OregonDUI^.08

Oregon diversion is a fantastic way for people who have first-time DUI charges to get out of their DUI without a criminal record. Not everyone is eligible but most are. A person is eligible for diversion if they have not had a prior DUI conviction within 10 years, if they have not had a prior diversion within 10 years, and this particular DUI charge did not involve an accident where someone other than the driver was hurt or killed. There are some other requirements as well, most notably the requirement that a person cannot enter diversion if they have a commercial driver's license.

So how does diversion work?

Diversion works differently in Multnomah County than it does in Clackamas County or Washington County, but generally all counties follow the same approach. When you are first charged with a crime you will appear at your arraignment. If you don't have an attorney then the court will often set a second date for you to show up with one. If you get a Multnomah County DUI attorney before your arraignment then sometimes your lawyer can have your appearance waived so that you don't even need to show up. At any rate, the court will assign a diversion entry date at your arraignment -- a day where you can come back and make a choice about diversion. Until that point, your plea is kept on as "not guilty."

To get into diversion there is a good deal of paperwork to review and complete. The first step in any case is to acquire and review the police report detailing your stop. I intend to post an article that specifically deals with reading your Portland police report, but generally you read these DUI reports to look for any possible legal challenges. If you (or your Portland DUI Lawyer) don't see any issues, then the next step is to review a plea petition.

A plea petition is a petition that you fill out and give to the court that tells them you want to enter a plea of guilty on the DUI charge. You will also file a petition to enter Oregon Diversion program. In it you will promise to pay the fines and assessments as well as any fees that you have to incur to do the diversion program.

Once in the diversion program, you will be required to attend an Oregon Victims Impact Panel meeting. This is a sort of round-table discussion focused at the various evils of driving under the influence of intoxicants. You will also be required to attend an alcohol evaluation session with substance abuse counselor. This will cost you about $200 and you will need your police report when you go there. Depending on the facts of your case, you will be assigned a course of treatment. Your course of treatment depends on you. You can have as little as a single day of classes or a course of classes over several months. My advice is to be open and honest with your evaluator and to take it from there.

Finally, you have to keep your nose clean for the next year. You cannot have any alcohol in your system when you get behind the wheel. There is a zero tolerance while you are in diversion. If you mess up and get caught then your get-of-jail-free card gets torn up. I cannot stress it enough how important it is to do diversion right. The last thing you want is to end up back in court telling a judge why you messed up.

In truth, the worst part about getting a first-time Multnomah County DUI is the expense. Depending on your case and on your lawyer, you can expect to pay an Oregon DUI lawyer $750-$1500 to get you into and through diversion, and your various court costs and treatment fees can get up as high as $1,000. You're going to spend some time doing the classes and court apperances, but as long as you do you will be alright in the end.

-DJD (JD) , 9/28/2008