In Palm Beach, a DUI arrest usually can lead to the mandatory suspension of your rights to drive a motor vehicle in the state of Florida. This suspension-time can be for a period of many months, depending upon your prior arrest history. It is of utmost importance that you understand that when you are charged with a Palm Beach DUI, you have TEN days in which to file for your formal review-hearing. A solid Palm Beach DUI defense can be weakened or strengthened depending on the hearing’s outcome, thus the hearing is of very high priority, because when properly handled, it can often lead to the reinstatement of your license, AND the strengthening of your criminal defense case.

Issues surrounding a license suspension

Electing to take a chemical test during your first offense can result in your license being suspended for up to six months with a one month outright ban (hard ban) on any kind of driving. Those who refuse the tests, receive a one-year ban and three-month hard ban to look forward to. The formal review hearing is your chance to fight this and retain your right to drive, and to preserve your ability to legally drive in Florida for as long as you are administratively and legally able to.

Therefore it is easy to see why it is imperative to your future that you contact a Palm Beach defense lawyer as immediately as you possibly can after you are charged, since the filing of a formal review request is of paramount and utmost importance. The requesting of this hearing is crucial to your case for a variety of reasons. For one, the Palm Beach DUI attorney can help you win a temporary, forty-two-day permit that gives you the time to make other arrangements for driving if necessary. This is almost always granted when a petition for formal review is filed, and should always be requested before running out of time.

The formal review hearing

At Musca Law, our attorneys can help you advise you, and guide you toward contesting your license suspension, and can also win your formal review. There are several ways that a good Palm Beach DUI lawyer bring such cases to a successful disposition. For instance, if one or more of the prosecution witnesses fails to show up in court to testify, there is a better chance that you will win that hearing. This n turn forces the police to have to prove that they followed all of the correct procedures at every stage from the initial traffic stop to the administration of implied consent warnings. Skilled and competent, well seasoned Palm Beach DUI attorneys can take any small failing and capitalize to turn it into a returned license for you.

Benefits of an administrative review hearing

Even if you are unsuccessful in restoring your license, the formal review process is an essential part of winning your criminal DUI case. Palm Beach DUI lawyers will file for and receive what is called “discovery” which is the list of witnesses and any evidence to be used against you. Then, we can question witnesses and take formal depositions during the hearing process. They can force law enforcement officials to tip their hands in terms of what evidence they will use at trial. This knowledge can prove to be a powerful advantage when your DUI case heads to trial.

How to Avoid Appearing At The Arraignment, After your arrest under DUI charges, and after your release through bail, you will receive a Court Notice issuing you a summons to appear before the Court to plead guilty or not. This first hearing is called an arraignment. You are required to plead guilty, not guilty, or no contest. At this point, the State will not provide any information regarding any witness, Police report, video recordings, or medical reports relating to the case. If you appear on your own, you may be subjected to pressure from the Prosecutor Attorney.

In the absence of your Defense Counsel, the State Attorney will send all necessary documents to you, and prepare the case for future hearings. The Prosecutor will offer you a one-time deal for arraignment. Failure to accept the offer will result in more severe penalties in the future for the defendant. The defendant is deprived of investigating their own case and defense if they appear at the arraignment on their own. In these circumstances, the Court will try to settle the arraignment by applying pressure, so that they can reduce the burden of pending cases.

Those who are unfortunate to not have a Defense Counsel at the time of hearing their arraignment will have to withstand the pressure alone, unsupported of experienced legal techniques, and ultimately submit the case themselves. The only way to get out of the situation is to hire a West Palm DUI Lawyer to stand as your Defense Counsel. Your Attorney will then file a Notice of Appearance, and a written plea of not guilty. This avoids having to appear for the arraignment, and protects you from the pressure of the Prosecuting Attorney. The only way to avoid arraignment without knowing the State’s evidence against you is to hire a West Palm DUI Lawyer. The Defense Attorney will take all necessary steps to ensure that the defendant is not required to attend the first arraignment.