Minor in Possession of alchohol or drugs MIP
In both Kansas and Missouri, Minor in Possession (MIP) has been expanded to include "possession by consumption" and appearing "visibly intoxicated." This has made it far easier for officers to charge minors based on breathalyzer testing and even solely on if a minor appears intoxicated.
Missouri Minor in Possession (MIP) and Minor in Consumption (MIC)
Missouri's MIP "possession by consumption" law now provides that minors (16-20 years old) who plead guilty, or are convicted of MIP will have their driver license suspended for 30 days for the 1st offense, 90 days for the 2nd offense, and revoked for a year for the 3rd or any subsequent MIP offense. Moreover, even when we argue for a suspended imposition of sentence (SIS) to the Judge and Prosecutor, it has the same impact on a minor's driver license as a conviction.
It is essential that you have a criminal lawyer who knows what he is doing and doesn’t go into court expecting to take whatever the prosecutor offers him. What appears to be a “good deal” because it stays off your criminal record, has a very detrimental effect on you as a minor because your license becomes suspended in the process and therefore creates another kind of record. Call the Criminal Lawyers of Kopecky Law, P.A. and find out how you can save your record and your driving privileges, and truly keep a “clean record”.
Expungement of MIP Record
After a period of not less than one year, or upon reaching the age of twenty-one, whichever occurs first, a person who has pleaded guilty to or has been found guilty of violating section 311.325 for the first time, and who since such conviction has not been convicted of any other alcohol-related offense, may apply to the court in which he or she was sentenced for an order to expunge all official records of his or her arrest, plea, trial and conviction.
A person convicted of MIP under Section 325.111 may be eligible for an expungement only when all three (3) of the following requirements are met: (1) It must be the first time he or she pleaded or was found guilty of MIP, (2) a year has passed from the time he or she pleaded or was found guilty of MIP or the minor reached 21 years of age, and (3) he or she since has had no other alcohol-related convictions or "alcohol-related enforcement contacts" as defined in Section 302.525(3).
Kansas Minor in Possession (MIP) and Minor in Consumption (MIC)
Any minor under the age of 21 who is found to possess, consume, obtain, purchase or attempt to purchase alcoholic liquor or a cereal malt beverage can be charged with what is commonly known as “Minor in Possession (M.I.P.)”, a Class C misdemeanor. Sometimes this is also referred to as a “Minor in Consumption (M.I.C.) where a minor is found to have been drinking but does not have alcohol in his or her possession. They are both the same thing. M.I.P is punishable by a fine of up to $500, 40 hours of community service and the completion of an educational program dealing with the effects of alcohol.
First time offenders will lose their current or future driving privileges for 30 days, while second time offenders are suspended drivers for 90 days. The third offense by a minor carries a one-year driving suspension. Kansas joined at least 13 other states in issuing new vertical drivers licenses to all persons under the age of 21 to make minors’ licenses more recognizable.