Letters to the Editor 07-21-1998
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- Nightmare After OWI Arrest
Nightmare After OWI Arrest
Editor, Times-Union:I'm writing this to tell you a story of a normal citizen picked up for OWI. One night when getting off of work after 12 hours, I stopped with friends to have a few drinks. After a couple of hours, I got in my car and proceeded to follow two friends and headed home. After getting 1-1/2 miles from home, these headlights loomed up behind me from nowhere and I was pulled over not for driving poorly but for having a plate light out on my car.
When I got out of my car to check my light, the officer asked me to follow him to his car and in turn asked me if I had been drinking. I am not a liar so I told him yes, I had a few with friends. He made me do several tests while siting in the car. After passing all of those, he said I had to take a breathalizer or lose my license on the spot. Well, I said I would because I was feeling no effects of alcohol. I also told him if he believed I was, he could take me 1-1/2 miles home or follow me. He said no, so to the police station I went. Then the nightmare began. I had to wait a half hour to take the test. I tried three times before it would register, the air was heavy that night, and I used my inhaler four times before leaving to go home. Finally it registered .10. I told him maybe my inhaler helped put me there but I still felt no effects from the drinks. He said I had to go to jail so off we went. On the way to jail, I was in the front seat talking to the officer when he did a complete U-turn in the road, left the car running, got out of his car, went over to this car, and came back. He told me that there were three ladies and they were coming home from a function. This was 3:30 in the morning (right) so off we head for jail again. On Old 30 he makes another U-turn. This turned out to be a paper carrier.
Finally we get to jail and I get booked. They put me in a cell with someone whose legs and arms are all bruised from cuffs. They threw me a mattress ripped on the floor and told me I could sleep there. I said I would sit up all night because I didn't like the dirty conditions of the cell, so I did. They brought me a cup of coffee and gave me an old roll to eat. In the morning, a friend and bondsman bailed me out under $3,000 bond. The following week I had to appear before the judge. He said I was believed to be guilty and took my license and then said he would plead me not guilty and I had to get an attorney or they would appoint me one. How can you be guilty in one sentence and not guilty in the next? So I hired an attorney because I had a clean record for over 26 years. I was not stopped for nothing and I thought being my first bout with the law, I would get a break, wrong. The prosecuting attorney said I could have no slack unless I went to trial.
So I received six days in jail, $350 fines, court costs, and 90 days suspended license. It also has cost me an average of $324 a week because I've lost overtime pay. Thank God there have been nice people to help me out and see to it I can get to work. They also have taken me to doctor and hospital for my tests because I had cancer and I'm in remission. This nightmare makes me wonder how many people like me this happens to and it has taught me several things. One, don't drink and drive. Two, don't tell the truth. Three, it doesn't matter how good a driving record you have. Four, not to hire an attorney because they can't do anything for you. What really irritates me is when I ride by a bar or a club and I see a patrol car sitting in the parking lot and when I go in a club and an officer is drinking. It amazes me how on duty they're not human, but off duty they are. You too, Mr. Prosecutor. I'm sure you could have blown .10 a time or two but you probably do your drinking in Chicago or somewhere.
I'm soon to get my license back and beware, they still allow citizen's arrest.
E.M. Myers
Syracuse
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- Nightmare After OWI Arrest
Nightmare After OWI Arrest
Editor, Times-Union:I'm writing this to tell you a story of a normal citizen picked up for OWI. One night when getting off of work after 12 hours, I stopped with friends to have a few drinks. After a couple of hours, I got in my car and proceeded to follow two friends and headed home. After getting 1-1/2 miles from home, these headlights loomed up behind me from nowhere and I was pulled over not for driving poorly but for having a plate light out on my car.
When I got out of my car to check my light, the officer asked me to follow him to his car and in turn asked me if I had been drinking. I am not a liar so I told him yes, I had a few with friends. He made me do several tests while siting in the car. After passing all of those, he said I had to take a breathalizer or lose my license on the spot. Well, I said I would because I was feeling no effects of alcohol. I also told him if he believed I was, he could take me 1-1/2 miles home or follow me. He said no, so to the police station I went. Then the nightmare began. I had to wait a half hour to take the test. I tried three times before it would register, the air was heavy that night, and I used my inhaler four times before leaving to go home. Finally it registered .10. I told him maybe my inhaler helped put me there but I still felt no effects from the drinks. He said I had to go to jail so off we went. On the way to jail, I was in the front seat talking to the officer when he did a complete U-turn in the road, left the car running, got out of his car, went over to this car, and came back. He told me that there were three ladies and they were coming home from a function. This was 3:30 in the morning (right) so off we head for jail again. On Old 30 he makes another U-turn. This turned out to be a paper carrier.
Finally we get to jail and I get booked. They put me in a cell with someone whose legs and arms are all bruised from cuffs. They threw me a mattress ripped on the floor and told me I could sleep there. I said I would sit up all night because I didn't like the dirty conditions of the cell, so I did. They brought me a cup of coffee and gave me an old roll to eat. In the morning, a friend and bondsman bailed me out under $3,000 bond. The following week I had to appear before the judge. He said I was believed to be guilty and took my license and then said he would plead me not guilty and I had to get an attorney or they would appoint me one. How can you be guilty in one sentence and not guilty in the next? So I hired an attorney because I had a clean record for over 26 years. I was not stopped for nothing and I thought being my first bout with the law, I would get a break, wrong. The prosecuting attorney said I could have no slack unless I went to trial.
So I received six days in jail, $350 fines, court costs, and 90 days suspended license. It also has cost me an average of $324 a week because I've lost overtime pay. Thank God there have been nice people to help me out and see to it I can get to work. They also have taken me to doctor and hospital for my tests because I had cancer and I'm in remission. This nightmare makes me wonder how many people like me this happens to and it has taught me several things. One, don't drink and drive. Two, don't tell the truth. Three, it doesn't matter how good a driving record you have. Four, not to hire an attorney because they can't do anything for you. What really irritates me is when I ride by a bar or a club and I see a patrol car sitting in the parking lot and when I go in a club and an officer is drinking. It amazes me how on duty they're not human, but off duty they are. You too, Mr. Prosecutor. I'm sure you could have blown .10 a time or two but you probably do your drinking in Chicago or somewhere.
I'm soon to get my license back and beware, they still allow citizen's arrest.
E.M. Myers
Syracuse
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