Virginia Public Intoxication Lawyers

Virginia Public Intoxication Lawyers

When we drink alcohol, our inhibitions are lowered and it is easy to get carried away. People make mistakes. Sometimes we act in  ways that we‘re not proud of.

If you are here reading this page, you have likely gone through an unpleasant experience.

Our Virginia public intoxication lawyers are here to help.

When you are facing a criminal conviction for public drunkenness, you should never treat it as a ticket that you just need to pay off.

When you pay the ticket without going to court for it, you are pleading guilty to a crime. That is going to follow you forever.

If you want to avoid a criminal record from making a simple mistake, please call to set up a consultation with us today. We want to help you avoid the downfalls of a criminal record.

Keep reading to learn about a former client of ours and how we helped them avoid a criminal record.

NovaLegalGroup, P.C. also helps residents of Virginia with Legal Matters in: Alexandria, Annandale, Arlington, Burke, Centreville, Fairfax, Mclean, Oakton, Reston and Springfield.

Virginia Public Intoxication Client Story

Disclaimer: Our client’s name and details of this story have been changed to protect their identity.

Tim and his friend Bobby were headed out to a music festival one summer’s day. They had Tim’s daughter drive them, so they didn’t have to worry about drinking and driving home.

It was a hot day. There were bands set to play from 1pm until midnight.

Tim really enjoyed these annual festivals. Most of the bands he had already seen before elsewhere. He was mostly excited to kick back with Bobby, get some beers, and check out the food trucks set up.

They got a couple of pints then set up their chairs towards the back of the grassy area so they could hear the music, but also be able to hear each other talk. They were a few beers in already when the first band started. Tim realized that this was the first time in the longest time he was buzzed. He didn’t drink much at home around his daughter, Anna.

Tim and Bobby hadn’t seen each other in quite some time. The pandemic kept them apart for a while. But now with things looking better, they were finally able to enjoy some normalcy.

They noticed a group of people near one of the food trucks who looked to be a few guys they went to college with.

“Is that Johnny Fleming?” Bobby said loud enough for the group to hear.

“Look who it is! Bobby and Timmy!” said Johnny, “Come on over here, let me buy you a drink!”

Johnny clearly had already had a few drinks. He was flushed and smiling ear to ear.

In college, Tim would follow Johnny to every party. He was the true life of every event they went to. It felt great to see him again, but he wondered if Johnny still got into his drunken mischief.

With a drink in one hand, Tim gladly accepted another beer from Johnny so not to be rude.. He laughed about it with Bobby.

“Feels like I’m 20 again,” said Tim.

“Good thing Anna drove us,” said Bobby.

“Anna your wife?” asked Johnny.

“No, she’s my daughter. Seventeen years old, can you believe it?”

“Timmy Tom has a seventeen year old daughter? No way!” Johnny laughed.

Tim finished one of his beers, set it down and pulled out his phone. He pulled up the most recent photo of Anna sitting at the kitchen island holding up her driver’s license.

“She’s a total brain. She wants to go to Brown,” he said.

“Beautiful girl. She looks nothin’ like you, thank god!” said Johnny, “Let me know when she’s eighteen.”

Tim’s face fell. Johnny laughed right at him waiting for him to join in.

“That’s my daughter, Johnny,” he said.

“Oh, Timmy. It’s just a joke. Lighten up,” he put his hand on Tim’s shoulder but Tim shook it off.

Bobby noticed the tension between the two of them and interjected that they should get back to their seats. Tim didn’t look at Johnny as Bobby thanked him for the beers and walked back.

They sat down. Tim pulled another beer from the cooler they brought.

“Can you believe what Johnny said about my Anna ?” he said to Bobby.

“I know. They guy hasn’t grown up at all.”

“No wonder the man is still not married. He still acts like he’s fifteen,” Tim said, every word growing louder.

At this point, Tim had one too many beers. He started talking louder and louder, eventually attracting Johnny’s attention when he heard Tim from where he was with his group of friends.

There were some choice words exchanged between the two of them. Tim insulting the very air that Johnny breathed. Bobby finally pulled Tim away stumbling from the conversation. He was still yelling as he was dragged away. A stream of curse words left his mouth as Bobby tried to get him to a less crowded spot.

An officer appeared not too long after this.

Bobby tried to reason with the officer not to take him out of here in handcuffs, but he told him he was going to have to. He was already causing a scene and he didn’t want to have to charge both of them.

Tim was red faced still spewing profanity until he heard the metal of the cuffs click behind him.

As he was lead to a police cruiser, he felt the dread and the panic of the situation set in. As the cruiser drove, his head spun with worry.

He was actually being arrested. That was the only thing he could think.

He was booked not half an hour later.

It wasn’t until a few hours of sitting and sobering up that he was finally allowed to be released. He called Anna to come get him and when she pulled up, she was trying to hide a half smirk from him.

“It is so not funny,” he said.

“It’s a little funny,” is all she said back.

They sat in silence for most of the ride. Tim’s head was pounding from the hangover that was already setting in.

“I need a lawyer,” he finally said.

“Yes, indeed, you do,” Anna sounded amused.

When Tim looked that night online for Virginia public intoxication lawyers, he found us. We got him set up with a consultation where he had three big questions to ask us:

1. What is this charge exactly?
2. Is this going to be on my record?
3. How are we going to defend my case?

Keep reading to learn more about how these cases work.

