Kim Hansen: the laws change when you turn 18…

The Law Offices of Kim W. Hansen – Criminal Defense
714-289-2662
714-744-4079
http://kimwhansen.com
1700 W. Katella Ave., Suite 200
Orange, CA 92867

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: A number of years ago, the State Bar put out a little publication called “18 is a Turning Point” and a lot of material I’m going to talk about today is having to do with that and how the law affects the 18-year-olds. I think Ariel’s the only 18-year-old in here, but you might have kids or grandkids, or maybe you have employees that are teenagers. So anyway, when I’ve given this presentation before with other youth groups and their parents, I’ve tried to focus, instead of that whole publication, I’ve tried to pull out the stuff that they seem to be most interested in, the things that they have the most questions about.

When a person turns 18, some things happen to them as far as the law is concerned. First of all, the parents don’t have to support them anymore. Legally, they’re on their own. It’s only by your kindness that they continue to be able to have your support.

Another thing at 18, they can start being sued and of course, they can also, on the other hand, sue other people. The men have to register for the draft at 18. And if a person commits a crime, even if they’re in high school and you think, oh, they’re just kids, if they’re 18, even in high school, they’re going to be prosecuted in a regular court and not in the juvenile court. They don’t have that protection. Juvenile court is designed for rehabilitation, to give them a second chance, kind of get their life in order and get back in being a productive member of societies. But 18, you don’t have that protection. You’re going to be with everybody else.

The age of majority in California is 18. It used to be 21 an they lowered it to 18 with a couple of exceptions. One of those you might be able to guess. You’re nodding.

Male Speaker: Alcohol.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Alcohol, of course, you got to be 21 for that. The other one is driving. At 16, you’re considered old enough to be able to drive if you like. But 18-year-olds, they can enter into contracts, so that’s important for you as the owners of business. If they aren’t, obviously you need to get their legal guardian or their parent to sign if they’re entering a contract with you. I know Jean knows this, but buying and selling real estate, same thing. Got to be over 18 or else have their guardian or parent to help them with that.

Also, when they turn 18, they can get married without their parent’s consent. And sometimes, that may cause some consternation in family if they don’t really approve of the person, but legally, there’s not a lot they can do.

They can also create their own will. Once they get 18, they can set up their own wills. They can vote. We had an amendment that changed that age to vote at 18. And whether you like it or not, you’re going to get to serve jury duty, as friend, Bruce, is fond of doing every 18 months or whatever. They can join the Army, the military. And they can consent to have medical treatment or dental treatment without their parent’s involvement now.

So one of the things that I run into quite often is I’ll have somebody that’s under 21, that legal age of drinking, and they’ll get some type of alcohol violation. It doesn’t even have to be a DUI or drug possession. What that’s going to trigger besides whatever other penalty the law imposes, they’re going to have a one-year license suspension. So that’s pretty traumatic for most of them, because as a young person they’re anxious to drive and get around. And having their license taken away for a year is a big deal. There are some exceptions to get around that. And that’s where a good attorney will be able to see if they qualify and come under one of those exceptions, what we call a critical need to drive. We can show that to the court and they’ll be able to drive for some limited purposes.

The typical things they get driving trouble will be a reckless driving. That’s a maximum penalty of six months on that. A speed contest, you know, they like to show off to their friends. They’re going to get 90 days on that. Hit and run, I don’t know, maybe some of you have heard on the news recently how many hit and runs there are over in L.A. county. I was surprised how many there are, like 20,000 a year. That’s a lot.

Male Speaker: Wow.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: A number of years ago, the State Bar put out a little publication called “18 is a Turning Point” and a lot of material I’m going to talk about today is having to do with that and how the law affects the 18-year-olds. I think Ariel’s the only 18-year-old in here, but you might have kids or grandkids, or maybe you have employees that are teenagers. So anyway, when I’ve given this presentation before with other youth groups and their parents, I’ve tried to focus, instead of that whole publication, I’ve tried to pull out the stuff that they seem to be most interested in, the things that they have the most questions about.

When a person turns 18, some things happen to them as far as the law is concerned. First of all, the parents don’t have to support them anymore. Legally, they’re on their own. It’s only by your kindness that they continue to be able to have your support.

Another thing at 18, they can start being sued and of course, they can also, on the other hand, sue other people. The men have to register for the draft at 18. And if a person commits a crime, even if they’re in high school and you think, oh, they’re just kids, if they’re 18, even in high school, they’re going to be prosecuted in a regular court and not in the juvenile court. They don’t have that protection. Juvenile court is designed for rehabilitation, to give them a second chance, kind of get their life in order and get back in being a productive member of societies. But 18, you don’t have that protection. You’re going to be with everybody else.

