I Am In Trouble For Driving My Drunk Friend Home (i Do Not Have A License). I’m Panicking- Any Advice Is Appreciated

Hi, for context, I am 24f and do not have a driver’s license and have never had one. I have a driver’s permit that expired years ago. I have chosen to stop driving for my own reasons (severe road anxiety) but with that being said, I am a very good & careful driver. I know what I am doing.

The other night was my friend’s 21st birthday. We had a dorm party for him with a bunch of friend’s starting at 5 pm. I do not drink alcohol. He was drinking gradually throughout the dorm party, but he told me he wanted me to go to a bar with him that night so he could have his first bar experience. Since it was his birthday, I’d be paying for his drinks.

Midnight came around and we decided to leave campus to go to the bar. However, it was bitterly cold outside so walking into town was not an option. I also did not want to pay for an uber because I only really had enough money to treat my friend for his birthday. * I realize this is where I went wrong *

I offered to drive him to & from the bar (in his car) since I know how to drive. He tends to make poor decisions if he gets too drunk so I wanted to ENSURE that he’d be 100% safe. I drove to the bar. He got fucked up at the bar & I only drank water.

I got pulled over driving him home because allegedly, I forgot to signal making a turn. I do not recall not signaling because I am very careful but I could’ve been anxious due to how drunk my friend was and I just wanted to get him home. For context, there were like 10 other people pulled over on main street that night. Seemed like the cops just wanted to pull whoever they could over. Boredom or some shit, idk.

I explained the situation to them and they asked to see my license. Out of sheer panic I told them I left it at home, not realizing they could just look me up in a database and see that I don’t have one. Well, they did just that, lol.

I explained that I made a rash decision to drive my friend, despite not having a license. The cops gave me a ticket for driving unlicensed and told me that I can either plead “not guilty” in court and possibly come to a resolution with him, or I can plead “guilty” and pay a fine. He also let me continue driving my friend home in spite of all of this.

Some of my friends are telling me to plead guilty and others are telling me to plead not guilty. Basically, I want to do whatever will likely have the best outcome. I do not have a lot of money (I’m on disability income) and this is my first time getting in trouble with the law. I also cannot afford a lawyer. I don’t know what to do and I’m panicking badly.

ETA: I live in New York State. My college is in upstate NY.