Applying for PLC with a DUI?

[steviey]

I just recently went to Vermont to visit my father this summer. While I was there I was pulled over for a broken tail light at 2am and was administered a breathalizer test. The legal limit there is .08 and I blew a .096. When I went to court the judge dropped the criminal DUI charges because of how "low" I blew on the test, however the catch was that I accepted the Civil Suspension of my "privalage to opperate a vehicle in the State" for 90 days. My OSO says that he can't do anything until my record is clear. I am a former Marine and I know that there are waivers for everything, so what the @#%!. Anyway my suspension is only in that state and it ends on Oct. 11 , but in order to drive in Vermont again I must take a "class" which is about 4-6 weeks long, and get SR-22 insurance. Please, any advice would help. Thanx.

 

[kimphil]

Sorry, you're screwed. The officer program is ultra-competitive now, waivers for something that serious (esp. for a former marine) are hard to come by.

 

[Daedalus]

I'm not in the best position to know, but I'd get some more opinions than just kimphil's before making any decisions. I would think the opposite would be true, that your Marine experience would help, and given that you were just a hair over, the Marines would think along the lines of the judge, (again I don't know), but your Marine record will probably speak highly of you, verses a one time infraction. Also I think I have read that people on this site have received wavers for such things, so search for it. Finally, I have heard on this site that the Marines are looking for people now, whereas the Navy is pretty full.
Good Luck

 

[plumberphil]

Daedalus,
My advice is to go for it and try to get the waiver. If you bust your butt and get lucky then you'll get the waiver. Don't give up man.

Stay motivated
Jake

 

[Daedalus]

You mean Steviey?

 

[plumberphil]

oh yeah...sorry

 

[kimphil]

Sure, you should keep trying, it just sounds like your chance is poor of getting a waiver.

It seems I continue to disagree with Daedalus. Your status as a former marine hurts you, it doesn't help. You should know better than to drive under the influence. You're not some snot-nose college boy, you're an adult and former marine. If you did something like this in the Fleet, it could prevent you from reelisting. Do you think that OCS is going to be less particular? Of course not. But I'm sure you know this.

Of course, your record in the Marine Corps may mitigate your DUI. Were you Force Recon? Did you take a bullet for another marine? Did you have a combat MOS? These things might help.

Yes, the Marines are looking for people. However, they're not desperate. I remember having a conversation with my OSO a month ago telling me that the Marines have 500 TOO MANY officers. This summer's OCC/PLC combined only had one company (not two). Waivers for age are damn hard to come by these days. And if you have too much ink, tattoo waivers are near impossible (for both enlisted and commissioned).

I do agree with Daedalus on one thing, ask for another opinion.

 

[wink]

For the benefit of the Navy guys reading this, you would be toast on the Navy side. The Navy will not waive anything now having to do with legal problems or even minor drug experimentation. I hope the Marines treat you ok. Don't whine about the classes and suspension. You f**ked up.

 

[Fatboy]

I know a navy person that was commissioned less than 6 months ago that got a DUI while in the NROTC program...not the only one either. I also know people that got booted for it.

 

[Irrumpo]

Just wait it out, let the suspension fall, and never drive in Vermont again until after OCS. Then pay whatever. A fifty dollar taxi from Mass. or an airport is a whole lot cheaper. Just another idea.

 

[TSPO]

For what it's worth, while I was enlisted in the Navy in the mid 90's, one of our CO's was the ultimate hardass when it came to DUI's. He made it clear as soon as he took command that he had a zero tolerance policy for DUI's; if you got one you could count on an OTH seperation. I got out in April, started school, and got a DUI on New Years Eve, that same year. Six months later I was enrolled in AFROTC. They said that the DUI would not be a big deal, so long as I didn't do it again. I couldn't believe this. If I would've gotten the DUI as an enlisted Navy guy, my life would've been screwed, but now they are letting me fly planes in the Air Force. This was several years ago, and the Air Force has since toughened their stance on DUI's as well, but the moral of the story is that while it may be a career ender in one command, it may be not as major in another. Getting the waiver will depend on the mindset of the guy signing the waiver at the time. Coming from my experience, I agree with Wink on one point: you screwed up. Quit whining about the penalty and consider yourself lucky that it wasn't worse.

 

[version2point0]

stop drinking and driving. theres a good answer. who cares how much you can drink and still be coherent. the law was broken and the government doenst look too highly on that. im not on a soap box or anything, im just saying that because i live in a party community and i saw a lot of ppl get turned down for officer programs just because of their driving record.

-v2.0