Alcohol & Drugs: MIP, MIC, Intoxication Mip Alcohol

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TEXASDOUBLED

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My Son Is 17 Yrs Old. We Live In Texas. He Was Pulled Over By The Police Because They Stated He Was Driving Crazy. They Told Him He Smelled Like Alochol And He Requested Any Type Of Field Sobriety Test They Could Perform Because He Was Not Drinking. He Was Refused This Test. The Officers Asked If They Could Search His Car And He Told Them Yes. They Found Nothing Inside The Car But Did Find Empty Bottles In The Trunk. They Arrested Him And Took Him To The Jefferson County Jail And Booked Him For Minor In Possession Of Alcohol. He Was Subjected To All Sorts Of Verbal Harrassment (called A Queer And Faggott, Etc. - And He Is None Of Those Things). He Asked For The Abusive Officers Names And They Just Pointed To They Name Tags. He Asked What The Initial "m" Stood For And They Told Him It Stands For "me". (m.johnson). From What I Have Read He Should Have Been Given A Ticket And Released, But He Was Taken To Jail And His Car Was Towed. I Have Made Several Calls To The Police Dept And To The Internal Affairs At The Jail And No One Will Return My Calls. Is It A Violation When You Have Empty Bottles Or Cans Locked In Your Trunk? The Vehicle Is Registed To His Dad And Could Have Very Well Been His And Not My Son's! What Do You Advise?
 
TEXASDOUBLED said:
My Son Is 17 Yrs Old. We Live In Texas. He Was Pulled Over By The Police Because They Stated He Was Driving Crazy. They Told Him He Smelled Like Alochol And He Requested Any Type Of Field Sobriety Test They Could Perform Because He Was Not Drinking. He Was Refused This Test. The Officers Asked If They Could Search His Car And He Told Them Yes. They Found Nothing Inside The Car But Did Find Empty Bottles In The Trunk. They Arrested Him And Took Him To The Jefferson County Jail And Booked Him For Minor In Possession Of Alcohol. He Was Subjected To All Sorts Of Verbal Harrassment (called A Queer And Faggott, Etc. - And He Is None Of Those Things). He Asked For The Abusive Officers Names And They Just Pointed To They Name Tags. He Asked What The Initial "m" Stood For And They Told Him It Stands For "me". (m.johnson). From What I Have Read He Should Have Been Given A Ticket And Released, But He Was Taken To Jail And His Car Was Towed. I Have Made Several Calls To The Police Dept And To The Internal Affairs At The Jail And No One Will Return My Calls. Is It A Violation When You Have Empty Bottles Or Cans Locked In Your Trunk? The Vehicle Is Registed To His Dad And Could Have Very Well Been His And Not My Son's! What Do You Advise?
My advice would be to get an attorney and if there is an abuse of process, hopefully you will also be compensated to deal with the expenses of the trouble. To begin, I don't know what kind of basis they had for searching the car. It appears that the officers are claiming he was all over the road. I can't say but you should really speak to your son. In many instances I find that the minors are not telling the whole truth. It is unlikely (although not impossible) that the officers decided to just flag down a random car to arrest someone for the sake of doing so.

I don't know what offense your son is being charged with but I don't see any violation for empty cans/bottles. Find out what he is being charged with, that is the most important first step. I wish you the best of luck and let us know how things turn out.
 
TEXAS ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CODE

CHAPTER 106. PROVISIONS RELATING TO AGE

Sec. 106.01. DEFINITION
In this code, "minor" means a person under 21 years of age.

Sec. 106.02. PURCHASE OF ALCOHOL BY A MINOR
(a) A minor commits an offense if the minor purchases an alcoholic beverage. A minor does not commit an offense if the minor purchases an alcoholic beverage under the immediate supervision of a commissioned peace officer engaged in enforcing the provisions of this code.
(b) An offense under this section is punishable as provided by Section 106.071.

Sec.106.04. CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL BY A MINOR
(a) A minor commits an offense if he consumes an alcoholic beverage.
(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the alcoholic beverage was consumed in the visible presence of the minor's adult parent, guardian, or spouse.
(c) An offense under this section is punishable as provided by Section 106.071.
(d) A minor who commits an offense under this section and who has been previously convicted twice or more of offenses under this section is not eligible for deferred disposition. For the purposes of this subsection:
(1) an adjudication under Title 3, Family Code, that the minor engaged in conduct described by this section is considered a conviction of an offense under this section; and
(2) an order of deferred disposition for an offense alleged under this section is considered a conviction of an offense under this section.

