DD Offence

[george07]

Hi,

On the 07/07/2010 I made a big mistake. Firstly I should tell you that I passed on the 13th May 2010 so only had my license around 2 months.

I was planning on going round my friends house to watch some football and have a few drinks that night and so tried to get a lift there off one of my friends but none of them could do it. So I decided I would just drive and only have a couple. I got round my friends house at around 7pm and had around 3 cans between then and 11pm. We then played poker for around an hour then I fell asleep. I woke up about at 1am and felt fine and decided to drive home. I genuinely believed I would be well under the limit as it was over such a long period of time and I had a little nap too. A friend who was going to stay over his house decided to come back with me as he lives just down the road to me.

I was about 300 yards down his road and there came a stretch of road where only one vehicle could fit down. I saw a car down the other end of the road so I flashed them to give way. They were going extremely slow so I flashed them again and waited patiently. As they got closer I realised it was a police car and they got out the car. They did all the usual checks with insurance and license etc and all was fine. They spoke to my friend in the car and could smell alcohol on his breath so they asked me if I'd had anything to drink. I told them the truth and they said they were going to beathalise me. I failed. They took me to the police station and I blew 44 and 45mg in 100mg of breath. They offered me blood/urine test but I decided against it as I didn't believe it would be of much use. They put me in a cell for an hour then breathalised me again and I was about 20mg so they took me back to the car and let me drive home. I have a youth magistartes court on 22/07/2010 and of course have some questions.

Things going my way;
I was 100% co-operative
I was driving sensible and even tried to give way to the police car
I was only driving around 2 miles
I wasn't massively over the limit

Things against;
I'm 17 and only had my license around 2 months.

My questions are:

Who should I write my letter to the courts to? (Police officer told me I should prepare a letter to take with me to court but who should I address it to, e.g. Dear Magistartes?)

Is there anyway I can avoid a ban? I have well and truly learnt my lesson and after hours of research I now understand the implications a conviction can have on ones career which is why I fully agree with the zero tolerance level as there is no room for judgement.

Many thanks for any help in advance.

 

[kayoko]

Hi George07,

Bottom-line is that you are just over the limit, at the end of the day your gonna get a ban and a record Seeing as you were 100% co-operative and your reading was low you should expect a 12 month and a fine.

Not much point in writing a letter to the courts in my opinion, but DO make sure you show up on time, smartly dressed, and with a couple or character references from either family or friends. You could get a brief if you want, but for 44 i would probably opt for a duty solicitor, as your very likely to get the minimum anyway.

Good luck.

 

[new_pedestrian]

Oops, double posted.

 

[new_pedestrian]

I can't offer much in terms of predicting sentence because I have no legal training, but in my own experience I would echo what the last poster said about dressing smartly for court.

If you want my opinion, I would advise that you appear in court as what you most probably are - a well-adjusted, well brought-up and intelligent guy who has made an uncharacteristic misjudgement.

Be unswervingly pleasant and polite to everyone you meet in court, and dress in a way that sets you apart from the average person that the magistrates will see that day.

Best of luck, I hope you'll come back and let us know how you get on. Everyone here's in the same boat and there are some very helpful posts.

 

[george07]

Just got back. 12 month ban, reduceable to 9 with the DD course. £85 court costs and a referral order to young offenders. Not too bad I suppose.