The Driving Under the Influence Arraignment

The Driving Under the Influence Arraignment

The Driving Under the Influence Arraignment frequently occurs at the police station.  A Driving Under the Influence Arraignment is simply the formal presentation and explanation of the criminal charge.  Typically, once the police have finished gathering evidence, they call a Justice of the Peace to come to the station to perform the Driving Under the Influence Arraignment.

The Justice of the Peace reviews the evidence gathered by the police to make certain that there is probable cause to support the DUI charge.  Assuming there is, he proceeds to inform the driver of his constitutional rights, which include the right to the presumption of innocence and the right to be represented by an attorney.  Once he’s satisfied that the driver understands the constitutional rights, he sets the bail amount and schedules a pretrial conference date for the criminal charge.  The purpose of the bail is to make sure that the driver will appear for his scheduled pretrial court date.

If a Justice of the Peace is unavailable for a Driving Uner the Influence Arraignment, the driver is often held at the police station overnight and is transported to the District Court the following morning for the Driving Under the Influence Arraignment.

The District Court DUI Arraignment is more formal, but accomplishes the same objectives.  The only notable difference between the two is that unlike the Justice of the Peace, the District Court can “end” the case by accepting a plea of guilty or nolo contendere from the driver.