O
Ohioguy
Guest
I've been browsing these forums all week, reading every bit of information I can. Everybody knows that every situation can be different, though really they're kind of all the same in the end. So I present my story:
Back in 2014 I executed what I believe the technical term is an 'idiot judgment call'. A friend of mine called me up all excited that a brewery/restaurant had opened up in the town next to me, maybe 15 minutes away. I said 'Cool! Lets go get dinner and sample some beverages!' We spent the evening tasting their food and a couple of their beer selections over the course of several hours (now I really do mean a couple, if anybody here has ever been to a new brewery, you'll know that their selections are usually pretty small at first and I don't like to double-up, but they can sometimes have a pretty strong ABV). Time to close up and me having never driven myself to something like this goes 'Hey man, I'm not so sure I should drive anywhere yet, how about we hang out in town a bit before heading out?' (Bam. Judgment mishap.) So we walk around town for at least an hour or so before parting ways. I drive home on some roads I'm barely familiar with even during the day with my phone calling out directions in my cup holder and make a turn wide. Cop starts following me. I'm on that road for a solid 5 miles before coming to a turn that I make without signaling. Cop takes the opportunity to pull me over. I'm thinking now 'Okay, I had some drinks with dinner, but it's been a pretty long time since then and I'm feeling fine but nervious, I must be good' so I do the whole field sobriety test and blow a freaking .083.
So blah blah standard legal stuff follows, my case gets amended to 'Physical Control'. Since the original charge was OVI, I get the standard 6 months suspension and the weekend drivers intervention program. The DIP here is an educational weekend, with the weekend culminating in a professional assessment by a licensed drug/alcohol counselor to determine if you have a problem and need the full treatment and rehab package. I passed that with no further assessment required.
Fast forward to last week when I schedule with an AME for my Class 3. She says she defers anybody with any DUI/OVI/ETC, but that it's not an issue for first/only offenders, I just need to send my personal statement and all the court/driving records I can dig up so that they have all the information they need when they go to review.
The reason I mention my long story above is I sent a barely summarized version of that as part of my personal statement, along with my Ohio Drivers Abstract, the statement from the DIP, the judgment from the court, the ticket, and the pretrial stuff from the prosecution that shows that it was my first offense. The only other ticket I've gotten was an expired registration ticket 8 years ago and I just don't drink out of the house if I know I'm going to be the driver. My question is..is that enough? I've psyched myself out a bit reading some of the horror stories here, and I want to make sure I give the FAA all the assurance I can provide.
Thanks guys!
Back in 2014 I executed what I believe the technical term is an 'idiot judgment call'. A friend of mine called me up all excited that a brewery/restaurant had opened up in the town next to me, maybe 15 minutes away. I said 'Cool! Lets go get dinner and sample some beverages!' We spent the evening tasting their food and a couple of their beer selections over the course of several hours (now I really do mean a couple, if anybody here has ever been to a new brewery, you'll know that their selections are usually pretty small at first and I don't like to double-up, but they can sometimes have a pretty strong ABV). Time to close up and me having never driven myself to something like this goes 'Hey man, I'm not so sure I should drive anywhere yet, how about we hang out in town a bit before heading out?' (Bam. Judgment mishap.) So we walk around town for at least an hour or so before parting ways. I drive home on some roads I'm barely familiar with even during the day with my phone calling out directions in my cup holder and make a turn wide. Cop starts following me. I'm on that road for a solid 5 miles before coming to a turn that I make without signaling. Cop takes the opportunity to pull me over. I'm thinking now 'Okay, I had some drinks with dinner, but it's been a pretty long time since then and I'm feeling fine but nervious, I must be good' so I do the whole field sobriety test and blow a freaking .083.
So blah blah standard legal stuff follows, my case gets amended to 'Physical Control'. Since the original charge was OVI, I get the standard 6 months suspension and the weekend drivers intervention program. The DIP here is an educational weekend, with the weekend culminating in a professional assessment by a licensed drug/alcohol counselor to determine if you have a problem and need the full treatment and rehab package. I passed that with no further assessment required.
Fast forward to last week when I schedule with an AME for my Class 3. She says she defers anybody with any DUI/OVI/ETC, but that it's not an issue for first/only offenders, I just need to send my personal statement and all the court/driving records I can dig up so that they have all the information they need when they go to review.
The reason I mention my long story above is I sent a barely summarized version of that as part of my personal statement, along with my Ohio Drivers Abstract, the statement from the DIP, the judgment from the court, the ticket, and the pretrial stuff from the prosecution that shows that it was my first offense. The only other ticket I've gotten was an expired registration ticket 8 years ago and I just don't drink out of the house if I know I'm going to be the driver. My question is..is that enough? I've psyched myself out a bit reading some of the horror stories here, and I want to make sure I give the FAA all the assurance I can provide.
Thanks guys!