The age of majority in California is 18. It used to be 21 an they lowered it to 18 with a couple of exceptions. One of those you might be able to guess. You’re nodding.

Male Speaker: Alcohol.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Alcohol, of course, you got to be 21 for that. The other one is driving. At 16, you’re considered old enough to be able to drive if you like. But 18-year-olds, they can enter into contracts, so that’s important for you as the owners of business. If they aren’t, obviously you need to get their legal guardian or their parent to sign if they’re entering a contract with you. I know Jean knows this, but buying and selling real estate, same thing. Got to be over 18 or else have their guardian or parent to help them with that.

Also, when they turn 18, they can get married without their parent’s consent. And sometimes, that may cause some consternation in family if they don’t really approve of the person, but legally, there’s not a lot they can do.

They can also create their own will. Once they get 18, they can set up their own wills. They can vote. We had an amendment that changed that age to vote at 18. And whether you like it or not, you’re going to get to serve jury duty, as friend, Bruce, is fond of doing every 18 months or whatever. They can join the Army, the military. And they can consent to have medical treatment or dental treatment without their parent’s involvement now.

So one of the things that I run into quite often is I’ll have somebody that’s under 21, that legal age of drinking, and they’ll get some type of alcohol violation. It doesn’t even have to be a DUI or drug possession. What that’s going to trigger besides whatever other penalty the law imposes, they’re going to have a one-year license suspension. So that’s pretty traumatic for most of them, because as a young person they’re anxious to drive and get around. And having their license taken away for a year is a big deal. There are some exceptions to get around that. And that’s where a good attorney will be able to see if they qualify and come under one of those exceptions, what we call a critical need to drive. We can show that to the court and they’ll be able to drive for some limited purposes.

The typical things they get driving trouble will be a reckless driving. That’s a maximum penalty of six months on that. A speed contest, you know, they like to show off to their friends. They’re going to get 90 days on that. Hit and run, I don’t know, maybe some of you have heard on the news recently how many hit and runs there are over in L.A. county. I was surprised how many there are, like 20,000 a year. That’s a lot.

Male Speaker: Wow.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: They’re trying to cut down on that. Currently the penalty on that is six months of jail and $1,000 fine if there are no injuries involved. If there are injuries, then the jail time can go up to a year.

This is something, as parents, I wasn’t even aware of this until I got this article from the Bar, but there is a health and safety code section violation which makes it unlawful to smoke in the car if there is a minor in the car with you. I’ve never seen that in all the years I’ve been doing this. I’ve never seen anybody been written up to that, they’re out smoking in the car with their kids, but it’s an infraction. You’re not going to go to jail on it, but it’s an infraction like a ticket. But it’s just kind of really, okay.

I’m going to skip this part, because I don’t think any of you really care about the licensing laws. If the kids really want to know, like okay, what do you have to do for that and some of the parents do, too, because they’ve all changed since we got our licenses at 16. They’ve put in these new things for provisional permits and learner’s permits. If any of you are interested in that, you can see me after and I can shoot you over a copy of all the laws that deal with that. They’ve made it much more complicated and complex than it used to be for getting a license.

Let me just talk for a minute about alcohol. Let me ask you this. Are there any types of alcohol beverages that are allowed to be purchased at 18?

Female Speaker: Near beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Beer, what?

Female Speaker: Near beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Near beer. I don’t know. If its got alcohol content, it’s a no. So I’m not sure what near beer, if that’s just flavored like beer with no alcohol.

Male Speaker: [inaudible 00:07:10]

Male Speaker: Root beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Yeah.

Male Speaker: Mouth wash.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Yeah, you’re all right with those. Some people think though that, oh, it’s just a 3.2% beer, it’s okay, but it’s not. It’s the same thing as if they got vodka or any other hard liquor. And selling to those under 21 is a big . . . They do a lot of sting operations on that. They get funded. The state funds the different counties to go out and try to curb that. A lot of times, it’s innocently and they’re done, sometimes, unknowingly. They’ll get rushed in the convenience store or something, a big line and they’re trying to hurry people through, and they won’t check your I.D. or whatever, closely, but thank you.

What about your kids drinking at home? Some parents think that, well, that’s okay. I’d rather have them at home than go out and drink, and then drive. If you do that, you need to know that parents can face up to a year of jail, $1,000 fine if their child causes an accident or their friends are in your home an they’re drinking in your home. So don’t get the idea that, oh, that’ll be okay, because they’re off the road, they’re here at home, because if they do that and then they leave your home, you’re going to be on the hook for a misdemeanor.

