Underage possession, legal issues

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SolReaver

Senior Member
Yeah so last night we throw a kegger at our place. As expected, the cops come later on. I was holding a regular red cup, and the cop asks to come talk to me. He assumes there is alcohol in the cup (which there was) and asks me what I was drinking. I reply "kool-aid." Then the cop says "yeah whatever, im going give you a mip."

The question in my mind now is, why am i getting a mip, strictly because the cop THINKS i had alcohol in the cup. The cop didnt ask to smell the drink, and i wasnt given a breathilizer.

So im asking all the people on this board with legal experience, is it possible to fight this ticket? My court date is in a month and if i can get out of it relatively easily, it would be better than paying the $147 fine.
 
I would go to court either way even if you feel you have no chances of winning just to show up either way it looks better for you
I think without doing any test the ticket will be tossed out

either way just show up
 
if it was indeed coolaid, should have given the cup to the cop and told him to smell it or something.

if he didnt give you a breathalizer or sobriety test, i doubt it will stick.
 
No breathalizer, no charge. If you have ever been involved in a DWI, you know that the very first thing the cops do, almost before making sure everyone is ok is a FST. When my brother and me got rear ended on leave by a drunk, they pulled us into Circle K's lot, made sure we were good and went to town on the lady.
 
Originally posted by TurboMirage@Feb 15 2004, 02:34 PM
if it was indeed coolaid, should have given the cup to the cop and told him to smell it or something.

if he didnt give you a breathalizer or sobriety test, i doubt it will stick.

it wasnt kool-aid, it was a cup full of the meanest batch of jungle juice i have ever created :)

but yeah, the cop didnt ask to smell the cup, and i didnt get a breathilizer. So do i go in court saying that it wasnt an alcoholic drink, and base my argument off that?
 
Originally posted by SolReaver+Feb 15 2004, 08:59 PM-->
TurboMirage
@Feb 15 2004, 02:34 PM
if it was indeed coolaid, should have given the cup to the cop and told him to smell it or something.

if he didnt give you a breathalizer or sobriety test, i doubt it will stick.

it wasnt kool-aid, it was a cup full of the meanest batch of jungle juice i have ever created :)

but yeah, the cop didnt ask to smell the cup, and i didnt get a breathilizer. So do i go in court saying that it wasnt an alcoholic drink, and base my argument off that?

Don't say whether it was or wasn't just base your case off what he didn't do right. Never offer up info, or lie if you can help it. Cops have a knack for tripping people p.
 
Originally posted by SolReaver@Feb 15 2004, 02:08 PM
Yeah so last night we throw a kegger at our place. As expected, the cops come later on. I was holding a regular red cup, and the cop asks to come talk to me. He assumes there is alcohol in the cup (which there was) and asks me what I was drinking. I reply "kool-aid." Then the cop says "yeah whatever, im going give you a mip."

The question in my mind now is, why am i getting a mip, strictly because the cop THINKS i had alcohol in the cup. The cop didnt ask to smell the drink, and i wasnt given a breathilizer.

So im asking all the people on this board with legal experience, is it possible to fight this ticket? My court date is in a month and if i can get out of it relatively easily, it would be better than paying the $147 fine.

1. there was a party at your house
2. there was a keg in visible sight
3. people generally drink at parties with kegs.

unfortunately for you, the cop had reasonable suspicion to pull you aside and question you.

there is nothing you can do.

if you really want to fight it, contact an attorney who specializes in cases like this and they may be able to either get you out of it, or reduce your fine.
there might be some technicalities to argue, but I for one would have no clue.

good luck
 
also, im assuming you were intoxicated as well (had been drinking for a while, regardless of whether you were "drunk" or not).

well im pretty sure the cop wasnt drunk.

he coulda smelled the alcohol on your breath and that was his basis for singling you out.



word of advice? next time you are at a party and the cops pull up, SLOWLY but stealthily make your exit, or blend in with the rest.

<<edited>>
 
Originally posted by 92b16vx@Feb 15 2004, 03:06 PM

Don't say whether it was or wasn't just base your case off what he didn't do right. Never offer up info, or lie if you can help it. Cops have a knack for tripping people p.

what if, in court, i am asked about what is in the cup? Do i lie and say just kool aid? because there really is no proof that i was actually drinking an alcoholic beverage.

also, if i go to court and the judge says i dont have to pay it, does that mean that the cops were wrong in giving me the ticket? do i have any chance of actually getting money out of thisl? :)
 
A man who represents his own self in court, has a fool for an attorney......


get professional help. chances are you wont know what to say, how to cross-examine or how to argue in front of a judge. chances are if you have ANY chance at beating this, and you represent yourself....i would be willing to bet 100.00 that you fuck it up. not because you are stupid, but rather as a layperson, you would not know what to do or say.


if you are gungho about doing this? goto your local law library and read up about how to cross-examine, rules of conduct in court, which cases you MAYBE could apply to this situation to give your arguement a better foundation etc.

or you could go in there half asses and "hail mary" it....
 
and no, no chance of getting money out of this unless you are a 1 legged, 3 headed, homosexual, purple man from the planet venus and the cop unleashed a barrage of racial and derrogatory slurs at you.

he had reasonable suspicion. learn how to counter that defense if you want to represent yourself in court and you might be able to get out of it.
 
