OK, so first off, I am going into my second semester of my adn program and I am 19 years old. I was at a party last night with my friend and there were about 70-80 people there.
A girl made me a drink and I decided to drink it. It was kind of strong but I drank it anyway.
There was a lot of marijuana so we decided to leave but our truck was boxed in by other vehicles. I told my friend to drive my truck and he agreed, but out of habit I got in the drivers seat. So we are waiting for some of the cars to leave so we can get out and then the cops show up.
One cop came up and said they were going to breathalyze everyone driving and just to sit tight. Then another cop came and asked me what I had to drink and I told him a cup of grape juice with a small amount of vodka a few hours ago.
He then told me he was going to breathalyze me and asked what my name was, how old I was, and who my parents were. I didn't see him write anything down, but it was dark so I don't really know what he did.
I blew a 0.02 and he told me I could go. He didn't breathalyze my friend. I AM INCREDIBLY PARANOID THAT I AM GOING TO GET AN UNDERAGE DRINKING TICKET IN THE MAIL.
I live in Mississippi and this is my first run in with law enforcement beside getting a ticket for running a stop sign. I personally think the officers were more concerned with what was going on inside than with me. I mentioned something about the marijuana to one cop and he just walked inside.
My question to anyone who has any knowledge about legal issues is, can I get a ticket in the mail?
Keep in mind that I was in my truck with tag number visible ... and if I do how will this affect my status in school and taking my boards? I live in Mississippi. Any input is appreciated, but I really don't need a lecture about this incident. I am a good kid, I never go anywhere or do anything besides study.
Yes. You absolutely can get a ticket in the mail. My dh mails underage tickets all the time. Do you really want to wait around while they write those 70 tickets?
Absolutely wrong. My dh is a police officer. This is a ticket they mail all of the time. Especially for these underage parties
No, they cannot send you a ticket in the mail, you would have to be cited on the spot. You are very fortunate that the police let you go without a ticket as having any alcohol in your system is illegal since you are under the legal drinking age.
Three posts in and you are giving absolute false information.
You will be fine. They would have written you a summons or arrested you on the spot. For the future, you can never put yourself in a position that could risk your nursing license. In NJ, if you get a dui you must report that to the state board of nursing. Nurses are held to high ethical standards. Also, in NJ, you do not need to have a blood alcohol level above the legal limit to get a dui. If the police believe that you are under the influence and appear affected and unsafe by alcohol or any substance---even legally prescribed medication, they can issue a dui. I won't even have one drink and drive. Also, you can be arrested even if you are not participating in illegal activity- but you are with the people/friends, like being at the party where the pot was. Guilt by association. Being young, you will be in these situations again but now you know what you need to do to be responsible and protect yourself. Good luck in school.
i've personally never heard of citations in the mail, I don't know how mississippi works but in my state, it would be on the spot. In my county you'd go to jail that night because thats just the way that things work around here. I know a couple cities over where the crime rate is REALLY bad, something like this would be petty so worst case scenario you'd be given whats called a NTA, "Notice to Appear" in court on an appointed day. But again, that would've been given to you on the spot. If your area has much worse crimes to worry about, chances are they're not going to want to waste time filing paperwork just to bust some kids that were partying. DUI's is a big-boy crime, so its not surprising that they wanted to bag those, and as far as the marijuana goes, SOMEBODY got screwed for that.
Hopefully your near-conviction experience has opened your eyes to making some better choices in the future. It takes less than 10 seconds and one bad decision to ruin your future, or set you back from your goal for a number of years.
I know this is an older post but I'll throw in my $.02 anyway. If you were going to be charged with anything it would most likely have been then and there, so consider yourself lucky. There is a small chance of receiving an underage drinking ticket in the mail later but I am pretty sure a DUI arrest would have had to been made on the spot.
Since you were sitting behind the wheel when you blew a positive for alcohol and were not arrested then and there I am thinking you dodged a bullet with this one. So again, be thankful this didn't happen and consider it a lesson learned about what not to do going forward.
I can't speak to the law where you live, but I do know that many states have a zero tolerance policy to underage drinking and driving. Even a .02 BAC could get you charged with a DUI which definitely would impact your future very negatively. Not just the fines, possible jail time, loss of drivers license, hugely increased car insurance rates if your insurance company didn't drop you altogether... then add in the possibility of not getting into school at all and if you do get into school and graduate then picture jumping through major hoops to become licensed as a nurse after you pass the NCLEX. Not a pretty picture, is it?
One cop came up and said they were going to breathalyze everyone driving and just to sit tight. Then another cop came and asked me what I had to drink and I told him a cup of grape juice with a small amount of vodka a few hours ago.
He then told me he was going to breathalyze me and asked what my name was, how old I was, and who my parents were. I didn't see him write anything down, but it was dark so I don't really know what he did.
I blew a 0.02 and he told me I could go. He didn't breathalyze my friend. I AM INCREDIBLY PARANOID THAT I AM GOING TO GET AN UNDERAGE DRINKING TICKET IN THE MAIL.
I live in Mississippi and this is my first run in with law enforcement beside getting a ticket for running a stop sign. I personally think the officers were more concerned with what was going on inside than with me. I mentioned something about the marijuana to one cop and he just walked inside.
My question to anyone who has any knowledge about legal issues is, can I get a ticket in the mail?
Keep in mind that I was in my truck with tag number visible ... and if I do how will this affect my status in school and taking my boards? I live in Mississippi. Any input is appreciated, but I really don't need a lecture about this incident. I am a good kid, I never go anywhere or do anything besides study.
Thank you all.
What happened, OP, is that you got INCREDIBLY lucky. You did something foolish and you got lucky that the police didn't want to bother with you. Blowing a .02 probably helped, because you weren't drunk...though you still broke the law by having that .02 while being 19.
First, relax. It's 99.9% likely that you dodged the legal bullet.
Second, you may want to rethink how you unwind in the future. You may have gotten away with underage drinking this time, but next time you may get busted and find yourself being ticketed or arrested. Having a criminal record WILL affect you when it comes to dealing with your state Board of Nursing. You're not a juvenile, so you won't have the luxury of having your record sealed...and unless you're in one of the states that will let you apply to have it expunged (which takes several years, BTW), you'll have that record forever.
As happy as I am for you to be 19 in the ADN program (I was 20 when I got my nursing license) you have a lot of growing up to do. Everything you do as an adult will stay on record (DUI's/MIP's etc.) And it WILL affect your licensing/hiring process. The state will background check you and every possible employer will background check you, and not to mention potential for surprise drug screenings where ever you do get employed.
I'm saying this out of tough love because I'm sure you're very excited to become a nurse:
Suck it up, take responsibility for your mistakes, and ditch the "high life" until you can find more responsible friends that won't hinder your future. Don't blame the peer pressure, take responsibility for allowing yourself to get wrapped up in that social life. AND for the love of all things holy, PLEASE call a cab next time! Drinking and driving is the WORST thing you can possibly do because it's preventable!
First - let me say you are very fortunate you only chose to have the one drink and you passed a breath test. Also that you were not cited. I hope you will be more aware of the life choices you make and understand that even when you're not there, you are a representative of your school and your program.
I don't say this to take you to task; Lord knows I have made my share of bad life choices. We all have. I hope you learn awareness and wisdom - to think before you act or speak. I wish you much luck in school!
BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN
3,520 Posts
Yes. You absolutely can get a ticket in the mail. My dh mails underage tickets all the time. Do you really want to wait around while they write those 70 tickets?