Pre-Trial Motions

There are several court proceedings that must occur before a case gets to trial: arraignment, a preliminary hearing, and pre-trial motions. If you have recently been arrested and charged with driving under the influence, you may want to hire an experienced DUI defense attorney to walk you through these steps. During your court proceedings there may be several opportunities for a skilled lawyer to have your charges reduced or even dismissed.

The first step in the court process is the arraignment. This is where you would plead guilty, not guilty, or no contest. If you plead guilty or no contest, you will be sentenced. If you plead not guilty, your case may go on to the preliminary hearing.

During the preliminary hearing, the judge will hear your case to determine if the prosecution has enough evidence against you to convince a reasonable jury that you committed the crime for which you are accused. If there is not enough evidence, your case will be dismissed. If there is enough evidence, you will move on to the pre-trial motions.

During the DUI pre-trial motions, both the prosecution and defense present arguments before the judge in order to keep certain witnesses from testifying or evidence from being introduced. Your attorney may even argue that your drunk-driving charges should be dismissed. The pre-trial motions are important in setting up boundaries for the trial.

Numerous arguments may be made in DUI pre-trial motions. For example, if you were pulled over and searched illegally (without probable cause), your attorney may argue that any evidence collected after your stop should not be used in your case. Another example is if your attorney can prove that the breath test results in your case are flawed due to operator error, the machine’s calibration, or other factors, the judge may exclude the results from the trial.

Are you interested in learning more about DUI pre-trial motions, or the DUI trial process in general? If so, you should contact an experienced defense attorney in your area. An attorney can discuss the charges you are facing and the options you have available.