You thought Halloween was for kids and was synonymous with Candy? You thought nothing else happened on All Hallows Eve? Sure we all grew up trick or treating and bringing back bags of candy, but that is not all that happens on Halloween.
I remember as a kid mapping out the blocks so that we could go around the block/s in an organized fashion thus passing my home. I would drop off a bag, empty it a hit the next set of blocks. Growing up in Toluca Lake we would always arrange to hit Bob Hope’s home first and then again at the end of the evening.
At first Hope had his butler come to the door with a sterling silver tray of Silver Dollars and later Chocolate Eclairs. It was the one “treat” that never made it into the bag. It disappeared before we got to the sidewalk.
But today would you let your kids eats a treat that was unwrapped? Of course not, things have changed.
But the one thing that has not changed is people using the evening as an “excuse to party and drink”. I remember families inviting us inside to check out our costumes… while they threw back a few brewski’s.
At some point many of these guests left to go home and were drunk. That is an accident waiting to happen with all the kids running/darting into the street. I think society is more aware today and often take Uber or Lyft. However here in the greater Palm Springs we have more DUI fatalities than anywhere else in California…per capita.
So if you are driving home after drinking and get in an accident with a kid, two things take place. You will have to hire a lawyer if arrested for a DUI or when the victim sues you for damages/death of their child.
In both instances you ask the question who do I hire to help me that will be competent and honest with the experience to do a good job for me. For years I had a radio show in LA titled “Accidentally Yours” that answered that question.
On each show I would suggest that “people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan”. The last things you want is to have to make a major decision under pressure. Thus I tell the readers of my weekly legal column…plan now! Decide now who you would call if arrested for a DUI or if you or a loved one was in an accident.
We all keep the names and number of vendors to assist us in case of an emergency………..a plumber, an electrician etc. Why not add to that list the lawyer you would call so you can make an intelligent decision now and not when you’re pressured!
In both instances the best thing you can do is to Keep Silent. Silence is golden and handcuffs are silver when it comes to interrogation on a DUI. With either case you want to talk to your lawyer first and to stay OFF OF SOCIAL MEDIA. FB and other forms of social media have made it very easy for investigators and insurance adjusters to learn about YOU.
If you have been in an accident and tell the doctor you hurt everywhere and can’t do anything then you certainly do not want the wrong person to see you talking about golf or tennis. Likewise you do not want the wrong person to read about your comments about the accident or driving.
So moral of the story is… DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE, CALL A TAXI OR UBER………IT IS A LOT CHEAPER THAN HAVING AN ACCIDENT OR DUI AND CALLING ME ………SO DRIVE SOBER OR GET PULLED OVER DURING THE HOLIDAYS.
Suggestions for future articles: 760-837-7500/dale@dalegribowlaw.com.
DALE GRIBOW
“TOP LAWYER” – Palm Springs Life-(DUI/PI)-2011-18
“TOP LAWYER” – Inland Empire Magazine Nov. ’16
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