Some kids, when I present this, they’re like what if I’m holding my friend’s roach clip or a pipe, can I get in trouble? Yes, that’s called possession of paraphernalia even though it’s not your stuff. If you’ve got it, you’re going to get popped for that. I’ve talked a little bit about this before, I think, about using somebody else’s prescription. You might have the same prescription at home, but it’s not your prescription, but it’s the same stuff, you can get up to 12 months of jail or 10 years of prison time depending on what the substance is. So be careful about doing that.

Minors, as I mentioned earlier, they can also lose their license besides alcohol by possessing a controlled substance, a drug, they can lose their license for up to a year. That’s a misdemeanor on that as well.

Also, some of the youth participate in sports using steroids. If they’re convicted of distribution of steroids, they can face up to five years in prison. So if they’ve got them and they gi- . . . Thank you. All right, this is a raid.

So if your kids are an athlete, don’t have them be helping their friends by passing them out. That’s really a big deal. Anyway, appreciate your time today and thank you very much.

They’re trying to cut down on that. Currently the penalty on that is six months of jail and $1,000 fine if there are no injuries involved. If there are injuries, then the jail time can go up to a year.

This is something, as parents, I wasn’t even aware of this until I got this article from the Bar, but there is a health and safety code section violation which makes it unlawful to smoke in the car if there is a minor in the car with you. I’ve never seen that in all the years I’ve been doing this. I’ve never seen anybody been written up to that, they’re out smoking in the car with their kids, but it’s an infraction. You’re not going to go to jail on it, but it’s an infraction like a ticket. But it’s just kind of really, okay.

I’m going to skip this part, because I don’t think any of you really care about the licensing laws. If the kids really want to know, like okay, what do you have to do for that and some of the parents do, too, because they’ve all changed since we got our licenses at 16. They’ve put in these new things for provisional permits and learner’s permits. If any of you are interested in that, you can see me after and I can shoot you over a copy of all the laws that deal with that. They’ve made it much more complicated and complex than it used to be for getting a license.

Let me just talk for a minute about alcohol. Let me ask you this. Are there any types of alcohol beverages that are allowed to be purchased at 18?

Female Speaker: Near beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Beer, what?

Female Speaker: Near beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Near beer. I don’t know. If its got alcohol content, it’s a no. So I’m not sure what near beer, if that’s just flavored like beer with no alcohol.

Male Speaker: [inaudible 00:07:10]

Male Speaker: Root beer.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Yeah.

Male Speaker: Mouth wash.

Kim W. Hansen, Esq.: Yeah, you’re all right with those. Some people think though that, oh, it’s just a 3.2% beer, it’s okay, but it’s not. It’s the same thing as if they got vodka or any other hard liquor. And selling to those under 21 is a big . . . They do a lot of sting operations on that. They get funded. The state funds the different counties to go out and try to curb that. A lot of times, it’s innocently and they’re done, sometimes, unknowingly. They’ll get rushed in the convenience store or something, a big line and they’re trying to hurry people through, and they won’t check your I.D. or whatever, closely, but thank you.

What about your kids drinking at home? Some parents think that, well, that’s okay. I’d rather have them at home than go out and drink, and then drive. If you do that, you need to know that parents can face up to a year of jail, $1,000 fine if their child causes an accident or their friends are in your home an they’re drinking in your home. So don’t get the idea that, oh, that’ll be okay, because they’re off the road, they’re here at home, because if they do that and then they leave your home, you’re going to be on the hook for a misdemeanor.

Some kids, when I present this, they’re like what if I’m holding my friend’s roach clip or a pipe, can I get in trouble? Yes, that’s called possession of paraphernalia even though it’s not your stuff. If you’ve got it, you’re going to get popped for that. I’ve talked a little bit about this before, I think, about using somebody else’s prescription. You might have the same prescription at home, but it’s not your prescription, but it’s the same stuff, you can get up to 12 months of jail or 10 years of prison time depending on what the substance is. So be careful about doing that.

Minors, as I mentioned earlier, they can also lose their license besides alcohol by possessing a controlled substance, a drug, they can lose their license for up to a year. That’s a misdemeanor on that as well.

Also, some of the youth participate in sports using steroids. If they’re convicted of distribution of steroids, they can face up to five years in prison. So if they’ve got them and they gi- . . . Thank you. All right, this is a raid.

So if your kids are an athlete, don’t have them be helping their friends by passing them out. That’s really a big deal. Anyway, appreciate your time today and thank you very much.