Preparing for a Hampton Roads DUI Court Date

When someone is arrested for a DUI, they are given information regarding their first court appearance. Virginia also has an online database for general district court that has information for all adult cases in the general district court. It usually takes a day or two from the date of the arrest for the person to access the online system. Preparing for a Hampton Roads DUI court date is critical for anyone who has been charged with a DUI. An experienced DUI lawyer could help you by ensuring that you are ready for your court date.

When a person is arrested and charged with DUI they are given recognizance info or a warrant, and one of those should contain the info regarding their first court appearance. They may also have a trial date set for him or her that can be moved if necessary, but the court should get paperwork for that. Also, a person can contact the clerk’s office and they can provide him or her with that information. Virginia also has an online database for general district court that has information for all adult cases in the general district court. It will usually take a day or two from the date of the arrest to get the get into the online system.

Changing Court Date

Preparing for a Hampton Roads DUI court date takes a lot of work and there are certain occasions for when someone may want to change their court date. A person is entitled to request a change of their court date. Judges are fairly liberal in granting continuances initially. The person may need time to get a lawyer, they may be unavailable on the initial date given, or they could have work-related issues. The defendant may also want to run more tests on certain pieces of evidence. Also, if the individual has an attorney and the attorney is unavailable for the court date, then they can request a continuance.

Importance of Appearing in Court

In Virginia, DUI is punishable by jail time, and an offense that is punishable by jail time requires the presence of the defendant. In some circumstances, the attorney is able to work it out where the defendant’s appearance is not necessary. However, in most DUI cases, a person is required to appear in court. The consequences of not appearing in court include an arrest and having bond revoked. That could mean a person will be held in jail while their case is pending.

Out-of-State Defendants

If a defendant is from out of town and needs to make arrangements to travel to court, they will need to contact the court ahead of time. The court will usually be accommodating to these kinds of requests. If the person has an attorney, the defense lawyer can contact the court on the person’s behalf. It often depends on the jurisdiction, but many will base a continuance on an officer’s availability. There are circumstances where it may not be one of the officer’s listed dates but they are willing to continue the case anyways. In these situations, the person will have to contact the officer and confirm their availability. When the officer is not needed, the attorney will have to work out some other arrangement with the Commonwealth.

If someone is out of state they are still subject to Virginia law and the consequences of a DUI is the same. Often with DUIs, if the person lives out-of-state, there is probably a secure bond that had been placed securing their appearance.

Consequences of an Out-of-State Defendant Missing a Court Date

Anytime a person misses a court date, they are looking at consequences. This is the case for individuals from in-state or out-of-state. When someone misses a court date, there will be a warrant put out for their arrest. And if that individual is pulled over in another state, the officer is able to access their record and see that there is a warrant for their arrest in Virginia. Then the person will be taken into custody. The individual will be held in that state for up to 30 days while Virginia makes the decision as to whether or not they should be expedited.

How a DUI Lawyer Could Help

Lawyers take preparing for a Hampton Roads DUI court date serious because it is their job. It is also their job to make sure you are prepared as well. Before a court date, an attorney is going to work on a court strategy, defense, and find possible testimonies.

If a person believes he or she is going to have to testify in court, one of the best ways to prepare for court is practice speaking. Testifying in front of a judge can be an overwhelming experience, so the more someone prepares the easier the experience will be. Lawyers will often meet with the defendant a day or two before they have to testify to go over questions the lawyer plans to ask. A lawyer will also try to prepare them for questions they anticipate the other side will ask as well.