Seattle Criminal Attorney | The Arraignment

Being arrested and charged with Seattle DUI can be a very frightening experience, particularly if you have never been in trouble with the law before (or if you aren't a Seattle criminal attorney). All you hear and see in the news are stories about people being ridiculed and wrung through the ringer for driving under the influence of alcohol (or even being accused of driving under the influence of alcohol). And then you get that Seattle court notice in the mail, telling you that you have a DUI arraignment date coming up in a week. And you have no idea what that means.

Well, you are lucky, because I, a criminal attorney, am here to help you understand the Seattle DUI process, and in this case specifically, the DUI court process. It isn't too hard to understand, and I can assure you that for the most part the judge and court personnel are there to help you through the process. The most important thing to remember is that much of the court time you will be experiencing, and in particular your Seattle DUI arraignment, will be purely procedural.

Arraignment, in its most plain terms, is your first court appearance before the judge. At your arraignment, several things will happen: first, you will be apprised of your rights to counsel, to a jury trial, and to plead guilty or not guilty; second, you will be apprised of the precise charges against you; third, you will have an opportunity to plead to those charges; and fourth, the court will set your conditions of release until your next hearing, the pretrial conference.

Your Consitutional Rights When Charged with Seattle DUI

In case you didn't know it, you are afforded several rights by the constitution that apply to your DUI case. You have the right to have a criminal attorney in Seattle represent you throughout the court process. If you can't afford one one will be appointed to you. If you can afford one you should consider hiring one before your arraignment - it will just make things that much easier for you.

You also have the right to a jury trial and to plead guilty or not guilty. Pretty much everyone knows of these rights, and they are automatic with a Seattle DUI case since the punishment is up to a year in jail and up to a $5,000 fine. The Supreme Court has decided everyone facing punishment like that should be allowed to have their case heard by a jury.

Formal Charging Document Disclosed

If you have been charged with a DUI in Seattle, you probably already know what the charge is. Nonetheless, at your arraignment, the prosecutor will give you a copy of the complaint that has been filed with the court and will read it out loud if you don't understand or want to hear them read it (this is something that you can, and is often, waived). This, for the most part, is purely a procedural exercise. If you want to waste your time and everyone else's, have them read the complaint in court.

Conditions of Release

This might be something you hope you have a Seattle DUI lawyer in the room with you for, as it can get a little hairy sometimes. Conditions of release are supposed to be set when they are necessary to accomplish two goals: (1) get you to show up for your next hearing; or (2) keep the public safe. This is why you see high bail amounts for murderers - it accomplishes both goals because they can't make bail. In the DUI in Seattle context, you will from time to time see overzealous prosecutors asking for harsh conditions of release, particularly if you had a high breath test number or have previous DUI convictions. If this is the case, it is nice to have an advocate on your side who can talk some sense into the judge and keep your conditions of release in a normal place.

For the most part, your arraignment is nothing to worry about. When you get to court, the majority of your time will be spent waiting to get your name called. When you do finally get in front of the judge, if you have a criminal lawyer on your side, you can be in and out in under five minutes.

Next time - the pretrial hearing.

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