LVN & DUI

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Mar 18, 2012

The very first thing you need to do, if you haven't already, is to hire an attorney to represent you. He or she is in the best position to advise you, far better than total strangers on an Internet forum. You will also need to contact your state BON as soon as possible---Monday at 0800 is good.

And.....while you probably don't want to hear this, I'm going to tell you that after seeing an attorney, your next move should be a visit to your local chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please note that I'm not accusing you of being an alcoholic, in fact I have no idea whether you are or not. (I am, but that's a story for another day.) But clearly, anyone who drinks and drives when they have so much to lose needs some sort of reality check. AA will do that for you, and better yet, they do it for free, unlike everything else associated with DUIs (like fines, court fees, attorney fees, license suspension etc.).

I'm very sorry that the life you'd envisioned for yourself as a nurse has turned on a bad decision. It can happen to anybody; the trick to putting it behind you is to take responsibility for your actions and do whatever you have to do to rectify the situation. This doesn't have to define you in the long run if you don't allow it to, but first you have to 'pay the piper'. I wish you the best of luck.

jeff84 · Mar 19, 2012

I was a CJ student before getting into nursing, but that does not make me, in anyway, a pro... Nowfirst thing, as already stated get a lawyer....next, NEVER plead guilty. It does you no good. You won't be any worse off if you fight it. You DO NOT want this on your record. Remember, you are proven guilty by a jury, not by a blood test. You can still challenge many things from the stop itself to the fact that it was you driving to begin with. Hire a good attorney that will do everything for you. I would also erase any evidence you did do that including this post. Good luck to you

FocusRN · Mar 19, 2012

Yeah I vote for contacting an attorney. I don't drink. I never understood it, alcohol is nasty. Why subject yourself to drinking something so gross, even the fruity flavors?

Anyway. I would also call the board to get an idea of what may happen on that side of things, BUT DON'T tell them who you are, remain anonymous unless you know what you should do from a lawyers perspective.

You never know, this being the first time you may be able to get some type of deferred adjudication, where if keep your nose clean for a certain period of time they will drop the charges. But, again I am not an attorney, so get one ASAP.

And last but not least, I also second going to AA. As Viva said, I also do not know if you are an alcoholic or not, but in my opinion drinking enough of something so disgusting that gets you hammered enough to do what you did, it is obvious there is a problem on some level, that needs to be corrected.

Take care of yourself.

Flare, ASN, BSN · Mar 19, 2012

First, calm yourself down. There are much worse career enders that people have survived and overcome. Second, Viva Las Viejas is right. Your first call should be to an attorney, your very next call should be to your state board.

You can over come this - just learn your lesson now, and keep your chin up.

LaughingRN · Mar 19, 2012

Not trying to nit pick or anything...

But by "running into a house"...

Do you mean

Physically with your car?

You ran into a strangers house to hide?

or

You ran into the home of someone you knew (or your own home) to hide?

I really hope it's the last choice out of the three. Either way, you have a lot to work through. You state you are someone who doesn't drink much, and I'm not going to argue with that, but you need to follow the advice given by Viva.

ms.painmed · Mar 20, 2012

Thanks for the comments. I did drive my car into a house. That's what I mean by "running into"...like I said above I'm already enrolled in aa (above it says as because my spell check) classes. My first one was today. I plan to tale the dui classes next month when I get the money that' even before they are court ordered. I'm trying to get on top of things ASAP. I think I will take the advice of dreamnurseRN & call the board anonymously & see what info I can get. I talked to a lawyer & he said its not likely they will drop the charges. I'm going to save my money & use the court appointed public defender. Lawyers are really expensive. The lawyer also said not to contact the state board that they will contact me.... What do u think about this? I remember something in school about telling state ASAP & thought it might look better if I came clean... This was such a wake up call. Never drink & drive. I'm not even going to drink now.

46oldnewrn · Mar 20, 2012

Put your big girl panties on and contact the board. Always go to the source if you can. Just my 48 cents!! :))

steffuturelpn · Mar 20, 2012

Glad ur in AA that was the correct first step. I think u should contact ur bon first and find out there reporting requirements because im pretty sure ur supposed to report to them almost immediately. And it really depends on what state I got a dui 3 years ago and just graduated lpn school and I got a unrestricted license but that was my only arrest and I have seriously gotten my **** together since. Big regret but it worked out well for me. Good luck