Minor in Possession of Alcohol
My jurisdiction is: California
Charge: 25662(a) B&P Minor in Possession of Alcohol
Where: Santa Cruz, CA
Hi all, I'm a 20 year old who was visiting Santa Cruz with some friends (around 10 of us all minors except 1) when the above occurred. Unfortunately, we were all stupid and had alcohol out / were drinking in a public area and were caught by an undercover officer. The officers stated some of us could take responsibility for the 3 bottles that were out and only those would be in trouble, or we could all shoulder the blame. No one spoke up, the officers continued to search and found a bottle that I myself had brought. I immediately told the officer that was my bottle to which they said, "Thank you." They proceeded to breathalyze everyone present, citing everyone who had a BAC level with Minor in Possession, however when it was my turn to be breathalyzed and I reminded the officer I took responsibility for one of the bottles, he instead wrote me up for the exact same Minor in Possession charge as everyone else without a BAC level (was never tested).
I understand the above is absolutely a ridiculous thing to get myself into, and therefor am looking for advice and answers to the best way to handle this situation. This is my first offense so I'm somewhat lost.
So, my questions:
1) How did admitting responsibility for one of the bottles of alcohol limit my legal position? Does not having a BAC level written on my ticket help/hinder/not change my position?
2) As I understand it through researching, possession entails a minimum $250 fine, possible community service / rehabilitation programs, and if convicted a 1 year license suspension. What, if anything, can be done to reduce some of these punishments? Would this all be done through a pre-trial plea agreement with the DA if available? How would that plea agreement work, who would it have to be done through (myself or a lawyer), and how does that affect what goes on my record? I'm really only worried about the license suspension for school and work reasons, however I'm aware that is incredibly weak reasoning.
3) What can I do later to expunge this from my record? Is this possible?
4) Should I consult and hire a lawyer? Will a public defender be appointed in this situation? What are the advantages / disadvantages to either using / not using a lawyer or a public defender vs a hired lawyer? Any estimate at all to how much fees would be for a hired lawyer?
5) As far as I'm aware everyone cited received the same court appearance date and time, how will this affect our sentencing if at all?
6) I have contacted the court who have stated there is nothing I can do on there end until a couple of days before my scheduled appearance because the DA will not file charges until then. I have also received nothing in the mail where as some of my friends who were cited have. As there anything else I can do in the meantime?
Thanks for taking the time to read my long post, any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
My jurisdiction is: California
Charge: 25662(a) B&P Minor in Possession of Alcohol
Where: Santa Cruz, CA
Hi all, I'm a 20 year old who was visiting Santa Cruz with some friends (around 10 of us all minors except 1) when the above occurred. Unfortunately, we were all stupid and had alcohol out / were drinking in a public area and were caught by an undercover officer. The officers stated some of us could take responsibility for the 3 bottles that were out and only those would be in trouble, or we could all shoulder the blame. No one spoke up, the officers continued to search and found a bottle that I myself had brought. I immediately told the officer that was my bottle to which they said, "Thank you." They proceeded to breathalyze everyone present, citing everyone who had a BAC level with Minor in Possession, however when it was my turn to be breathalyzed and I reminded the officer I took responsibility for one of the bottles, he instead wrote me up for the exact same Minor in Possession charge as everyone else without a BAC level (was never tested).
I understand the above is absolutely a ridiculous thing to get myself into, and therefor am looking for advice and answers to the best way to handle this situation. This is my first offense so I'm somewhat lost.
So, my questions:
1) How did admitting responsibility for one of the bottles of alcohol limit my legal position? Does not having a BAC level written on my ticket help/hinder/not change my position?
2) As I understand it through researching, possession entails a minimum $250 fine, possible community service / rehabilitation programs, and if convicted a 1 year license suspension. What, if anything, can be done to reduce some of these punishments? Would this all be done through a pre-trial plea agreement with the DA if available? How would that plea agreement work, who would it have to be done through (myself or a lawyer), and how does that affect what goes on my record? I'm really only worried about the license suspension for school and work reasons, however I'm aware that is incredibly weak reasoning.
3) What can I do later to expunge this from my record? Is this possible?
4) Should I consult and hire a lawyer? Will a public defender be appointed in this situation? What are the advantages / disadvantages to either using / not using a lawyer or a public defender vs a hired lawyer? Any estimate at all to how much fees would be for a hired lawyer?
5) As far as I'm aware everyone cited received the same court appearance date and time, how will this affect our sentencing if at all?
6) I have contacted the court who have stated there is nothing I can do on there end until a couple of days before my scheduled appearance because the DA will not file charges until then. I have also received nothing in the mail where as some of my friends who were cited have. As there anything else I can do in the meantime?
Thanks for taking the time to read my long post, any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
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