1. The "arraignment" is the driver's first court date, for which he or she is noticed to attend. This court date might be for the citation itself, sent by Clerk Of The Court, and/or by the bail bondsman if one was used. The arraignment is designed to inform the driver of the charges brought against them by either the Martin County, Saint Lucie County, Indian River County, or Okeechobee County prosecutor. The court then directs the driver to enter a plea of "guilty," "not guilty," or "no contest" to the charges. One of the advantages of hiring a JJK, Esq., & Associates, LLC attorney to defend your Treasure Coast DUI, is avoiding the necessity of having to appear at this arraignment hearing. Instead of the driver being further inconvenienced by having to miss work or other obligations, we will file the appropriate documents to alleviate the need for the driver's appearance.
DUI Discovery
One of the documents that the Treasure Coast DUI Defense Attorney will file on the driver's behalf is a Demand For Discovery. (We acutally file two different 'discovery demands') This Demand for Discovery requires the State to provide and make available all evidence that they intend to use in their prosecution against the driver. They are also obligated to provide all evidence which they are aware may be favorable to the driver. It is during this discovery period that the JJK, Esq., & Associates, LLC Defense attorney will obtain all of the police reports and the DUI video tape (should one exist). The client will immediately be contacted so that an appointment can be scheduled to review this material with their DUI attorney. We take great pride in having the most informed and educated clients on the Treasure Coast. This kind of representation means being provided with courtesy copies of all of the discovery material, and having ample time to review this information comfortably with your DUI attorney. Nothing happens on any case without the client's knowledge and consent.
Treasure Coast DUI Pretrial Motions
Every DUI case is different, and should be evaluated by an experienced DUI attorney. There are occasions where law enforcement acts improperly: the "stop" is not legal because sufficient probable cause does not exist; there is a defect in the testing equipment or the way in which certain tests are administered. When these circumstances are discovered by the DUI attorney, pre-trial motions are filed to challenge the admissibility of the evidence in the hopes of preventing the State from being able to use it. We are committed to aggressively defending each DUI case, and recognize the importance of such pre-trial motions in compelling the State to offer a more advantageous plea bargain or complete dismissal of the DUI charge. If the client is required to attend a hearing on a pre-trial motion, he or she will be notified with plenty of time to make arrangements to attend.
