Will you celebrate Halloween this year? Will kids go Trick or Treating? Will you give out candy? Many say it is still too dangerous. Maybe the Living Desert Party is the answer?
We are considering turning the lights out and not having candy. My wife says, leave a bowl of candy for kids to take. I said one kid will take all the candy and nothing will be left, and we should cancel Halloween. After all, many kids have NOT been vaccinated and we have lost to many friends to Covid in the last few years.
However, the danger goes beyond Covid. There are more kids running across the streets without looking. Of course, in the CV we poor street lights.
Most people don’t realize other things happen 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. Danger lurks and it is not just COVID.
Do you think Halloween danger is just about kids and candy and Covid? Did you know, kids are twice as likely to be hit by a car during Halloween? Will you dress your kids with reflectors, light colored clothes and a flashlight? Will you instruct them not to take loose candy, without a wrapper?
What about your kids entering a home? Some homes invite the kids in for the candy and demand a trick while the adults drink. Watch your kids! This is a different world from the one many of us, of a certain age, grew up.
Many use the evening as an “excuse to party and drink”. They leave the party impaired and they are an accident, or a DUI, “waiting to happen”. With all the kids running/darting into the streets, it is also more likely to be a very serious accident. …which means the DUI could be a Felony.
We should all have a designated driver or take Uber or Lyft. Did you know that in the CV, we have more DUI fatalities than anywhere else in California…Per Capita.
So, if you are driving home after drinking, and hit a kid, there are two things that may cause you to need a lawyer. If arrested for a DUI, or are injured in a not at fault accident, you must hire a lawyer.
In both instances you ask the question, “who do I hire to help me that will be both competent and honest… and who has the experience to do a good job for me.” For years I had a talk show entitled “Accidentally Yours” that addressed that question.
On each show I would suggest, that “people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan”. The last thing you want is to have to make a major decision like that, under pressure. Thus, my advice is to Plan Now! Decide now who you would call if you or a friend were arrested for a DUI or were 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 or questions by an insurance adjuster after an Accident case. I always advise my clients to say they would be happy to talk after their lawyer gives them permission to talk. Thus, you use your lawyer as a strawman, so that you are the good guy and the lawyer is the bad guy who has told you not to talk.
You should talk to your lawyer first and stay OFF of Facebook and SOCIAL MEDIA. Social media has made it very easy for police investigators and insurance adjusters to learn about YOU. It is not always what you say…but rather what the police or insurance adjuster THOUGHT s/he heard you say.
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 playing golf or tennis or carrying luggage on a trip. Likewise, you do not want the wrong person to read your comments about the accident or your impaired driving.
So, the 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 HALLOWEEN.
DALE GRIBOW
REPRESENTING THE INJURED AND CRIMINALLY ACCUSED
“TOP LAWYER” – California’s Prestige Magazine, Palm Springs Life (PI/DUI) 2011-22
“TOP LAWYER” – Inland Empire Magazine 2016- 2019
PERFECT 10.0 AVVO Peer Rating
Dale Gribow Attorney at Law
“TOP LAWYER” Palm Springs Life PI/DUI (2011-22)
73-061 El Paseo, Suite 220
Palm Desert, CA 92260
Office – 760-837-7500 Fax – 760 837-7502
