Legal Question in DUI Law in California
Hello, I got a dui in California and appeared in court but never completed my community service or dui classes, it has been 9 months now and I've moved out of state. What steps should I take to get my situation under control?
1 Answer from Attorneys
You almost certainly have an arrest warrant out on you. To handle a warrant, you must turn yourself in to the issuing court, with or without an attorney. On misdemeanors like this, an attorney can appear in court without the defendant being present � which is safer and avoids immediately being taken into custody. You�ll try to negotiate a recall of the warrant[s] and bail reduction or OR release. You�ll try to negotiate a plea bargain on any �Failure to Appear� charge and probation violation that caused the warrant. Effective plea-bargaining, using whatever legal defenses, facts and sympathies there may be, could possibly keep you out of jail/prison, or at least dramatically reduce it, and may enable you to get your probation and programs reinstated. Unless you're competent to effectively represent yourself in court against a professional prosecutor trying to put you in jail, most people hire an attorney who can. If serious about hiring counsel to help in this, feel free to contact me.