# Probable punishment for Mr. Bieber? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 24, 2014, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581 "2014-01-24T02:25:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/21 "2014-01-24T14:18:55Z")
Florida law for minors failing the sobriety test is an automatic 6-month license suspension (according to NPR). Of course, part of the charges is that he was already driving on an expired license. All the rest is up to a judge. ---
**Author:** ![ctnguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@ctnguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ctnguy)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/22 "2014-01-24T16:23:08Z")
Bieber is not a minor, though; he’s 19 and the age of majority in Florida is 18. ---
**Author:** ![jrsone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jrsone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrsone)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/23 "2014-01-24T16:41:05Z")
I’m going to guess rehab, maybe a fine. A year down the road maybe something similar will happen. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/24 "2014-01-24T16:51:40Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Help fight this old fogey’s iggorance here. > > All’s I know about J. B. is all the scandal and theatrics and hype I read about him, that being what sells headlines and all. But quite aside from all that shit, is he also a good singer? Dude was discovered on YouTube doing covers. Scandal had nothing to do with why he was first signed. If anything, I think he’s having his talent squashed for his image, like Lady Gaga. (Though, unlike Gaga, I don’t think it was originally his choice. It was just what was offered to him.) ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/25 "2014-01-24T16:55:39Z")
> [@ctnguy](#): > > Bieber is not a minor, though; he’s 19 and the age of majority in Florida is 18. Legal age for alcoholic consumption in Florida is 21. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/26 "2014-01-24T17:43:24Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > [Florida Implied Consent](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0300-0399/0316/Sections/0316.1932.html). > > [ul] > [li]Best case scenario for Bieber: Cop to reduced charges and fine and/or probation.[/li][li]Worst case scenario for Bieber: Conviction on all charges. Hard time followed by deportation back to Canada, “never” to return to the USA. Career over.[/li][/ul] He can’t be deported if he has a green card. He might only have an O1 visa though. > [@ctnguy](#): > > Bieber is not a minor, though; he’s 19 and the age of majority in Florida is 18. Age of majority in this instance means 21, and the applicable BAC limit is 0.02. ---
**Author:** ![sweeteviljesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/898d66/32.png) [@sweeteviljesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweeteviljesus)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/27 "2014-01-24T17:53:16Z")
I am hoping that he is forbidden from ever performing in public again and that the world wakes up to the wisdom of letting prepubescent girls decide what talent is. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/28 "2014-01-24T17:57:13Z")
Well, they were right with The Beatles. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/29 "2014-01-24T18:10:54Z")
There’s a lot of additional stuff in Bieber’s case like drag racing (which would be a separate charge from the DUI/DWI), but people I’ve known in similar circumstances (but not in Florida) typically spend the night of their arrest in jail and then plead guilty to the charges and get community service, alcohol classes, and have to pay a fine. A few years ago they would typically, if it was a first offense, plea to something unrelated to drunk driving (like reckless driving or something, still a misdemeanor) and you wouldn’t see the alcohol classes etc, but with MADD and the general atmosphere that’s not common around here any longer. Most people in these parts arrested for DUI have to plead to it, but aside from their initial arrest first time offenders don’t typically serve a confinement sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/30 "2014-01-24T18:23:10Z")
I expect he’ll get fined, a suspended sentence, a scolding, and maybe have to attend some safety class. I don’t know if it’s possible in Florida to suspend driving privileges on an expired Georgia license. Oh, I expect any scolding he gets he’ll promptly forget as soon as he leaves Florida. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/31 "2014-01-24T18:27:11Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > I expect he’ll get fined, a suspended sentence, a scolding, and maybe have to attend some safety class. I don’t know if it’s possible in Florida to suspend driving privileges on an expired Georgia license. His driving privileges can be suspended prospectively. There was a kid near here whose not-yet-issued license was suspended when he famously ran over some other kids during a driver’s ed class and was convicted of reckless driving and something else. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/32 "2014-01-24T21:51:56Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > [Florida Implied Consent](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0300-0399/0316/Sections/0316.1932.html). > [ul] > [li]Best case scenario for Bieber: Cop to reduced charges and fine and/or probation.[/li][li]Worst case scenario for Bieber: Conviction on all charges. Hard time followed by deportation back to Canada, “never” to return to the USA. Career over.[/li][/ul] Add to the worst case Florida is a reciprocal state, so a DUI in FLA, would count in Ontario Declan ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/33 "2014-01-24T22:30:22Z")