What is this charge exactly?

When Tim wanted to know what he was charged with exactly, it was because he was concerned that it meant jail time.

We explained to him that this was a misdemeanor charge in Virginia. Although that is not as serious as a felony charge, it is not to be taken lightly. It did not carry any jail time as a penalty, but it did mean he would pay a fine and he would have a criminal conviction if they prosecution was successful.

Is this going to be on my record?

When asking if he was going to have a record, Tim said, “I don’t want this to follow me for the rest of my life or embarrass my family.”

We told him that if he did not fight this charge, it very well could end up on his criminal record forever. He was going to have to choose to fight in order to prevent having a criminal conviction permanently on his criminal record.

We knew we needed to put up a good fight for him.

How are we going to defend my case?

We promised Tim that he was not our first public intoxication case that we have helped get out of having a permanent criminal record.

We assured him we cared deeply about protecting his rights and his future.

It was a pretty straightforward case for us. We ended up getting him off without having to worry about having a record. We even met Anna and wished her luck in her college endeavors. Tim was a great dad who got himself into a sticky situation defending his daughter. We were more than happy to help him.

Keep reading until the end to learn about same case mistakes to avoid making.

Public Intoxication Case Mistakes

After being arrested for public intoxication, you may wonder what you should avoid doing to make matters worse. We can help you understand some of the biggest mistakes you should try to avoid making if you want to avoid having this on your criminal record for the rest of your life. Here is what you should know.

Don’t Resist Arrest

Resisting arrest is always going to be a mistake regardless of what you are being arrested for. As soon as the officer goes in for an arrest, you can guarantee that you are not going to be able to talk or fight your way out of it.

We know that it is scary to be put in handcuffs.

It is perfectly reasonable to be afraid when you are being arrested.

You should know that resisting arrest can be a crime in and of itself. It is to be avoided if you want as easy a case as possible.

When you resist arrest, you make things harder for yourself. It makes it harder to convince that you were not intoxicated if you were trying to fight your way out of being handcuffed by the police.

The more cooperative you are, the better things tend to go.

Getting arrested for public intoxication means you get held until you sober up. Then you are free to go.

Stay Away from Alcohol for Now

This does not have a whole lot to do with the law, but it would probably be best for you to avoid drinking right now. In the off chance that you get yourself caught up in a similar situation like this again, you should be careful to avoid a scenario where you could be charged again.

It probably is not all that likely, but you need to play it safe, especially when you are up against a permanent criminal record.

Please also understand that you can get arrested for public intoxication even if you are not technically in public.

In Virginia, a public setting could include your own front yard.

We advise that, especially while your case is still ongoing, that you avoid putting yourself in a position where this could happen again.

Don’t Post on Social Media

In a world where we have become so visible on the internet, and your image matters more and more online, it is best to avoid social media when you have criminal charges against you.

Let’s put it this way, if you were arrested for public intoxication, but the police did not see you with alcohol or have a BAC test to prove that you were drunk but you posted a photo drinking from a keg the day of your arrest, things become trickier for us.

It would become infinitely harder for us to prove that you were not intoxicated. Maybe you genuinely were not drunk at the time of your arrest, and you only drank a little bit from the keg a few hours before your arrest, that is still not a good look for you.

To best protect your future, and not make the case harder for your lawyers, keep off of social media.

You should especially not talk on social media about the arrest. This is not going to help you at all. The only people you really need to talk about this case with are your lawyers.

Your lawyer is going to be able to help you out of this mess, not your friends on social media.

Don’t Delay Talking to a Lawyer Right Away

Having an immediate connection with a lawyer is going to be really beneficial for you.

You should be looking for someone to represent you as soon as you can. You want to have someone well before you appear in court for the charge.

You might think that hiring a lawyer is going to be a waste of time or money, but please understand the severity of what you are up against.

If you are convicted, you are going to be looking at a criminal conviction on your record, following you around forever. Maybe that means you will lose out on college admission, housing options, job opportunities.

You can avoid this mess by talking to a lawyer as soon as possible.

You should never assume that it is easier to just pay the fine and go about your life. That is not the better option when it means you will always have a criminal conviction haunting you after one mistake.

Don’t Pick the Wrong Lawyer

When you are looking for a lawyer to represent you, make sure you have the best possible person for your case.

We hear far too many stories about people who have been charged with public intoxication, but they hired a lawyer who they knew from a friend who did their divorce/real estate/will and did not go searching for the best possible option.

You want to ensure that you have the best possible representation. You should be looking specifically for lawyers who handle public intoxication on a regular basis. It should be second nature to them.

When you trust a friend of a friend to get you the lawyer who helped them with their custody issues, you might be hiring a great family law attorney but that does not mean they are going to be a great criminal lawyer.

Your future is important. You need to know that you are in the best hands possible. We want you to safeguard your future by choosing the lawyer with a long list of success stories dealing with public intoxication specifically.

Call Our Virginia Public Intoxication Lawyers Today

When you have been arrested for making a mistake like public drunkenness please don’t hesitate to reach out to our lawyer right away. You deserve to have someone on your side fighting for you to get out of this without having a conviction that will follow you around for the rest of your life. Call today to set up your first consultation.