Originally posted by Tonyd0821@Feb 15 2004, 03:26 PM
and no, no chance of getting money out of this unless you are a 1 legged, 3 headed, homosexual, purple man from the planet venus and the cop unleashed a barrage of racial and derrogatory slurs at you.

he had reasonable suspicion. learn how to counter that defense if you want to represent yourself in court and you might be able to get out of it.

i dont think all the trouble associated with trying to fight the ticket in court is worth the $147

i think im just gonna pay it off, and learn from my mistakes

thanks everyone for the replies/advice
 
Ok, I've had quite a bit of experiance with underage alchohol infractions - unfortunately.

This is what you have to do.

1. Don't go to court telling the judge your cup was full of kool aid. The judge will think your trying to make an idiot of him. You were at a huge party, and you expect the judge to believe your keg cup was full of Kool Aid??? He will assume your a liar, and find you guilty.

2. When people prosecuted, cops have the burden of proof. In this case, they have no proof. They have assumptions. It is *Likely* that your cup had alchohol in it. But likely isn't beyond a reasonable doubt. You can easily win the case, since the cop collected no sample of alchohol. (when I got bagged for possesion, the cop physically took a sample of the alchohol and put it in an evidence container)

3. Simply disprove their case. Do not say what or what not was in your cup. Do not get on the witness stand, because they will simply ask you what was in the cup. You'll either have to lie (which is fucking risky) or tell them you had alchohol.

4. CITE THE POSSESION LAW. Look it up online or in the RSA book. Say you'd like to state the law for the court, state it for the judge, and then point out that the officer failed to obtain physical evidence that you had any alchohol in the cup. State that all the officer assumed is merely circumstantial.


I give you an 80-90% chance of getting off with zero fine, depending on how your law is worded and how you act in court!

-Kevin
 
Originally posted by liquid00meth@Feb 15 2004, 04:38 PM
Ok, I've had quite a bit of experiance with underage alchohol infractions - unfortunately.

This is what you have to do.

1. Don't go to court telling the judge your cup was full of kool aid. The judge will think your trying to make an idiot of him. You were at a huge party, and you expect the judge to believe your keg cup was full of Kool Aid??? He will assume your a liar, and find you guilty.

2. When people prosecuted, cops have the burden of proof. In this case, they have no proof. They have assumptions. It is *Likely* that your cup had alchohol in it. But likely isn't beyond a reasonable doubt. You can easily win the case, since the cop collected no sample of alchohol. (when I got bagged for possesion, the cop physically took a sample of the alchohol and put it in an evidence container)

3. Simply disprove their case. Do not say what or what not was in your cup. Do not get on the witness stand, because they will simply ask you what was in the cup. You'll either have to lie (which is fucking risky) or tell them you had alchohol.

4. CITE THE POSSESION LAW. Look it up online or in the RSA book. Say you'd like to state the law for the court, state it for the judge, and then point out that the officer failed to obtain physical evidence that you had any alchohol in the cup. State that all the officer assumed is merely circumstantial.


I give you an 80-90% chance of getting off with zero fine, depending on how your law is worded and how you act in court!

-Kevin

also, goto your local college or law library and get on their computers.

look for one that allows free access to either: lexis nexis

or

westlaw

use these site to find relevant cases that my bolster your arguement. if nothing else, it might persuade the judge to move one way instead of another.
 
although it might be a little "excessive" in this situation...

citing precedent would most certainly make an GOOD impression on the judge, providing you do it in a correct manner.

hit me up if you need help citing and ill show you how to properly cite cases. :D
 
word of advice? next time you are at a party and the cops pull up, SLOWLY but stealthily make your exit, or blend in with the rest.


Thats what I would have done.

I would suggest not to represent yourself, unless you have taken some law classes and are very fimilliar (sp?) with this stuff. Just get a public defender. They are provided by the court and will know the laws well. They only charge $25 too. But that is the way we do it here, it might be different where you live.

*EDIT* $147 Fine is not that much at all. It could have been a lot worse.
 
Originally posted by saturn_boy96@Feb 16 2004, 01:45 PM
um, you were drinking and you got caught. it happens. you lose $147. it could be worse.

pay your fine.

actually, after talking to liquidmeth00 on aim, it seems to be a much better idea to contest the fine. This legal system is based primarily on evidence, and without it, the cops dont really have much

Just think, what if i really wasnt drinking alcohol, do you think this ticket should have been issued?
 
Just think, what if i really wasnt drinking alcohol, do you think this ticket should have been issued?


dude, thats regardless, because you WERE drinking alcohol, and you got caught.
 
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