Q: I was very drunk on St Patrick’s Day and don’t remember what happened but was told I was passed out in a street. When police and medics showed up I was put in an ambulance and then I attacked the medics and a nurse and was charged with 2 counts of aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person and a disorderly conduct. I don’t believe anyone was hurt but I don’t remember a thing. I have no priors. Do I have a chance of getting charges dropped? (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: Possible, yes. There is a difference between someone who intentionally punches an EMT or Police Officer and someone who is blotto drunk and while flailing their arms around comes in contact with EMT and Police. When I have had these cases, and everything went as well as possible, the results were anywhere from a dismissal in exchange for a D&A evaluation or community service, to ARD, to the defendant pleading guilty to summary offenses. If these cases don’t go well, for example, it is usually where the victims want to push a conviction. If so, you may be lucky to have the charges reduced to Simple Assault. The fact that you have no criminal history is important. Your charges are generally not accepted into ARD, but the DA has the discretion of amending them to let you into the program. This type of case requires a lot of hustle for an attorney and there is no guarantee.