> [@Francis\_Vaughan](#): > > As a bit of symmetry, when Keith Richards was busted in 1977 for heroin possession in Canada, the final outcome was a suspended sentence and that the Stones play two free concerts.) To be fair, Beiber is accused of drag racing a car on public streets at twice (I think) the posted speed limit, which puts\* other \*people at risk. ---
**Author:** ![Habeed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a587f6/32.png) [@Habeed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Habeed)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/34 "2014-01-24T22:56:40Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > According to [criminaldefenselawyer.com](http://criminaldefenselawyer.com) the penalty for driving under the influence of drugs is the same as the penalties for DUI. Those are > No idea what is likely but those are what is possible. How do they decide what someone’s “BAL” is if they are mixing in drugs? For instance, suppose someone drank 1 beer, took a few xanax, and a few puffs of marijuana. They will probably be about as intoxicated as someone drunk off their ass on enough alcohol for a BAL over 0.15. (at least, I think this is true : back in college I saw someone doing this, he seemed to be completely wasted after chugging a couple beers and taking a couple xanax) I’ve hear rumors that the “four loco” drink would do similar things, somehow. I’m assuming that this was about the concoction Bieber was on. Now, given his fame and exposure to drugs before, his effective intoxication level might be less. The brain can adapt to high levels of intoxicating substances onboard to an extent, the liver enzymes needed to break down the drugs are probably expressed more, and so on. That would explain why he didn’t crash the car or try to drive faster than 60 mph. I mean, sheesh, almost any clunker can hit 60mph even on a short residential street. ---
**Author:** ![Habeed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a587f6/32.png) [@Habeed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Habeed)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/35 "2014-01-24T23:17:31Z")
**Update :** Bieber blew clear on the breathalyzer. He was below the legal limit for an 18 year old in Florida of 0.02%. This means his admitting he took MJ and painkillers screwed him over royally, right? Had he kept his mouth shut and consented to the breathalyzer, the authorities would **not** have done a blood test to find out about the other drugs, right? He could just keep his mouth shut, get let out of jail, and later plead to “misdemeanor driving while douchebag” or some other petty crime. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/36 "2014-01-24T23:30:04Z")
> [@Habeed](#): > > He could just keep his mouth shut, get let out of jail, and later plead to “misdemeanor driving while douchebag” or some other petty crime. Drugs make you say stupid stuff. Don’t do drugs, kids. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2014, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/37 "2014-01-25T00:50:01Z")
> [@Habeed](#): > > **Update :** Bieber blew clear on the breathalyzer. He was below the legal limit for an 18 year old in Florida of 0.02%. > > This means his admitting he took MJ and painkillers screwed him over royally, right? Had he kept his mouth shut and consented to the breathalyzer, the authorities would **not** have done a blood test to find out about the other drugs, right? > > He could just keep his mouth shut, get let out of jail, and later plead to “misdemeanor driving while douchebag” or some other petty crime. I still think he would have gotten the test, even if the breathalyser returned a no alcohol reading or low reading, the officer stated that he appeared to be in a stupor, so remove alcohol and whats left. Declan ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2014, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/38 "2014-01-25T03:35:35Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > He can’t be deported if he has a green card. He might only have an O1 visa though. Not necessarily true, depending on what he ends up being charged with/convicted of. I have no idea how the applicable Florida statute(s) read, though. People with green cards get put in deportation proceedings for relatively minor drug and alcohol convictions all the time. [Even very famous people](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lennon#Deportation_attempt) have ended up in deportation proceedings over minor drug issues. (A much more entertaining version of the story can be found [here.](http://www.wildeslaw.com/index.php/events-and-outreach/655-not-just-any-immigration-case)) ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2014, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/39 "2014-01-25T15:56:54Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Well, they were right with The Beatles. [**And Frankie**](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAEUWL76ww0). ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581/40 "2014-01-26T05:59:42Z")
I saw his mug shot. I’d like to have first dibs on wiping that stupid smirk off his face! What a smug punk. :mad: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/probable-punishment-for-mr-bieber/679581.md?page=3)