Ticket for possesion of alcohol by a minor

Question

so a couple of friends and me were pulled over two of these friends were found with beers and i had a backpack that had one beer in it (it actually wasnt mine) anyway they wrote us tickets for possesion....i was wondering if this would show up on my record at all or affect my insurance because im not planning on telling my parents...also i live far away from the court and am going away to college in another state so i was wondering if i could just call up plead guilty and maybe mail the money...the cops said the max fine would be 50 dollars...does that sound rite i live in New York....if it was forced to show up could i just plead not guilty claiming the bag and beer werent mine (which they really werent)....if i was to do that would it work or would they make me name the person who it belonged to because i dont want to rat any1 out...Thanks

Answer 1

If they gave you a ticket, you may be able to admit responsibility and mail the $50.00 fine in the form of a money order to the address of the court on the ticket.  That's your best bet since the beer was found in your backpack (possession is 9/10 of the law, remember).  If you go to court, the only chance you have of getting off is if the police officer doesn't show up.  It will show up on your record, but since you weren't in a motor vehicle it won't affect your insurance.  Call the court and see if you can simply pay the fine -- it's not worth fighting.

Answer 2

Well so the beer wasn't yours as you say correct? then why the h**l was it in your bag??? Your responsible for your own actions.. and so I'd say you did the crime got caught deal with what you'll recieve..

Answer 3

Sounds like you're probably 18 already, so yes, it will be on your record. You should also expect it to affect your insurance as you were driving while in possession.

Regarding being distant from the court, you will either receive a summons to appear or be required to pay a fine. In the first case, you travel no matter how far to appear in court, or face jail time for failure to appear. In the second case, you may pay by check mailed to the address on the ticket. The ticket should state which of the two scenarios you can expect.

My advice is to be proactive and contact the court yourself, ASAFP.

As for pleading not guilty, you're well within your rights to do so, but you will be required to name the guilty party. Given that you were technically in possession, you may as well take your lumps, learn from this experience, and be better in the future.

Answer 4

If you are NOT considered an adult at age 17 for criminal prosecution, your parents will find out.  If 17 in your state is an adult for criminal prosecution, you can take care of it on your own and your parents don't have to know about it.  Lesson learned, if you are in possession of it, it doesn't matter whose it is, it's now yours.

Answer 5

In most jurisdictions, you will be required to attend court on the required date.   Pleading guilty should not in any way effect your insurance premiums because the insurance company is not notified since the fact that you were in your car possessing alcohol is irrelevent to the charge.    The key elements are that you are under 21 and were possession of alcohol.

Consequently, the conviction wouldn't be that harmful to future employment, but that may be pendent into what job field you intend to get.

The fine quoted by the officer seems ridiculously low.  Here, in Arkansas, the fine is a minimum of $500.  I would assume the fine would be more in New York, but I could be wrong.