Available 24/7 - Call Now
(561) 295-5825 Available 24/7 - Call Now
(561) 295-5825The Jupiter DUI process is lengthy and arduous. We recognize that the criminal law process can be an emotional roller coaster for people that are arrested and their families. At Keller, Melchiorre & Walsh, our DUI attorneys try to share and explain our knowledge and familiarity with the process so you can have a better idea of what to expect and be less anxious about the process
The criminal process for DUI in Jupiter begins with an arrest. After an arrest for a DUI, most people are released on their own recognizance (R.O.R.) after spending eight (8) hours in jail. In some situations, after an arrest, a person will be brought before a judge in the morning (within twenty-four hours), and the judge will determine a bond. If the judge sets a bond, then the bond will have to be posted before a person is released from jail.
The first court date is referred to as an arraignment. An arraignment is merely a formality. At the arraignment, you will hear the formal charges read against you in open court, and in open court, you can enter a plea of not guilty. As such, arraignment is more of a formality, and generally, nothing substantive in your cases happens on that date. A lawyer has the ability to waive the arraignment and enter a written plea of not guilty. If the lawyer does this, then the arraignment court date gets canceled, and another court date gets generated. A lawyer may or may not waive the arraignment depending on the posture and strategy of the case. There can be specific reasons to keep the arraignment or waive it, and you should talk to a DUI lawyer in Jupiter about this process.
It depends. It can be very difficult to take time off of work or school to attend a court date, especially if your work or school does not know about any DUI charge and you do not want them to find out about the charge. If you are charged with a misdemeanor DUI, a lawyer can waive your appearance at pretrial hearings under the rules of criminal procedure. This means that you will not have to go to court for the majority of your court dates.
However, if you are charged with a felony DUI or any felony attached to a DUI, then you will probably have to attend your court dates. There are some felony judges that will allow a lawyer to waive their client’s presence at a court date. It will depend on what judge presides over your felony case.
This is a decision that is best left to your DUI lawyer in Jupiter when developing the defense strategy of your case process. The speedy trial rule means that you have to be brought to trial within ninety (90) days from the date of your arrest for a misdemeanor and within one hundred seventy-five (175) days for a felony. A speedy trial can be waived at any time. Usually, a speedy trial is waived by an attorney to allow for time to gather evidence, obtain videos, and take depositions. If a speedy trial is not waived, then the judge will not give the lawyer additional time to prepare the defense for the DUI.
Discovery is all the evidence that the prosecution has and can use against you. It includes the names of all the State’s witnesses, police reports, videos, test results, etc. Once your lawyer in Jupiter reviews the discovery, they can make the decision of whether to take depositions in this DUI process. Depositions are when the attorney questions a witness under oath, and the witness has to answer the attorney’s questions.
A deposition can be useful for a couple of reasons. First, if a witness did not give a statement or write a report, the deposition can be instrumental in learning what the witness observed and what they would testify to prior to a trial. Learning what a witness knows about a case helps you and your attorney determine if you could prevail at a trial. Second, a deposition locks a witness into a position so that they cannot testify to something different in court. If the witness does change their testimony, a lawyer can use the deposition transcript to make the witness look untrustworthy. For example, if at a deposition a witness says the weather was clear and sunny, but in court, the witness says the weather was a hurricane, then the attorney can confront the witness with the deposition and say that they asked the witness the exact same question and the witness has given to completely different answers.
You should only decide to take your case to trial or take a plea after careful consideration and thorough discussions with your lawyer. This decision should only be made after you have reviewed all the evidence in your case with your attorney. If you do decide to take your case to trial, then your case can be determined by a judge or jury. If you decide to enter a plea, you can enter a negotiated plea or a plea to the court. A negotiated plea is a plea agreement between the state and the defense, and you know what the outcome of the case will be. A plea to the court is when you plead guilty to the judge, both the state and the defense make their recommendations for the outcome of the case, and the judge will determine the outcome of the case. Generally, in a plea to the court, you will not know the outcome ahead of time.
At Keller, Melchiorre & Walsh, as former prosecutors, we have handled cases from both sides and know how the Jupiter DUI process works. In addition to fighting your case and getting the right result, our job is to guide you through the process as smoothly as possible to reduce your anxieties and fears of the unknown in the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system is complex and overwhelming. The right DUI lawyer can make all the difference in your case. Call us to schedule a free consultation.