Can this really happen? Saw it on TV..DUI charge

[Disney1fan2002]

Last night, I was watching an old Everybody Loves Raymond episode.

Deb drank too much at Amy's bridal shower. She got in her car to drive home, and decided she can't drive. She called Raymond, and left a voice mail for him to call her on her cell, but she needed him to come and get her. She then put her head back, and fell asleep.

A cop knocks on her window, and asks Deb if she is OK. Deb answer she was fine, she just had too much to drink, and rolled over to go back to sleep. Next thing, Ray is getting a call from Deb, she's in jail. They arrested her for DUI.

As they were putting her in the cell, she was asking how can she be arrested for DUI if there was no D.

So, that's my question too. I know it's a TV show, but here she was, doing the right thing, and she is arrested.

I also watch World's Dumbest on Tru TV and I saw this happen on a video clip. A man was sleeping in a car parked on the side of the road. A cop woke him up and gave him a field sobriety test, which he failed miserably.(it was quite comical and that is why the clip was shown) He was arrested, but I want to know why??? He was not driving. How can he be charged with driving or operating under the influence, if he was sound asleep and not bothering anyone?

 

[luvmy3]

I always thought that if you were behind the wheel, keys in the ignition, regardless of if you were in a prking lot or parked on the side of the road, then you could be. Court is where you would argue your case.

ETA I don't have a problem with it, I support anything to keep drunks off the road.

 

[TeresaBelle]

I think, in VA at least, you can be charged w/DUI if the keys are in the ignition.

 

[AKL_Megs]

Well, if the car was ON with keys in the ignition, she could be arrested, as she WAS operating the vehicle. I don't know a single police officer who would arrest someone sitting in a warm car waiting for a DD. I think you'd have to get mouthy or something.

It's TV, they wanted a good story!

 

[shinysparklybubbles]

Yup. Happened to a friend of DH. Party was over, he knew he couldn't drive so he slept in his car but made the mistake of starting it to keep warm. Someone called the cops because his car had been running for a long time in the middle of the night sure enough he got arrested.

 

[ols386]

I'm really not sure what the law says, but it seems that if you are not "driving", than how can you be arrested for "driving" while under the influence. You're not driving, your sitting in the driver's seat of the car, sleeping it off, or whatever.

But it's a good question, op. One that I would be curious to know what the law actually says and how it works.

 

[rwdavis2]

In Maryland you can be arrested for that exact thing. How I found out was that a young man was arrested for this and the officer testified he was passed out in the front seat. But the defense lawyer produced security camera video that showed the officer pulling the kid out of the BACK seat, NOT a violation. The officer had committed for perjury. I don't know what happened to the officer (hopefully fired and prosecuted) but the kid got off.
BD

 

[tlbwriter]

Yes you can be arrested for parking under the influence. It's called "actual physical control," I believe.

 

[eliza61]

Last night, I was watching an old Everybody Loves Raymond episode.

Deb drank too much at Amy's bridal shower. She got in her car to drive home, and decided she can't drive. She called Raymond, and left a voice mail for him to call her on her cell, but she needed him to come and get her. She then put her head back, and fell asleep.

A cop knocks on her window, and asks Deb if she is OK. Deb answer she was fine, she just had too much to drink, and rolled over to go back to sleep. Next thing, Ray is getting a call from Deb, she's in jail. They arrested her for DUI.

As they were putting her in the cell, she was asking how can she be arrested for DUI if there was no D.

So, that's my question too. I know it's a TV show, but here she was, doing the right thing, and she is arrested.
?

Don't know about the law but that was one of the funniest episodes of ELR. Especially when she's in the hearing trying to get her license back and has to explain how they found her sleeping.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

I know Everbody Love's Raymond is a TV show, but World's Dumbest uses actual police video, so it does happen!

I don't drink and never have, so my entire adult life, I have been the DD. If I went out with my friends, they got to have a good time and not worry about how much they were drinking. I also got many 2am phone calls from my brothers asking me to come get them. It is scary to think that at anytime, one of them could have been arrested for doing nothing but waiting for me. (which is what they should be doing).

