Underage Possession of Alcohol (Pennsylvania)

[cpu1]

20, male, white. I will be 21 in less than two months.

Hello. I was pulled over for a broken headlight, the officer noticed two closed containers of beer in the backseat of my car. I told him I did not know it was there, and that it wasn't mine. They searched my car at my OK, took the beer, and my ID information. My passenger gave them his birth date (also 20 years old), his name, address. I blew a .01 (under the legal limit for DUI). I have an underage possession, consumption, transportation of alcohol charge. I'm going to court soon.

I'm pretty sure the law states that one can not "knowingly or intentionally" transport or possess alcohol.

I intend to represent myself (cannot afford a lawyer).

What should I do? I do not want to put the blame on my passenger if he will get in trouble for it, but if I claimed it was his alcohol would I be found innocent? They failed to take his Social Security Number and did not check his ID, since he did not have any.

How should I present my case to the judge? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I do not want to lose my license over this matter.

Also I feel as though I was profiled, should this be mentioned in court?

Would pleading guilty help me out? I pleaded Not Guilty on the charge that was mailed in.


Thank you,

cpu

[www.criminalattorney.com]

Since neither you nor your passenger were legally allowed to have alcohol in the car, and neither one of you had it in your personal possession, it sounds like a case of constructive control. Meaning as long as you had (or should have had) reasonable knowledge that it was in the vehicle (e.g.: plain sight, knowledge is typically implied), and you could have controlled the containers (within your reach) then you would be guilty. And blaming it on your friend (even if true) would not help your case.

Contrary to popular belief, profiling is usually legal. Feel free to call us for a free consultation if you are looking for a lawyer to represent you. 1-800-887-0000.

[jimkarso]

You have done a great mistake, i.e. you had taken alcohol in the car. Legally it is not allowed. So you should look for a good lawyer, who can able to help you.

[JEpstein]

20, male, white. I will be 21 in less than two months.

Hello. I was pulled over for a broken headlight, the officer noticed two closed containers of beer in the backseat of my car. I told him I did not know it was there, and that it wasn't mine. They searched my car at my OK, took the beer, and my ID information. My passenger gave them his birth date (also 20 years old), his name, address. I blew a .01 (under the legal limit for DUI). I have an underage possession, consumption, transportation of alcohol charge. I'm going to court soon.

I'm pretty sure the law states that one can not "knowingly or intentionally" transport or possess alcohol.

I intend to represent myself (cannot afford a lawyer).

What should I do? I do not want to put the blame on my passenger if he will get in trouble for it, but if I claimed it was his alcohol would I be found innocent? They failed to take his Social Security Number and did not check his ID, since he did not have any.

How should I present my case to the judge? Any advice is greatly appreciated. I do not want to lose my license over this matter.

Also I feel as though I was profiled, should this be mentioned in court?

Would pleading guilty help me out? I pleaded Not Guilty on the charge that was mailed in.


Thank you,

cpu

First of all Im not sure who owned the alcohol. Secondly dont lie.

Third yes you could get out of this.

If it was his and the car is not yours either they have to prove that it is yours and that you knew about it. You dont have to testify. If you have not said "its mine" how will they prove it? They will try to prove it thru constructive possession. But if they fail to offer into evidence who owns the car thats a major hole. Furthermore if your friend testified that it was his it would likely get you out of it assuming that he also testified that you didnt know.

Now I dont know what and how but thats a lot of ifs. Its not impossible to get out of this.

I had a very similar case where the police said they saw drugs between the driver and the passenger in the console.

I filed a motion to have the drugs thrown out and called the passenger to the stand. The passenger testified that it was his car and his friend (my client) was driving because he was too drunk to drive. At trial they couldnt prove my client knew about the drugs. It wasnt his car. Not guilty.

Every case is different but never say never.

[gixmi]

yes legally, You have done a great mistake, i.e. you had taken alcohol in the car.

[Pure]

Call a few law firms in your area and see what they have to say. You can also see if you can have your friend to testify that it was his alcohol.

[takeshi007]

Taking a alcohol while driving is illegal so better to be patient on your cases and not become guilty because this is your mistakes.