Underage DUI: Conditions, Circumstances, Procedures & Ramifications & 911 Calls

[iffi]

Setting: PA, USA, 2006

Searched areas: Searched through little_details tags, ask_a_cop; Googled ‘underage DUI in PA’, ‘underage DUI in PA drugs’, ‘911 call drugs procedures’ ‘911 calls procedures drug overdose’ amongst so many others

Comments

[ciage]

I don't know about the laws in the location you are in, I can tell you about my province (Manitoba, in Canada

[iffi]

This is awesome help, thanks so much!

No - I'm not set on cardiac. Really, I'm just after something plausible enough that can make the 'spectacle' element happen with few signs beforehand, so that the passenger could be able to just assume it's the effects of whatever he's taken at first. And yeah, I'm not planning on giving too much detail about the specifics of the medical side (neither pre- nor post- event); it's just good to know it could work in the first place! Hope that makes sense - it's kind of early and I'm not sure if I'm being coherent here, ha.

As for the police side of things - that's a really great idea, thanks again. :)

[ciage]

No problem.

I would listen to the others on the cops though - it's different for different regions, but where I am, sometimes we have to stage for a long time waiting for the cops to make the scene safe, but I would imagine this might not be such a big issue depending on how far from society your incident happens.

[winterjameson]

I really can't answer the drug questions, but I've got something about the 911 call. In 2008, I ended up coming down with appendicitis while I was out of town at a concert, not that I realized what was happening. I thought it was a really bad case of food poisoning. Anyway, on the way home, I finally reached the point where I couldn't go any further and had my friend call 911. I don't know exactly what he said to the operator, but the police arrived before the ambulance (I was in a bathroom stall at a highway rest stop). Mind you, this was in Wisconsin, and I dealt with the state patrol, which might be who your characters would deal with on the interstate as well

[iffi]

It's all helpful, thanks!

[wordsofastory]

I agree with another commentator that it's not at all unusual for police to show, even if it's a strictly medical emergency. I once called 911 when someone was having a heart attack, and multiple police and fire trucks showed up along with the ambulance. Especially if they're somewhere relatively remote (a rest stop, for instance!), police may be sent just because they're closer than any ambulance.

My brother was arrested for underage DUI (alcohol only) in Ohio. He also had a previous record (for drag racing), but all that happened was he lost his license and had a (very short) community service requirement. He was not sent to jail (or any other facility) before or after the trail. He spent a few hours in the police station while he was being accused, but that was it.

[jayb111]

I'm not in the US, so I can't answer specifics, but I should think the 911 operator might notify the police if the passenger sounded very distressed, if he gave the operator any reason to think the driver was or might be violent, or if the operator thought the passenger was a vulnerable young person. 999 operators in the UK usually ask the age of the casualty. Knowing that the casualty was only eighteen would very likely lead the operator to ask the age of the passenger, and he might well sound even younger than seventeen in the circumstances.

If you're telling the whole thing from the passenger's pov you can fudge a lot - he's shocked, distressed, he doesn't understand a lot of what's going on, he doesn't remember it clearly later. You could say for example that he didn't know how many cops turned up, he only remembered the big fair haired one who asked him questions. Or the medics kept asking him what the driver had taken, and he didn't know.

[tannasmarchat]

Based on my experience in LE in Ohio a few years ago. [Keep in mind that some laws and procedures differ from state to state.]

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[iffi]

This info is awesome, thanks a lot! Just wondering what kind of ID he'd be able to get away with though? I've set it up so he's not got a licence yet. I presume anything with a photo. Would his HS ID suffice?

[elmenora]

He has to correctly identify himself to the police, he doesn't have to show them ID. They might ask for it anyways, but can't do anything to him if he won't/can't show them. In my first-hand experience, saying "I'm 17, I don't have any ID yet" will get most cops to stop bothering you.

On the topic of searches, depending on the state and situation an officer doesn't need consent to search. If they have "probable cause," that's enough to justify the invasion of privacy. So for example, if they can see drug paraphernalia when they look through the window, they have probable cause to search the vehicle. My local highway patrol office hires officers who are allergic to pot, so anytime they get itchy they can search your car!

In this situation they probably wouldn't bother right away - getting them safe is the first concern, and the car can always be searched later. Although I suppose they might look for anything that would help inform EMS of what the guy had taken.

[tannasmarchat]

You are correct about the id. LEO will usually ask for id since a 17yo could have an OL, but if they say they do not have one (and your state does not require a non-driver State ID card) then the LEO will most likely take it at face value. If he happen to have a school id, that would be good