 

[AKL_Megs]

I'm really not sure what the law says, but it seems that if you are not "driving", than how can you be arrested for "driving" while under the influence. You're not driving, your sitting in the driver's seat of the car, sleeping it off, or whatever.

But it's a good question, op. One that I would be curious to know what the law actually says and how it works.

That is why there is OPERATING while intoxicated (OWI) and DRIVING under the influence (DUI)... Marie would have been an OWI, but DUI is more well known.

 

[myheartlivesatwdw]

I think, in VA at least, you can be charged w/DUI if the keys are in the ignition.

Yes, keys in ignition = OUI.

 

[Princess_Meghan <3]

Yup, it can happen. I remember when I was in driver's ed, and our instructor told us that if you're ever drunk and planning on spending the night in your car, you should put your keys in the trunk. If you don't have your keys anywhere near you, you can't be arrested. If your keys are up front with you, or in the ignition, you can be arrested. That's what we were told at least, and our instructor was a former cop, so I'm guessing he at least had some idea of what he was talking about.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

Yup, it can happen. I remember when I was in driver's ed, and our instructor told us that if you're ever drunk and planning on spending the night in your car, you should put your keys in the trunk. If you don't have your keys anywhere near you, you can't be arrested. If your keys are up front with you, or in the ignition, you can be arrested. That's what we were told at least, and our instructor was a former cop, so I'm guessing he at least had some idea of what he was talking about.

That's is good advice and all, if you can remember the advice while inebriated, great! Then what happens when you sober up and can't remember what you did with the keys?

 

[Diegosmom]

Actually just had something similar happen to a friend. She was too drunk to drive so her boyfriend was driving her car with her home. They get pulled over he is arrested for DUI. She gets in the drivers side seat to get her keys out and her cell phone out of the car (she was going to walk home as they were 1 mile from her house). The officer then proceeds to tell her to get out of the car and reads her her rights. She is questioning him as to what the heck is going on. He then throws her on the ground cuffs her and charges her for resisting arrest (now she probably did get a bit mouthy, she was drunk but had no idea why she was arrested). And he said she refused a sobriety test (which he never asked her to take) but she would have failed anyway. She ended up losing her license for 1 year (this was a second or maybe 3rd offese) but she wasnt even trying to drive.

So yes it can happen.

 

[ols386]

Don't know about the law but that was one of the funniest episodes of ELR. Especially when she's in the hearing trying to get her license back and has to explain how they found her sleeping.

Yes, it was a very funny episode. And Marie kept putting in her 2 cents worth, making it even funnier. LOL

 

[Princess_Meghan <3]

That's is good advice and all, if you can remember the advice while inebriated, great! Then what happens when you sober up and can't remember what you did with the keys?

haha, that is a good question! I never thought about that. I haven't run into the problem since I don't drink, but I can just see it causing panic if someone did do that.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

It happened to my BIL last year. He got really drunk the weekend after his birthday and couldn't get a hold of anyone to drive him home (impromptu drinking session). So he laid down in the car to sleep it off. However his birthday is in January so he would occasionally turn on the car so it could heat back up. Cops discovered him asleep in the car with the keys in the ignition and arrested him for DUI.

 

[ccgirl]

I always thought that if you were behind the wheel, keys in the ignition, regardless of if you were in a prking lot or parked on the side of the road, then you could be. Court is where you would argue your case.

ETA I don't have a problem with it, I support anything to keep drunks off the road.

Yes. This.

 

[U2_rocks!]

I always thought that if you were behind the wheel, keys in the ignition, regardless of if you were in a prking lot or parked on the side of the road, then you could be. Court is where you would argue your case.

ETA I don't have a problem with it, I support anything to keep drunks off the road.

I'm not sure how this law keeps drunks off the road, though - after all, if they have made the good decision NOT to drive and have parked to sleep it off, should they be penalized for that??