Legal Question in Traffic Law in California

Re: Time Limit

The statute of limitations on misdemeanor's is 1 year. However, once a complaint has been filed with the court there is no statutory time limit. You should check with the court to determine whether a complaint has been filed and if there is a warrant for your arrest. Notification of a court date does not always reach the individual it is sent to. Court files are public documents. Anyone can check the court files. If there is a warrant for your arrest, it will most likely be served when you are in a vehicle that is stopped for a minor traffic violation. The police officer will then run a records check and find the warrant. The police officer will not care that you did not receive notice of the court date. You will most likely be arrested and taken to jail at that time. You should consider retaining an attorney to represent you in regard to the dui.