Legal Question in DUI Law in California

She needs a lawyer, who may be able to keep her out of jail.

Because these cases are so old, it may be possible to get them dismissed, especially if the police didn't make reasonable efforts to find her.

If she has been convicted of DUI in the past and gets another DUI conviction, she can NEVER get a commercial drivers license. If you have two DUI convictions on your record, you are ineligible for a commercial license in California.

I do not agree with the previous attorney regarding the issue of law enforcements effort to find her. Once she was arrested and released with a court date, and she didn't appear, there will be a warrant for her arrest until this case is dealt with. You should tell your sister to contact an attorney in the area she received the dui. The attorney may be able to resolve the dui issue without your sister even appearing. The officers who arrested your sister may have moved away or passed away and these issues should be looked into. There are other issues that need to be looked into and addressed as well and you should have your sister speak to an attorney as soon as possible . Try to find a former Deputy District Attorney and Criminal Law Specialist, if such an attorney practices in the area of the dui.. Best wishes...David Wallin

Counsel are right. It is important to have the right attorney in the area make the appearances and take care of business. http://www.SanDiegoDUI.com

For you to handle a warrant, you must turn yourself into the court, with or without an attorney, and try to negotiate a plea bargain on the warrant and new �Failure to Appear� charges, and negotiate any outstanding charges that caused the warrant. Doing so voluntarily will result in a better outcome than being brought in cuffs to court after arrest on the warrant. That can happen if you come in contact with law enforcement or customs anywhere in the US. Effective plea-bargaining, using whatever legal defenses, facts and sympathies there may be, could possibly keep you out of jail, or at least dramatically reduce it. Since this is a misdemeanor, the attorney can appear in court without the defendant being present, and any plea bargain deal could be handled by notarized paperwork. Any fines could be paid by mail. Jail time, if any, would create an obvious problem requiring the defendant�s presence. If serious about hiring counsel to help you in this, and if this is in SoCal courts, feel free to contact me.