Arizona DUI Documentation:
Include copies for your DUI lawyer of all documents you were given during or after the arrest including citations, tickets, etc. You should always keep all the original paperwork. Give copies of each document to your attorney. Also, indicate what documents belonging to you showed or give to the police. These documents all contain important information and dates relating to you, and your charges.
2. Contact the Arizona MVD If You Want a Hearing:
In most cases the Arizona police will take your driver's license and gives you a pink carbon copy of a notice of suspension and temporary license, unless you had an out-of-state license or the alleged DUI is drug-related instead of alcohol related. Note: You have only 15 days from the date you received the notice (usually the arrest date, but not always) to request an MVD for a hearing (it’s called an Admin Per Se hearing). This MVD suspension or revocation is otherwise automatic on the day your pink license expires, and is entirely different from the criminal court's proceedings. The MVD matter is more like a second civil matter in and of itself, separate from your criminal charges. So there are two entities to deal with: The State or County Court and Prosecution and then the State Motor Vehicle Department (MVD).
3. Calendar Your Court Date:
If you ignore or forget to appear or are late at your designated court date and time, the court will immediately issue a warrant for your arrest. The court date and time is on your citation. This may change if you hire an experienced DUI attorney. Depending on the charges and circumstances, your Attorney may be able to vacate that date or otherwise appear on your behalf.
4. Check on Court Location:
Prepare for the trip to the court. Whether it is City Court for a misdemeanor or Superior Court for a felony, be on time and know ahead of time where you are going. You do not want to be late for your scheduled court date and time. The judge considers this to be disrespectful and it does not set well for your defense. Also, depending on how late you are, the Judge may issue an arrest warrant. When estimating your travel time, Factor in traffic and high traffic times. Have your file, directions, court address, and contact phone of the court and your Defense Attorney, in case you are involved in an accident or other valid emergency. Don’t speed, or drink alcohol, or ingest drugs. It does not look good if you get a speeding ticket on the way to court, or report to court drunk or impaired by drugs or alcohol.
5. Photographs of the Location of the Stop or Arrest:
Your DUI attorney will explain that
photographs of things that the police relied on as a reason for the stop may be challenged if the facts support it. Therefore, photograph anything that is related and referenced by the police such as objects that may have been hit or otherwise barriers such as other vehicles, light signals, trees. Also include mechanical items that were broken or failed such as turn signal lights, brake lights, taillights, a stop sign or traffic signal you may have been accused of