1st offense, blew 74 at station. No clue what to do

[borisbadger]

Hi

i made the mistake of drink driving and have a court date set. I've never been arrested before so have no idea what to expect. I blew 74 at station and admitted everything and am going to plead guilty. I have a few questions that i hope someone may help with though

Firstly, do i need a solicitor if I am going to plead guilty and is there anything I should do to prepare myself for court?

Secondly, does anyone have any experience of getting court dates moved? I have a family holiday booked and the date falls right in the middle and I don't want my wife and son to suffer any more than they have to for my mistake

Lastly, I crashed my car during the incident but no-one else was involved. Will this effect my fine/ban/sentence?


Thanks in advance for any help on this, I am lost​

 

[SeanJoyceStephensons]

Whether or not you would like to have a solicitor present is entirely a matter for you, there are certainly benefits to being represented but it is by no means impossible to represent yourself.

For a first offence with a reading of 74 in breath the Magistrates sentencing guidelines advise the imposition of a 17-22 month disqualification and a Band C fine. You are also likely to be offered the opportunity to attend the drink driver rehabilitation course which would reduce the length of your disqualification by up to 25% upon completion. The fact that you have been involved in an accident will be treated as an aggravating factor by the Court, however as no one else was involved or injured this should limit the severity with which it is viewed.

Mitigation can be presented to the Court to try and keep the sentence down to a minimum, and to ensure the rehabilitation course is offered with the full 25% reduction. In realistic terms the minimum disqualification you could end up with would be around 13 months after attending the course.

It is certainly possible to have the hearing date moved, although as you are on bail the Court will want good reason for doing so. The fact you have a family holiday booked should be sufficient to demonstrate a genuine need for the hearing date to be changed. If you contact the Court and enclose a copy of the booking confirmation, along with any other dates that you would not be able to attend Court then I imagine the Court will agree to move the hearing.

If representation is something that you are interested in discussing you are welcome to contact my department on 0333 999 7158.

 

[borisbadger]

Hi Sean

Thank you for your response and sorry I haven't replied previously. The court was very helpful and moved my court date to after my holiday so thank you for the advice on that matter. I just have a few more questions if that's okay?

My employer has offered to write me a character statement and even attend court with me, would this be a good idea?

Secondly, I work 40 miles from home and public transport is impossible. Is there any chance that they would offer a suspended sentence?

Lastly, am I at risk of going to jail? Very worrying as I have a young child and wife to support


Thanks again for your help with this

 

[SeanJoyceStephensons]

There is no risk of you receiving a custodial sentence as typically this will only be considered for readings of 120 in breath and over.

You can certainly present a character reference from your employers and they are able to attend with you should they wish to do so.

It is worth explaining your position to the Court but I'm afraid that the disqualification is mandatory.