Guy Helps Police Catch Drunk Driver, Confused After Getting Ticket For Driving After Curfew

Life can be pretty weird at times, right? You try to do something nice, but end up in trouble yourself, and then you even regret doing the good thing in the first place. As unfair as it sounds, it really does happen to people.

Just look at this teen who reported a drunk driver to the cops, but then he was the one who ended up getting a ticket. Apparently, he was driving past curfew while chasing the inebriated fellow. He got frustrated by the unfairness of it all, but Redditors came to his rescue!

More info: Reddit

Sometimes, you just try to be a good Samaritan, but it backfires and you end up in trouble

Young man driving car, looking frustrated and thoughtful, possibly reflecting on curfew violation or police report incident.

Image credits: pvproductions / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The 18-year-old poster was driving home one night when he noticed a drunk driver and called the cops, and they asked him to follow the guy

18YO reports drunk driver to police but receives ticket for driving past curfew instead in a surprising turn of events.

Text excerpt describing police catching a drunk driver after sobriety tests, linked to curfew violation ticket.

Image credits: throwaway_18701

Young man holding a beer bottle inside a car, related to reporting drunk driver and curfew violation ticket incident.

Image credits: EyeEm / Freepik (not the actual photo)

After catching him, they asked for the poster’s information and found out that he was driving past his 11 p.m. curfew, and gave him a ticket

Text excerpt about an 18-year-old reporting a drunk driver, resulting in a curfew violation ticket from police.

18-year-old reports drunk driver, gets curfew violation ticket from police despite trying to help law enforcement.

Text showing a message from an 18-year-old about getting a curfew violation ticket after reporting a drunk driver to police.

Image credits: throwaway_18701

Young driver handing ID to police officers during a roadside check involving a curfew violation ticket.

Image credits: Ahmet Kurt / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

He could either pay the fine or go to court, and netizens advised that he choose the latter and use a “justification defense”

18YO reports drunk driver to police but receives curfew violation ticket instead, leading to legal advice on pleading not guilty.

Screenshot of an online discussion about a curfew violation ticket citing statute 75 § 1503 (c)(1).

Young man in a car making a phone call, illustrating 18YO reporting a drunk driver and receiving curfew violation ticket.

Image credits: jet-po / Freepik (not the actual photo)

It basically states that a criminal action is necessary and therefore is justified under the circumstances, so he heeded their advice

Text excerpt about a teen reporting a drunk driver but receives a curfew violation ticket instead.

18YO shares evidence of calling 911 before curfew while reporting a drunk driver in an effort to help police authorities.

Text excerpt from a legal hearing where an 18YO discusses being pulled over and receiving a curfew violation ticket.

Text excerpt from a story about an 18-year-old reporting a drunk driver and receiving a curfew violation ticket.

Image credits: throwaway_18701

Teen driver in a white jacket using a smartphone inside a black car, illustrating curfew violation and reporting a drunk driver.

Image credits: prostooleh / Freepik (not the actual photo)

He collected all the required evidence and presented it to the judge, who could clearly see that what he said was true

Text of court testimony about reporting a drunk driver and arguing against a curfew violation ticket.

Text excerpt discussing justification defense in a curfew violation case involving drunk driving and legal arguments.

Text showing a statement about a judge finding the 18-year-old not guilty of a curfew violation after reporting a drunk driver.

Court scene text explaining 18YO reporting drunk driver but receiving a curfew violation ticket despite legal defense.

Image credits: throwaway_18701

The tables quickly turned after that, as he was found not guilty, and he would even get his collateral back

Today’s story is quite something, as the 18-year-old original poster (OP) tells us how he ended up in legal trouble after doing something good. It started when he was returning from a friend’s house at night, and he noticed a person ahead driving in an extremely rash manner. He immediately called the cops, and they asked him to follow this driver.

When they arrived and caught the drunk guy, they also asked for OP’s license to get his information, and noticed that he was not allowed to drive past 11 p.m. He said that when he called the cops, it was before curfew, and besides, they’re the ones who had asked him to follow the man. However, it was all to no avail, as the cop said that the law is the law and gave him a ticket anyway.

Now, OP had to either pay the fine or go to court and plead not guilty. Super unfair, right? Even he was thinking along the same lines as he vented his frustration online, so Redditors instantly jumped to his rescue. They said that he should plead not guilty, and in court, he could use a justification defense by gathering all the evidence.

All those wondering about this big legal term, it basically states, “A defendant with a valid justification will not suffer the usual penalty for their actions because in the eyes of the court, the defendant could not have been asked to act any differently in this situation.” The poster must have been delighted with their help and agreed to do exactly what they had advised.

Police officer talking to driver of black car during traffic stop on roadside with police car nearby at dusk.

Image credits: Erik Mclean / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

He got copies of his phone’s call log to show the time he had called the cops before curfew, and also got the drunk driver’s criminal complaint. When the court started, the cops tried to manipulate things by claiming that he had been pulled over and confessed that he had broken the curfew. We all know that it was all lies, and OP made sure he told the judge about it.

First, he presented all the evidence that he had gathered, and then he brought up the justification defense. He argued that while driving past curfew was a criminal offense, the driver was more at fault, and he proved that it was the lesser of the two evils. The poster is absolutely right because devastatingly, in 2023, 12,229 people passed away due to drunk-driving crashes.

Quite horrifying, isn’t it? This just proves that the poster did the right thing, even though he had to break curfew for it. Even the court could clearly see it, and he was declared not guilty by the judge. In fact, his record was also completely cleaned, and he was also supposed to get his collateral back via mail after a few days!

I am pretty sure that he must be extremely thankful to the Redditors for the useful advice that they provided. Folks online were also equally delighted to read the update that he shared after 7 weeks. Some joked that they would have loved to see how the cops reacted when he was proven not guilty. Must’ve been fun, right? What are your thoughts about it? Let us know in the comments!

It’s all thanks to the Redditors’ wonderful advice that he was able to find justice, and folks were delighted for him

Screenshot of a forum comment discussing reporting drunk drivers and a curfew violation ticket for a new driver.

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