In charge of a vehicle under influence of drugs

Convicted Driver Insurance
Hi my son has been charged with being in charge of a vehicle under the influence of drugs. His lawyer pleaded not guilty for him yesterday to give him some more time before he loses his licence/ job etc. Said should give him a couple of months before. He has told my son he thinks he will most probably lose his licence. I'm looking to find out if there is any lawyers near Glasgow or central belt theat could help with his case? He has never had a criminal record and his circumstances were very different when this happened begining of lockdown over a year ago.
 
Hi my son has been charged with being in charge of a vehicle under the influence of drugs. His lawyer pleaded not guilty for him yesterday to give him some more time before he loses his licence/ job etc. Said should give him a couple of months before. He has told my son he thinks he will most probably lose his licence. I'm looking to find out if there is any lawyers near Glasgow or central belt theat could help with his case? He has never had a criminal record and his circumstances were very different when this happened begining of lockdown over a year ago.
Should have said would like to change lawyer as I don't feel this one too helpful at all
 
Hi, Unfortunately the judge will not care what the circumstances are when making a guilty or not guilty decision. Your son will be banned and the length of time will depend on his blood reading. Plenty of expertise on here that would probably suggest not to pay huge sums to a specialist solicitor who will not be able to overturn the decision. Sorry, probably not what you wanted to hear but just being honest based on what I have read.
 
A previous post on here before started That in charge of a vehicle isn't always a ban possibility of 10 points this is why I thought there is more that could be done?
 
lgaffney

Drunk/drugged in charge of a motor vehicle is an offence that is a lot harder to prove than actually being caught behind the wheel in a moving vehicle!!!!

Driving under the influence of drink/drugs always results in a ban. Being in charge is a different affair - defendants can still be banned, but there is always a possibility of just being awarded X number of points and keeping their licence.

What you have said about the solicitor doesn't surprise me. I have my own opinions about solicitors and their motives, but I don't think they necessarily make decisions in the best interests of their clients.

From what you have said, your son's solicitor has put off the inevitable by getting the case adjourned with a 'not guilty' plea. Magistrates don't like it when defendants take up their time, so the danger here is that the bench may impose a stiffer punishment to your son than if he had thrown his hand in at the first opportunity.

CJ
 
Hi my son has been charged with being in charge of a vehicle under the influence of drugs. His lawyer pleaded not guilty for him yesterday to give him some more time before he loses his licence/ job etc. Said should give him a couple of months before. He has told my son he thinks he will most probably lose his licence. I'm looking to find out if there is any lawyers near Glasgow or central belt theat could help with his case? He has never had a criminal record and his circumstances were very different when this happened begining of lockdown over a year ago.

A good local solicitor could have entered a guilty plea and mitigation in favour of 10 points rather than a ban for less than £400. This solicitor has caused somewhat of a disaster for your son, first of all the non guilty plea suits the solicitor perfectly as the longer this goes on the higher his fee can be. Second of all, your son now has lost the discount of an early guilty plea meaning he will have to pay £625 in prosecution costs to the court plus his fine PLUS whatever punishment is given for the offence. As CJ has correctly pointed out, the magistrates take a dim view on not guilty pleas to buy time and will now likely enforce the maximum sentence which will be a ban.

For reference costs wise, for a 12 month drink driving ban my fine plus court fees were £215 and I paid £170 for a solicitor to plea on the day and present mitigation securing the lowest sentence. The total for my fine, court fees and my legal representation was £385. Almost £300 less than your son will have to pay in court fees alone if found guilty. Can you give a little information on the circumstances of your son being found in charge of the vehicle, what happened?
 
May I ask, did your son already have points on his license and how long has he had his driving license?
 
May I ask, did your son already have points on his license and how long has he had his driving license?

Just in regards to already having points on his licence. If he had points already, this would have triggered a totting up ban of 6 months which still would have been more desirable than the probable outcome of the case now.
 
Just in regards to already having points on his licence. If he had points already, this would have triggered a totting up ban of 6 months which still would have been more desirable than the probable outcome of the case now.
Yes this legal 'strategy' is very concerning. I think the son is potentially now in a significantly worse situation than before. Just wanted to get a full picture though, in terms of what all the outcomes would/could be.
 
So this case is scotland, all the comments about the costs involved in a not guilty plea may not be completely accurate, but I am sure there will be additional costs.
It is right to say that an ‘in charge’ offence does not automatically carry a ban, it can be 10 points instead, but it does also introduce the defence of “not likely to drive whilst still over the limit. It is possible that the solicitor is exploring this angle so the solicitor should not be blamed based on the limited knowledge that we have at the moment.

If his solicitor knows his drink / drug driving laws then he should be aware that quite often a ban is not imposed for ‘in charge’ particularly in Scotland, but he is perhaps playing the “you will probably be banned….. but look I have managed to reduce it to points, what a good solicitor I am” game.
 
