QUESTION:
After a night of excessive drinking I was cited with misdemeanor public intoxication and resisting arrest/obstruction for being belligerent with the arresting officer. I was released the following day with a notice to appear in court some months later.
At my arraignment I was only formally charged with the resisting/obstruction [148(a) Misdemeanor].
The People’s offer was time served (the night in the jail) and 3 years of unsupervised probation for a guilty plea with a condition of no alcohol consumption.
I don’t qualify for a public defender, and don’t really have time due to my job to see out in-depth legal advice at this time. But based on what I’ve been reading here, this sounds like a decent offer, with a possibility of expungement of the misdemeanor down the line, but at the same time if there is a means in which to possibly avoid the conviction, I might try to get time off work to see a lawyer.
Any advice?
ANSWER:
In San Luis Obispo County, the local sentencing guidelines call for 1 year of informal probation, 10 days “custody” (which is frequently served as house arrest or work alternative), and a $1,040 fine. There is no statutory minimum for custody time on a 148(a) PC, so a person can be sentenced to 0 days in custody.
I would say the offer you have been given is fair based PURELY on the charge against you (which obviously is a very incomplete analysis.). However, if you have zero criminal history, I think the only result that is categorically too good to refuse is dismissal or possibly pre-plea diversion.
