So I was just arrested for a DUI two days ago. I know there will be those who will pass judge, but I am looking for help/infomation for those who have gone through a similar experience or have some advice. I am determined to do whatever it takes to save my RN license and be assured it will NEVER happen again. I've read a few threads here about DUi so I have a general idea, but I'm unclear about certain things, mainly about timing.
INFO:
- CA resident
- Just finished 1st year experience as an RN working on-call working for a county hospital.
- 1st DUI: no accident or property damage. No other criminal record.
I am seeking any advice/stories about what you have gone through or seen someone else experience but I also have some specific questions:
- Do I tell my manager? Talk a union rep? Will my current employer find out if I do not provide them with the information? Since I work for a County hospital will it be reported to them?
- I just renewed my RN license this year so it is set to expire 2 years from now. When do I notify the BRN? At renewal? ASAP? After I speak to a lawyer? Does anyone know when/if the BRN will find out if I do not self-report it?
- I am leaning towards hiring a lawyer. What experience does one have with lawyers? Did you feel your lawyer was worth it? What tasks did the lawyer perform? Etc.
It is criminal how we treat people. My heart goes out to both the OP and the last poster....I can only hope and pray that things turn out for the best for the both of you...and this happened before anything worse. There but for the grace of God go I. To the OP-get a good lawyer, who specializes in nurses fighting this sort of thing, and keep quiet, I sincerely hope you have a friend you can trust to confide in though. To princess, I am sorry for your situation, hope it improves.
Take this as a serious warning about your alcohol use. Driving is a huge responsibility. You endangered the lives of thousands of people. Take this seriously.
So I was just arrested for a DUI two days ago. I know there will be those who will pass judge, but I am looking for help/infomation for those who have gone through a similar experience or have some advice. I am determined to do whatever it takes to save my RN license and be assured it will NEVER happen again. I've read a few threads here about DUi so I have a general idea, but I'm unclear about certain things, mainly about timing.
INFO:
- CA resident
- Just finished 1st year experience as an RN working on-call working for a county hospital.
- 1st DUI: no accident or property damage. No other criminal record.
I am seeking any advice/stories about what you have gone through or seen someone else experience but I also have some specific questions:
- Do I tell my manager? Talk a union rep? Will my current employer find out if I do not provide them with the information? Since I work for a County hospital will it be reported to them?
- I just renewed my RN license this year so it is set to expire 2 years from now. When do I notify the BRN? At renewal? ASAP? After I speak to a lawyer? Does anyone know when/if the BRN will find out if I do not self-report it?
- I am leaning towards hiring a lawyer. What experience does one have with lawyers? Did you feel your lawyer was worth it? What tasks did the lawyer perform? Etc.
Thanks.
As a former county officer, I would call the local bar and have them recommend someone to you. If it were me, I would hire a former prosecutor who specializes in DUI cases or an attorney who the does alot of those cases, because the prosecutor's office has to get along with them. In Ohio, this case would be a matter of public record. I would speak to the attorney before they have a chance to ask you. The vast majority of cases of this type, are plea bargined out with the prosecutor's office. Again, make sure you hire a good local attorney, in other words, home field advantage. I do not know the quality of the Union, make darn sure if you have to talk to management, do it with your Union rep. I would not talk to management without the Union rep present. In addition, do not give management any additional information to hang you with, answer the question with as little information as possible.
After working for the county, I had to deal with a woman who was the President of the Condo association, who needed to be confined to a mental institution, In a nutshell, she was a woman who had to try to control every thing and everyone. I hired a former felony prosecutor when she tried to file Perjury charges against me, basically, I called a spade, a spade. My attorney put his foot up her rear end and make her look like the fool she is, imagine that. He said to me, "That is one of the first times one of my clients described the other party in the case, to a "T!" Most criminal attorney will charge a flat fee for the whole case, make sure you ask around and get everything in writing! Yes, my attorney was worth the fee, which was $1,000. I know the fee in California will be higher. Again, make sure you get an attorney who specializes in DUI's, former prosecutor or retired police officer, if you can, a former detective. If you still need to talk, you can PM me and if you are still upset, you could contact me.
Take a deep breath and do not panic. Depending on what county you were arrested, a good lawyer may be able to get your case dismissed. As for the most "practical" advice I can give you, when you hire a lawyer, make sure you find out about him/her on the official California bar site--The State Bar of California. Often, attorneys fresh out of law school will hang out their shingles and call themselves "DUI specialists". Generally, lawyers don't really know what the heck they are doing until they've been practicing for at least 7-10 years. When you do the attorney search on the official site, you'll be able to find out how long the attorney has been licensed to practice in CA, any discipline imposed, as well as what sections that lawyer belongs to. I would look for someone who is a certified criminal law specialist, or someone who, at the very least, belongs to the criminal law section. I am an RN, but my actual "day job" is an attorney. I've handled plenty of DUI cases and, again, depending on the county (I do all of So. Cal., but have no knowledge of how the courts are in Northern California), you might be able to get your case dismissed. Also, contact a lawyer STAT b/c s/he will have to handle the DMV hearing as well. If you cannot hire an attorney within the next 8 days, make sure you request a hearing with the DMV. For obvious reasons, I cannot give you specific legal advice in this sort of a forum re. whether to tell your employer, etc. However, generally speaking, at this point, you have not been convicted of any crime. Bottom line though, get legal counsel as soon as possible. Good luck.
