Legal Question in Criminal Law in Virginia
Dip
I was recently arrested for being drunk in public. I went to a friend's house, his house was locked. I went out into the frontyard to call him to unlock the house. A cop pulled up. The cop gave me about 5 minutes to call my parents to come pick me up (I'm +21). They did not answer. I pled with him to give me more time to call them, he said nope, you are coming to jail. My parents house (where I live) was literally .5 miles away. I told the officer this after they did not pick up, he still refused to drop me off or allow me to continue calling them. No breathalyzer, but I'm sure the intox signs were there. I really want to keep this off my record and am willing to do community service or whatever it takes. I know that the officer has discretion over what he does with me when he thinks I am endangering myself, but to me there is something manifestly wrong to give me 5 minutes to try and get a ride and then all the sudden say that's it, you're coming to jail if they don't answer the first time. In addition, state law says that where available the police can take the allegedly drunk person into a detox center in lieu of arresting the person. My county does not have one of these detox centers. Equal Protection Argument?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Dip
No, but at least DIP (Drunk in Public)is no longer a jailable offense in the Commonwealth as it used to be just a few years ago.
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