They didn't see empty/open containers, and they threatened to forcibly take his blood.
So no, they didn't have an open container, they had a box that they saw, which is not an open container. As stated, there was no alcohol smell on his breath, and he did staisfy California's BAC testing byhaving blood drawn. If he never said "Ok, search the truck", then they overstepped their boundaries, and he was illegally held for 48 hours and should not lose his license, as he did have a BAC test performed after his truck was searched illegally.

 

If josiah wants advice he should get a lawyer.... all hes gonna get here are opinions from a buch of heartless bastards

 

Do not, I repeat, do not try and get a loan using your skin as collateral...

 

You are climbing ONE SLIPPERY *** SLOPE here bud.

First of all, you need to realize what rights are, and why they are implace. You also need to take another long look at America, what it stands for, and how/why it was founded.

Where does it stop ? If you are not allowed to fight a DUI charge ? You have to "man up and take it" , but you are an innocent man ? Or, you have to be subjected to the BAC, get a false reading, get wrongly imprisoned, get your driver's license wrongly taken away, pay the fines, and "just be a man about it" right ?

What happens when you are in these shoes ? Bet you would be singing a different song if you were wrongly punished, expecially to this extent.

remember the ole saying:

"In Germany, they came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up."


I realize thats a stretch, but come on man. These are fundamental rights. These are in place, to prevent cops from bullying you. It has been shown time and time again, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Give the cops the ability to jail you, and take away your right to fight it ? Are you kidding me ? Sure, most cops wouldn't take advantage of it, but think of the ones who would.

On another note, people here are a joke. YOU DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO DRIVE. Period, end of story. Look it up. It is a privilege granted to you by our government. One that can be taken away, if you abuse this privilege. People got around for a few years without cars, so they figure you can manage.

By accepting a driver's license in the state of CA, you agree to either a BAC, or a blood test. You cannot refuse. If you do, you loose your privilege of driving. You are not "guilty of DUI" until proven, but you can loose the driver's license, as he did.

Personally, I would rather consent to the BAC. Its has a far better chance of letting you off, or reducing the punishment, if you just work with the cops. Generally, if your a PITA, they will make sure to make your life hell.

I would suggest everyone who takes on the responsibility of driving, learn the laws, learn your rights. It is obvious, many of the people on the road don't know the first thing about their own vehicle, let alone the laws and rights surrounding it all.

LASTLY, JOSIAH, READ THIS, ONCE YOU ARE ARRESTED, YOU LOOSE MANY OF YOUR RIGHTS AS A CITIZEN. ONCE ARRESTED, THE POLICE OFFICERS NO LONGER NEED YOUR CONSENT TO SEARCH YOUR VEHICLE. You are under arrest, yes the cops can go through anything (including YOU, and take blood). They can bring your truck to impound, and do more searching. They can go into your glove box, and take out whatever they wish. You have the right to sit there, and shut your mouth. Or, you can comply, and hope things go a lot smoother. They were looking for consent, to either hurry the process, or to keep giving you a little rope, trying to give you an out. Many cops would rather ticket and be done, vs. calling in all the back up, the CO, and bringing you in. They will if they have to, but they aren't out to ruin lives. By cooperating, you tend to stand a better chance at a "warning" or something along those lines. I have always cooperated with law enforcment, and my record shows how effective it is.

(oh, and not all squad cars have dash cams. In fact, the majority do not. It is not required, nor mandatory in any way, minus maybe a city enforcing the rules, to cover their own butts. However many cities/counties/states can't afford it.)

Lastly, might have been covered, but was this city cops ? County ? State ?

Again, Josiah, if you need anything, or any advice, please call me.

 

Because he hadn't done anything wrong and it's his right as an American to not be tested by a-holes on a power trip just because they say that it's time for him to drop whatever he is doing and submit to their test.

 

You do make a valid point. Screw all of the victims of drunk drivers. Screw the fact that lives have been crushed and demolished because of drinking and driving. Lets all rally around drunk driving, and sign a petition to make vehicular manslaughter legal. Hell, lets give awards like the ESPY's to the guy who kills the most in a calender year while driving drunk. Thank you for changing me from the heartless bastard that I was...Thank you so very much.

 

I really don't care what Josiah asked for. If he didn't want to hear people's opinions he should have kept his mouth shut, which probably would have been then smart thing to do anyways.

Getting on the internet and discussing an open case against you is never a good idea.

And I have no sympathy for people who get caught driving under the influence. I'm not saying I've never done it, I've been pulled and blew a .07 and was immediately released. On a different night it could easily have been a .09 and I'd have been thrown in jail too.

It kinda boils down to the fact that if you can't accept the consequences of your actions, you shouldn't be doing those actions.

Somebody who's 21 should be old and mature enough to know the risks they're taking by driving a vehicle with open containers in it (whether or not they were consumed at the time is irrelevant), while at the same time having intoxicated, underage people in that vehicle, when, to top it off, the 21 year old driver had also been drinking!

If he's lucky, this will be the worst thing that happens to him.

- NCSU

Edited to add: Keep in mind, there are always 2 sides to every story, and unless you were with Josiah, or the arresting officer that night, we only know one side.

 

Brother, the only person that can tell you whether or not you have any legal legs to stand on is the judge, and the only person who can speculate on that will be your lawyer. Take everything you read here with a grain of salt until you talk to whoever will be on your case. Good luck!

 

So was he legally impaired? We don't know, so you can't blame him for almost killing someone.
Oh yeah, cops searching without consent, running tests that he refused, advising him that they would forcibly take his blood, grabbing his registration with him saying no, none of that sounds crooked.

 

Habibi, not trying to argue with you, you're a great dude, but I am saying that screw how easy I make it for the cops, if they make it easy for me, we will work together, but if they are ******, they are getting 0 cooperation from me. I do not want my little girl killed by a drunk driver, but I also want her to have her rights when she starts driving so they cannot pull her over and make her submit to test after test when she has no say in the matter. This happens a lot in my neck of the woods, with the police offering "trades" to not bother the little girls anymore. 4 officers in the last 2 years have been tried and convicted of this exact thing in my county, and let me say this, they had better be glad it wasn't my little girl they tried this with, or they woudl have had a shotgun up their nose.
Cops or not, their rights end where mine begin, what was it that Ben Franklin said? "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Drunk drivers scare us all, they are not in the right in any way shape or form, but I will not trade my liberty for safety.

 

I think that we have found some common ground here.

 

Wow ! You do your mama proud ! joing a forum to e-bully some young kid ? Tough guy. Somebody ban this asshat clown.

 

Guy's come one.....take a breather here. Things are getting a little out of control.

From what he said....a few beers...I assume he had 2-3 beers. Enough that he wasn't visually impaired, but enough that it sounds like he may have blown over .08.

It doesn't sound like he was hammered and (thank God the cops stopped him before he killed someone)! So chill out with the "be glad you didn't kill a entire family" bit.

Also. Nothing that has been said makes me think that any of these cops were "crooked" or on a power trip. It sounds to me like they did their job correctly.

Getting off of something because a cop didn't say the correct thing at the right time is right up there with taking God out of the Pledge of Allegiance thing with me.

So that being said. "J".....I hope you don't get the DUI on your record but I also hope you learned your lesson.

Let's just quit implying here that Josiah is a "menace to society" and also lets quit saying that the cops involved are "crooked power hungry a-holes".

 

/hi5

 

C'mon MT...This has been the most exciting thread since Gator got banned