Drunk Driving Ann Arbor - 15th District Court DUI Attorney Judge Burke

Drunk Driving Ann Arbor

When a client contacts me about a DUI charge in Ann Arbor, the first two questions are usually “what police department arrested you?” and “do you have any prior offenses?” 

These are important questions, because it will determine who the prosecutor will be on the case.   In our example, the arresting police agency is the City of Ann Arbor Police Department, so it will be the City of Ann Arbor Prosecutor unless the client has any prior offenses.  

At the 15th District Court, all DUI cases are handled by Judge Burke, and we skip Magistrate Currie, because Judge Burke sets the bond conditions, and does not want a lapse in time without specialized testing and monitoring in place.  I agree with how this is handled, because Judge Burke is the DUI judge, and should handle the case from A to Z.  ​

Depending upon what your blood alcohol level is, Judge Burke may or may not have you test daily for alcohol, and randomly for drugs.  Regardless of what the court is going to do, I typically have all of my clients alcohol testing from day one along with other elements of my proactive program, which I will discuss in the next chapter.  

​When a client contacts me for help with their Ann Arbor DUI case, I explain the process from A to Z, and have them review my proactive program, which is geared toward what we can expect from Judge Burke, and the prosecutor.  If the client is willing to follow my proactive program then we get to work immediately.

I will file my paperwork with the court, prosecutor and the police department, and I will request that the arraignment be combined with a pretrial.  This allows the client to handle both the arraignment and the pretrial in one court date, and gives us additional time to obtain the police reports, test results, video, audio and other evidence in the case.  

For a DUI case in Ann Arbor there are two distinct directions to go, and my clients go down both paths until we determine the best route depending upon the goals of the client and the strengths and weaknesses of the case.  

The case may be set for motions, or be set for a bench or jury trial.  If we can accomplish the client’s goals for having the charges dismissed or reduced then we may explore negotiation with the judge and prosecutor, and use our proactive efforts to clear the way for the outcome we want.  It’s important to create multiple options, and make a pros and cons list for each option.  My clients create leverage with the information gathering stage, and demonstrate real action, rather than mere words on the proactive program.