Here in California, it doesn't matter if this was your only offense, your fingerprints are on there way to the BRN and your are flagged. It is in your best interest to contact the BRN NOW and ask for diversion, before you are forced into Probation, which can cost you thousands of dollars in the process. A lawyer will not help you get out of this matter, I know as I spoke to a nurse attorney who advised me thatthis is not an easy case to fight, but you will need an attorney if you choose to go the probation route, which makes your arrest PUBLIC RECORD and your nursing license will forever have a notation that it was under diciplinary santions. The diversion route is a pain in the back field, but there is no citation on your license. Either way, this is not an easy road to haul. You will be:
required to go to AA / NA meetings 7 days a week' rain, shine, kids graduation ceremony, spouses heart attack, parent's death, no excuses,
not work for at least 1 year (and good luck finding work after you are allowd to do so),
attend nurse support group, which is the only place you will get any answers on what or how to do this "life saving" intervention process,
get the oppertunity to call FIRSTLAB daily to see iff you have to provide a UA, enjoy the special pleasure of pee-ing in front of total strangers after they scope you out to be sure you didn't rig something up your a** to provide someone else's "clean" urine,
turn in TONS of paperwork & documentation, which the diversion provider loses and then you, you lucky soul, are deemed "non-compliant",
and then the FUN begins...you go before a DEC board which is a group of 4 professions in addiction and a community lay-person, and they proceed to rip you a new one, manipulate everything you had answered in your intake interview and you leave wishing you get a "good cancer" which will take you out in 6 months to a year rather than suffer through this heartless, demeaning process for 3 years ( I have heard this last response from a number of nurses awaiting their DEC meeting)!
Going through it now, hating every minute of it. If anything, call the BRN, self-report, don't let them "catch you" by them finding out about your DUI by other means, and come join the fun.
Good post, do not know much about California law. DO NOT be like my friend's clients, do as the DUI attorney tells you! These attorneys deal with this stuff, each and every day. As one poster said, call an employment attorney to make sure your job watches their steps, I know from experience, these people can be snakes. Many government employees have a "God" complex, watch your back. Just because someone smiles at you or is nice to you, while they are smiling, they are getting ready to stab you in the back. If you have to use the mail, make sure you send it certified, so you have records, in case, they foul or screw up, trust me it happens and they will not have sympathy for you, believe me. Trust me, the Union does not always have your best interest, at heart, I know, again, from experience.
I don't discount what you are saying, but I checked your original post and it said you lived in North Carolina. NOT California.
Also, again not saying you are wrong, but previous posters mentioned they were able to continue working. Your post has really scared me. I thought if I do my due process: hire laywer, attend AA meetings, etc I would still be able to work. Even the CA BRN website doesn't recommend Diversion for DUI.
I do not know for a fact that the CA BRN does not recommend diversion for nurses with DUI, but in my nurse support group we have approximately 20 nurseswho are there for just that: a DUI. Again, would you like your RN license to have that you were diciplined & your potential employer be able to read your hearing details? Your arrest and it's details will be attached to your license. With diversion, it remains confidential. It isn't pleasant, but it does get easier, especially if you do not have a drinking problem, just this one lapse of judgement. The difficulty lies in the hoops you must jump through.
Again, I can only stress that you consider self- reporting rather waiting for this to catch up with you. And don't count on your union rep to assist you: this is about violating the law (drunk driving) and public safety, which is why your union, as well as an attorney can't help you (again, the nurses of my support group's experience). additionally, working in a state / county hospital puts you in another difficult stop; while you are off work, you access to unemployment or disibility benefits are difficult to access.
California has one of the toughest programs for nurses, thanks to Arnold S. (take a look at his life now-karma), but it's do-able. Just set your mind to it.
I don't know why you would drink and drive but I pray that you never do it or never have to do it again. A lady just lost her life this week after a drunk driver hit her head on. The drunk driver walked away....Good luck with keeping your nursing license.
gypsyd8
1 Article; 276 Posts
It is criminal how we treat people. My heart goes out to both the OP and the last poster....I can only hope and pray that things turn out for the best for the both of you...and this happened before anything worse. There but for the grace of God go I. To the OP-get a good lawyer, who specializes in nurses fighting this sort of thing, and keep quiet, I sincerely hope you have a friend you can trust to confide in though. To princess, I am sorry for your situation, hope it improves.
Good luck and God bless.