Legal Question in DUI Law in Pennsylvania

Non-traffic underage drinking citation

My son received 2 citations. One for underage drinking/ one for disorderly conduct. He was brought to the hospital after the police found him with a friend intoxicated. This is his 2nd offense. The last time he paid a fine and went thru community service as well as D&A classes. Also he doesn't even have his license yet. Any advice would help as to how to plead. There are many choices on the citation 2 being Not Guilty/ 1 being if he can not afford to pay the whole fine and 1 being able to plead guilty. But on the back of the citation there is another option which I don't understand which reads Request inclusion in an Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition Program by appearing before the magistrate. What kind of reprecussions would that hold, if any, if that's an option. Thanks


Asked on 8/27/04, 9:26 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Charles A. Pascal, Jr. Law Office of Charles A. Pascal, Jr.

Re: Non-traffic underage drinking citation

Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) is a diversionary program in which the person is placed on some sort of probation, with conditions (made to do community service, etc.), in exchange for the charges being dropped.

This sounds like what your son did the last time. You are only eligible for ARD once. You may check with the magistrate to see if he is eligible, but I would guess not.

As to what he should plea, it would depend upon whether there is a valid defense in the law that he could articulate, or whether, in your jurisdiction, the prosecutors/police/magistrate are open to the idea of reducing the charge to something that doesn't have a drivers' license implication, like disorderly conduct.

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Answered on 8/27/04, 12:11 pm


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