# My husband was arrested for drunk driving and had an accident



## deborahc9133 (Nov 27, 2010)

My husband was arrested for drunk driving and hit two cars. He said that nobody got hurt but there was some minor damage to the cars. I don't know what to expect or do. If it matters, he is Mexican born naturalized us citizen. I am going there on Monday. What can do? I called the US embassy in GDL and they were nice, but no so helpful. They did call him to see if he was ok and if his rights were violated.:frusty::frusty:


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## joaquinx (Jul 3, 2010)

About the only thing the US Consulate or the Embassy will do is recommend a lawyer. This is going to cost some money. Be prepared to pay.


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## deborahc9133 (Nov 27, 2010)

How much do you think with damages to the cars and very few injuries? How long in jail? this is my worst nightmare. thanks


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## sparks (Jun 17, 2007)

Usually you just have to please the people who's property you damaged. If he can show he can pay for damages that should be it. If someone was hurt it could be more complicated

Drunk driving laws will vary from state to state but usually paying for damages is enough


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## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

My comment to this one thread:
First of all, don't worry so much, your husband is alive, and you know exactly where he is, he won't cause any more damages by now , and I am not joking.

As a father of an only child girl; don't worry again, he did not do anything nice and he had it coming.

Now, did your husband's car have an insurance? Hope he did

If not, you guys will have to pay for just about everything; damages to the other cars, injuries, etc.
If there were other people hurt, THAT is the problem, and yes, you will need to hire a GOOD lawyer, an efficient one at least.
I really don't think that he will spend time in jail, he should be arrested by now, but then again, it all depends on the other people's injuries.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Some insurrance will not work if you were driving under the influence, so it may be expensive but as Gary says the good part is that your husband and every one involved is alive and not hurt. It could be expesive but thank you lucky star that he did not hurt anyone. Just pray no one is claiming injuries ...
Get a lawyer and get on your husband case about being stupid.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

This is going to cost. If your husband is in jail he could remain there a long time. A lot depends on in which jurisdiction this occurred and what was damaged. The fact that he lives in the USA (assuming that's true) will add to the cost. Corruption and extorsion is rampant in the Mexican legal system. Though, being a Mexican by birth can help to minimize things - especially so if he's been living in Mexico again. Your involvement, your presence at the police or ministerio publico will only add to the cost of resolving this, IMO. They'll see a gringa and think $$$ when they look at you. I really think you should work through family members and minimize your obvious presence. Finding an honest attorney will be a challenge. But you will need legal advice. If he was uninsured ... pray. A lot. Best of luck trying to help him resolve this.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

I agree that if the wife is not Mexican, she should stay out of the picture and let the Mexican family members assist, if they will. So, grit your teeth and stay out of sight of the jail, lawyers, officials, etc. Otherwise, as has been mentioned before, the costs will rise exponentially.
Also, the husband is Mexican whenever he is in Mexico and the US consulate cannot and should not assist in the matter. That is the case with any dual citizen, etc.


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## ElPaso2012 (Dec 16, 2012)

sparks said:


> Usually you just have to please the people who's property you damaged. If he can show he can pay for damages that should be it. If someone was hurt it could be more complicated
> 
> Drunk driving laws will vary from state to state but usually paying for damages is enough


I agree with Sparks. I know this sounds horrible right now, and it's going to cost some money. But if you satisfy the other people involved in the accident, that's probably going to be the worst of it.


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## Detailman (Aug 27, 2011)

Good advice has been given. Among the best were the comments by Longford and RVGringo.

The course of wisdom would be to follow what RVGringo said very carefully. Handle things through an intermediary.

Do not let them know you, as an American citizen, are involved. Let Mexican family members handle it. Same applies to contact with the lawyer himself.

If not you might find, in the worst case scenario, that the problem is finally solved shortly after all your resources and funds are all depleted - and not before.

So prepare for the worst as a fact of life is that if you prepare for the worst - it seldom happens. The opposite is true. When you do not prepare for the worst and think everything will be fine - the worst happens! It might come to very little but the details are somewhat sketchy so I would err on the side of caution.

Think carefully about the advice given and I hope for the best. And remember, we all learn in life from our mistakes.

PS-Citlali's comment about insurance is true in a variety of countries. Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can void the insurance company's liability.


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## GARYJ65 (Feb 9, 2013)

Besides being with your husband and supporting him morally, do you speak Spanish? How could you help in this situation?
Otherwise, yes, it would be better to fix it with your husband's relatives here


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## mes1952 (Dec 11, 2012)

Don't the U.S. consultate to do anything for you. You're better off with Mexican locals than anything related to the U.S. governnment. 
For some reason, Americans think that their consultate will always be there to help them....but they have to find out the hard way that they usually do NOTHING so don't be surprised when this happens to you.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

Since he is a Mexican national by birth, the U.S. consulate is not allowed to do anything for him anyway (unless he renounced his Mexican nationality at some point in the past.) That is part of Mexico allowing dual nationality (which they started doing as of 1998) – the rule is that *while in Mexico*, a Mexican national who also has citizenship in another country can not take advantage of any rights or protection that they could have due to the other citizenship.


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