5 /5 John Valente: Due to the embarrassing circumstances, I was reluctant to publish anything having to do with this incident. Most of my friends and family arent aware that this happened to me (until now, ;-/ ) because Ive always been the "example" pillar of the community, professional, law abiding citizen, etc. On the other hand, Im human, and prone to making decisions that arent always the best.
Im sharing this review for two reasons. 1. Josh and Amanda are worth their weight in gold. They were both attentive to my questions and understanding of my circumstances. 2. I hope to relay to whoever is reading this, that "yes, it can happen to anyone." Id imagine, if youre reading this, then youre already in a position where you need Joshs help. Hopefully, you and everyone that was with you is okay. In regards to getting through the rest from here, Josh and Amanda are the right decision at this point.
Ive gone my whole life without issue or incident. Im not a hard partier, Im a family man, and always discourage others from "drinking and driving." I thought I knew where my "threshold" was. Im a pretty good size guy at 6 and 220lbs. I can have a couple glasses of wine at dinner and not be "inebriated." WRONG. Thats what happened. I was at a friends house for a holiday and had champagne with dinner. No tequila shots. No pre-gaming. I drank water and had a hearty dinner. Dont count on any of that. I wasnt even swerving "all over the road" or obviously erratic. Ironically, I was most definitely driving while distracted with my phone and playing music, finding songs, etc. THAT was enough to move me enough within the lane to cause the CHP behind me to stop and ask questions. Thats it. Thats all it took for me to have a need to call Josh.
Josh was recommended by a friend of a friend who knew him personally. Could I have gone through the process on my own? Probably. Would I have gotten the same results? Absolutely not. I had too many concerns that I wasnt going to risk any more on my own. I have a couple commercial licenses that were at risk. I couldnt afford to put my livelihood on the line because I felt "the system" was unfair and I could beat it with my super intelligence and ego.
I had to make some tough decisions. Attorneys are not inexpensive. I had to ask if I could afford it. Ultimately, the answer was always, "I cant afford to NOT hire Josh." Youre in a bind. Its going to be expensive. Expect it. But, DONT fool yourself into thinking youre going to save money by going it alone.
I bit the bullet and sent Amanda and Josh everything they asked for. Then sat down with him so he could explain what the most reasonable outcome I could hope for. He talked about best case scenario, worst case scenario, probable scenario, and made no promises to any of them. That needs to be key to your understanding when you hire ANYONE though. Every circumstance is different. Yours is different than mine. Given my circumstances, I can attest that Josh was able to achieve the best possible outcome to save all of my licenses. Could we have contested the case and gone to trial? Sure. We might have even gotten a better outcome. Josh would have gone to bat and I have every confidence he would have prevailed. But, ultimately, Josh secured a great outcome without the additional delay and expense, and risk. Im confident in that. Im also confident that Im making the right decision to recommend him to you, despite my public embarrassment. Best of luck to you! Stay safe.