Sec. 106.041. DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL BY MINOR
(a) A minor commits an offense if the minor operates a motor vehicle in a public place while having any detectable amount of alcohol in the minor's system.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
(c) If it is shown at the trial of the defendant that the defendant is a minor who is not a child and who has been previously convicted at least twice of an offense under this section, the offense is punishable by:
(1) a fine of not less than $500 or more than $2,000;
(2) confinement in jail for a term not to exceed 180 days; or
(3) both the fine and confinement.
(d) In addition to any fine and any order issued under Section 106.115, the court shall order a minor convicted of an offense under this section to perform community service for:
(1) not less than 20 or more than 40 hours, if the minor has not been previously convicted of an offense under this section; or
(2) not less than 40 or more than 60 hours, if the minor has been previously convicted of an offense under this section.
(e) Community service ordered under this section must be related to education about or prevention of misuse of alcohol.
(f) A minor who commits an offense under this section and who has been previously convicted twice or more of offenses under this section is not eligible for deferred disposition or deferred adjudication.
(g) An offense under this section is not a lesser included offense under Section 49.04, Penal Code.
(h) For the purpose of determining whether a minor has been previously convicted of an offense under this section:
(1) an adjudication under Title 3, Family Code, that the minor engaged in conduct described by this section is considered a conviction under this section; and
(2) an order of deferred disposition for an offense alleged under this section is considered a conviction of an offense under this section.
(i) A peace officer who is charging a minor with committing an offense under this section is not required to take the minor into custody but may issue a citation to the minor that contains written notice of the time and place the minor must appear before a magistrate, the name and address of the minor charged, and the offense charged.
(j) In this section:
(1) "Child" has the meaning assigned by Section 51.02, Family Code.
(2) "Motor vehicle" has the meaning assigned by Section 32.34(a), Penal Code.
(3) "Public place" has the meaning assigned by Section 1.07, Penal Code.

NOTE: (a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, this Act applies only to conduct that occurs on or after September 1, 2005. Conduct violating the penal law of this state occurs on or after September 1, 2005, if any element of the violation occurs on or after that date.
(b) Conduct that occurs before September 1, 2005, is governed by the law in effect at the time the conduct occurred, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose. (Acts of the 79th Legislature, Regular Session, 2005)

Sec. 106.05. POSSESSION OF ALCOHOL BY A MINOR
(a) Except as provided in Subsection (b) of this section, a minor commits an offense if he possesses an alcoholic beverage.
(b) A minor may possess an alcoholic beverage:
(1) while in the course and scope of the minor's employment if the minor is an employee of a licensee or permittee and the employment is not prohibited by this code;
(2) if the minor is in the visible presence of his adult parent, guardian, or spouse, or other adult to whom the minor has been committed by a court; or
(3) if the minor is under the immediate supervision of a commissioned peace officer engaged in enforcing the provisions of this code.
(c) An offense under this section is punishable as provided by Section 106.071.

Sec. 106.071. PUNISHMENT FOR ALCOHOL-RELATED OFFENSE BY MINOR
(a) This section applies to an offense under Section 106.02, 106.025, 106.04, 106.05, or 106.07.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense to which this section applies is a Class C misdemeanor.
(c) If it is shown at the trial of the defendant that the defendant is a minor who is not a child and who has been previously convicted at least twice of an offense to which this section applies, the offense is punishable by:
(1) a fine of not less than $250 or more than $2,000;
(2) confinement in jail for a term not to exceed 180 days; or
(3) both the fine and confinement.
(d) In addition to any fine and any order issued under Section 106.115:
(1) the court shall order a minor placed on deferred disposition for or convicted of an offense to which this section applies to perform community service for:
(A) not less than eight or more than 12 hours, if the minor has not been previously convicted of an offense to which this section applies; or
(B) not less than 20 or more than 40 hours, if the minor has been previously convicted once of an offense to which this section applies; and
(2) the court shall order the Department of Public Safety to suspend the driver's license or permit of a minor convicted of an offense to which this section applies or, if the minor does not have a driver's license or permit, to deny the issuance of a driver's license or permit for:
(A) 30 days, if the minor has not been previously convicted of an offense to which this section applies;
(B) 60 days, if the minor has been previously convicted once of an offense to which this section applies; or
(C) 180 days, if the minor has been previously convicted twice or more of an offense to which this section applies.
(e) Community service ordered under this section must be related to education about or prevention of misuse of alcohol if programs or services providing that education are available in the community in which the court is located. If programs or services providing that education are not available, the court may order community service that it considers appropriate for rehabilitative purposes.
(f) In this section:
(1) a prior adjudication under Title 3, Family Code, that the minor engaged in conduct described by this section is considered a conviction; and
(2) a prior order of deferred disposition for an offense alleged under this section is considered a conviction.
(g) In this section, "child" has the meaning assigned by Section 51.02, Family Code.
(h) A driver's license suspension under this section takes effect on the 11th day after the date the minor is convicted.
(i) A defendant who is not a child and who has been previously convicted at least twice of an offense to which this section applies is not eligible to receive a deferred disposition or deferred adjudication.

NOTE: Sec. 106.071 (f) and (i) amended by House Bill 1575, Regular Session, 2005. Except as otherwise provided by this section, this Act applies only to conduct that occurs on or after September 1, 2005. Conduct violating the penal law of this state occurs on or after September 1, 2005, if any element of the violation occurs on or after that date. Conduct that occurs before September 1, 2005, is governed by the law in effect at the time the conduct occurred, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
 
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