So this case is scotland, all the comments about the costs involved in a not guilty plea may not be completely accurate, but I am sure there will be additional costs.
It is right to say that an ‘in charge’ offence does not automatically carry a ban, it can be 10 points instead, but it does also introduce the defence of “not likely to drive whilst still over the limit. It is possible that the solicitor is exploring this angle so the solicitor should not be blamed based on the limited knowledge that we have at the moment.

If his solicitor knows his drink / drug driving laws then he should be aware that quite often a ban is not imposed for ‘in charge’ particularly in Scotland, but he is perhaps playing the “you will probably be banned….. but look I have managed to reduce it to points, what a good solicitor I am” game.
I agree in part, but I'm still very concerned by what I've read so far. In general 'in charge' cases are more difficult to defend for drugs than they are for alcohol and often attract the more severe sentences, so a ban is already a strong possibility from the outset. It would have been a lot easier to mitigate down to points with an early guilty plea, it would now be substantially harder if the case is lost. I do appreciate that there is an avenue for defending the case but drug driving cases are very rarely won at trial, even 'in charge' ones. So essentially the whole outcome is gambling on the case being dropped or found not guilty, but from what was said the solicitor has not articulated what defence they are actually pursuing, at least not well enough for the poster to know it. In my opinion I think ethically the solicitor should not have taken a not guilty plea case without at least outlining how they plan to defend it, or they should have given examples of similar cases they have won.

But the reason I'm asking the poster about the points is to see if perhaps even with points a ban would have been inevitable, so it might not be as bad as it sounds
 
Or even in his first 2 years of passing his test where 6 points triggers a retest
 
A good local solicitor could have entered a guilty plea and mitigation in favour of 10 points rather than a ban for less than £400. This solicitor has caused somewhat of a disaster for your son, first of all the non guilty plea suits the solicitor perfectly as the longer this goes on the higher his fee can be. Second of all, your son now has lost the discount of an early guilty plea meaning he will have to pay £625 in prosecution costs to the court plus his fine PLUS whatever punishment is given for the offence. As CJ has correctly pointed out, the magistrates take a dim view on not guilty pleas to buy time and will now likely enforce the maximum sentence which will be a ban.

For reference costs wise, for a 12 month drink driving ban my fine plus court fees were £215 and I paid £170 for a solicitor to plea on the day and present mitigation securing the lowest sentence. The total for my fine, court fees and my legal representation was £385. Almost £300 less than your son will have to pay in court fees alone if found guilty. Can you give a little information on the circumstances of your son being found in charge of the vehicle, what happened?
I have just spoke with him and he has said he has another chance to put in a guilty plea before goes to trial a preliminary hearing possibly? tbh I've no idea of the legal system as never something I've had to deal with. As far as I'm aware he was parked roadside off a main road no keys were in the ignition however had smoked cannabis after an argument with his girlfriend and decided to walk home as we live 5 mins away but was approached by police officers for test then taken to local station for blood test etc.
 
Just in regards to already having points on his licence. If he had points already, this would have triggered a totting up ban of 6 months which still would have been more desirable than the probable outcome of the case now.
No he doesn't have any points or any criminal convictions at all at present
 
Hi my son has been charged with being in charge of a vehicle under the influence of drugs. His lawyer pleaded not guilty for him yesterday to give him some more time before he loses his licence/ job etc. Said should give him a couple of months before. He has told my son he thinks he will most probably lose his licence. I'm looking to find out if there is any lawyers near Glasgow or central belt theat could help with his case? He has never had a criminal record and his circumstances were very different when this happened begining of lockdown over a year ago.
I’m no expert but pleading not guilty when you are is not a great idea nor is paying a solicitor who advises of that just to bide time. Your son could end up with a harsher sentence plus higher costs because of it plus the same inevitable outcome.
 
I have just spoke with him and he has said he has another chance to put in a guilty plea before goes to trial a preliminary hearing possibly? tbh I've no idea of the legal system as never something I've had to deal with. As far as I'm aware he was parked roadside off a main road no keys were in the ignition however had smoked cannabis after an argument with his girlfriend and decided to walk home as we live 5 mins away but was approached by police officers for test then taken to local station for blood test etc.
Of course there is always the possibility that this was the correct version to give to your parents…….
If he was already walking home, why did they stop him and how did they connect him to the vehicle?
 
Just in regards to already having points on his licence. If he had points already, this would have triggered a totting up ban of 6 months which still would have been more desirable than the probable outcome of the case now.

Of course there is always the possibility that this was the correct version to give to your parents…….
If he was already walking home, why did they stop him and how did they connect him to the vehicle?
Probably is his version for myself however the area they approached the car is a small dark back road commonly used for young people smoking cannabis and is sometimes checked by police hence the checking
 
Hi every1 I got into my car in May and crashed into a tree I was taken to hospital I had blood taken it was middle of Aug when I received a letter to attend police station volitary does any one know what this is for as I thought you just get summons to court
 
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