT, but you can't just sit in your car and not comply.

Now I'll confuse you a little bit. There is a difference between OWI DOT implied consent and a criminal arrest. Implied consent which is the revocation of your driver's license the officer has 2 hours from time of PBT or arrest whichever comes first. However, if a officer doesn't get a sample within 2 hours, they can call a expert from the state that will testify what their BAC was at the time of stop or arrest by some fancy formula. OWI's can be confusing for people including some officers.


There is no one in this world I would trust more to tell me about OWI in Iowa than a Waterloo cop. I heard the state uses Black Hawks games as OWI practice for new troopers.
 
There is no one in this world I would trust more to tell me about OWI in Iowa than a Waterloo cop. I heard the state uses Black Hawks games as OWI practice for new troopers.
Yes always trust what you hear. Cops force people to drink and then force them to brake a law so the cops can pull them over and practice owi’s. I’ve actually heard the opposite about Waterloo cops. They’re too busy to be worrying about traffic stops.
 
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