The difference between a drug charge and a DUI

chrisreedrules

chrisreedrules

Master Blaster
So I was reading through a recent thread on here in which the OP admittedly made some errors in judgement which led to some unfortunate consequences. It made me think of a situation that a buddy of mine from flight school recently got himself into...

So my buddy has been flying professionally now for several years. My buddy is known to party. He likes to get down, if you will. Now personally, I don't care what you do with your free time, as long as you aren't breaking laws and you come to work prepared to be a professional. Said buddy got a new 135 job he was really hoping for and failed his drug test in training.

Now this is the important lesson to take away from this, and I think the distinction between having a DUI and having a drug charge is such a stark one... A DUI, while certainly no small matter, is something that is recoverable from. Many can relate to having had a little too much to drink and perhaps making a poor decision. While that is certainly not an excuse, the point is, it happens. And if you put time between yourself and the DUI, and show treatment, you will be fine. A drug charge WHILE employed as a professional pilot shows WILFUL NEGLIGENCE and is ultimately much more difficult to recover from. It tells an interviewer that you knowingly disobey laws. And that you show careless disregard for yourself and the rules. How could they possibly expect you to follow company SOPs? You are seen as a liability. A huge one.

Unfortunately my buddy hasn't really come to terms with exactly what he has done to his career. He still thinks that he will be okay, and that he can explain away his drug charge. I told him at this point he better start thinking about a new career. Even at the 91 survey outfit I used to work at, a drug charge made a person uninsurable and thus, unhirable.
 
Does failing a drug test for a 135 result in charges being filed? Or is it just a PRIA nightmare?
 
Failing pre-employment drug test shows you're pretty damn stupid to. You know you have to take it, it's not like it's random and you might not get selected. It's a 100%, you will have a drug test and you chose to do drugs anyways.

Ya, find a new career.

bimmerphile said:
Does failing a drug test for a 135 result in charges being filed? Or is it just a PRIA nightmare?
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Just PRIA assuming you were not on duty/operating.
 
Putting my recruiter hat on:

A DUI and ten years, I can be understanding if you have a solid resume and you've shown strong evidence of growth and have an exemplary resume where not for this, you would be a top of the top candidate.

Multiple DUI's in the last ten years, not so much. Must have a rock solid resume and a couple moon landings, I can maybe make a case, but it's rare and there will be a lot of "headwind" making the case to the manager.

A drug charge or failing a drug test? My hands are completely tied. Sorry Pope Benedict, but enjoy Popeing.
 
Fair or not, drug charges are the kiss of death. As, AFAICT, is a DUI. We all know this going in. We can argue all day about the importance of the thing or how many dudes slip through the same cracks, etc etc etc. The simple fact of the matter is that everyone and their brother knows that these things make a career in flying difficult if not impossible. Is that unfair? It might be. It probably is. Thing is, it's equally unfair that a lot of people who would like to fly airplanes for money couldn't get in because their pater familias was a sharecropper and just didn't have the cash to get them through the scam they call flight school. Have I ever done DRUGZ? I uhm didn't inhale, if I did. Life is full of raw deals, but some of them you sort of pick for yourself. If you want to fly airplanes for a living, be careful about what you ingest. It's not like they're asking you to cure cancer, here.
 
I figure the rationale is this. Alcohol is legal. Narcotics are not.

If I drink a beer and get caught with a DUI, I had a lapse in judgement and have a driving infraction.

If I schmoke a J, I've willfully broken a law which was also inconsistent with employment in a job covered by the DOT AND showed a lapse in judgement. Even if it's legal in Colorado, it's not legal on the ramp and certainly not legal in the cockpit.

Our parents lied to us. Craps got consequences.
 
Derg said:
Our parents lied to us. Craps got consequences.
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The Boomers are the biggest group of Liars in the history of the World, and that's going a ways. It's like they all went to Woodstock and decided that, by virtue of being extremely high the whole time, John Lennon was Heyseus reincarnated and they could leverage every asset they had, wait, INHERITED, to "help" their children. To be fair, they "help"ed us all right in to neo-feudal wage-slavery, so I guess it wasn't entirely a lie, technically.
 
Boris Badenov said:
The Boomers are the biggest group of Liars in the history of the World, and that's going a ways. It's like they all went to Woodstock and decided that, by virtue of being extremely high the whole time, John Lennon was Heyseus reincarnated and they could leverage every asset they had, wait, INHERITED, to "help" their children. To be fair, they "help"ed us all right in to neo-feudal wage-slavery, so I guess it wasn't entirely a lie, technically.
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I've read a few "I screwed up, robbed a bank and I feel horrible about it, WHY WOULDN'T SOUTHERNJETS HIRE ME, I'M SORRY!!" emails in the last 48h so I'm just throwin' that out there.
 
I didn't mean to suggest that these hilarious, absurd abrogations of personal responsibility are purely generational. These kids, these days, you know. *eyeroll*

I will say that I've been behind the eight ball a few times in my life, and it never occurred to me to do anything other than put my hand up and say "Welp, think I screwed up pretty bad. I own it. Do what thou wilt, but please be gentle". What else is there to say? Do the crime, do the time, don't be a female dog about it.
 
Boris Badenov said:
I didn't mean to suggest that these hilarious, absurd abrogations of personal responsibility are purely generational. These kids, these days, you know. *eyeroll*

I will say that I've been behind the eight ball a few times in my life, and it never occurred to me to do anything other than put my hand up and say "Welp, think I screwed up pretty bad. I own it. Do what thou wilt, but please be gentle". What else is there to say? Do the crime, do the time, don't be a female dog about it.
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I will say that it seems society is less forgiving of mistakes today than in the past, probably rightfully so for DUI's and drugs. That being said, I think police and prosecutors, are a lot quicker to arrest and charge people for any and everything. Kids, teens, and in some cases young adults aren't allowed to make mistakes anymore without it affecting the next 10 to 20 years of their lives. It doesn't benefit society when a person ends up with a criminal record because they played their music loud or were out past curfew.
 
Would the charge be for possession of drugs or just failing a drug test?

If your friend is greasy, what about the "Deny, deny, deny." mantra? Ask for a re-test?
 
Derg said:
I've read a few "I screwed up, robbed a bank and I feel horrible about it, WHY WOULDN'T SOUTHERNJETS HIRE ME, I'M SORRY!!" emails in the last 48h so I'm just throwin' that out there.
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But did they have a 3.5 in jailhouse school afterwards? :sarcasm:
 
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