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Chances of getting public intoxication charge dismissed/expunged/sealed?
Anonymous2 views3 answers
I am 18 years old and attempted to attend a concert blackout drunk (stupid, I know). After making it past two security checkpoints in which I handed my Id and then my ticket to security, not police, I was stopped at the last checkpoint. During the last checkpoint, when i was patted down, I was pulled off to the side and handed over to the cops (either due to my drunk appearance or breathe). They did not do any type of test (field/blood/breathe) as it was pretty obvious that I was drunk. I was arrested and charged with PI and taken to the drunk tank where I was released six hours later to one of my friend's parent.
This is information I have compiled from my friends I was with and the people who were working at the drunk tank as I have not had a chance to look at the official police report.
You need to hire a lawyer. If you have not had any prior problems you can either get into a pre-trial diversion program or get a certificate which will allow you to do a term of probation and have the charges dismissed. I would be happy to discuss this with you further if you want to call my office in the morning.
You should consult an attorney about what your options are. Whatever you do, you need to ensure that you ultimately have this case dismissed. You do not want to have an alcohol-related offense on your record at such a young age as it will affect your future. If the case is dismissed, whether through fighting it or by taking some sort of deferred adjudication plea deal, you can have it expunged from your record once the case is dismissed.
A good criminal defense lawyer will either get your case dismissed or set up a plea that will not put a conviction on your record and allow you to expunge your records later down the road. Once your records are expunged, it will be like this never happened. Do not try to fight this case on your own. No matter how drunk you were, a lawyer can usually arrange a deal so that you won't have a conviction and you can expunge your records later. PI is a Class C misdemeanor so this should be a really easy case for an experienced lawyer.
Good luck!
