Criminal Cases And DUI / OVI Cases In The Licking County Municipal Court
The Licking County Municipal Court has jurisdiction for criminal and traffic cases which occur in Licking County. For felony offenses, the court has limited jurisdiction, and those cases are ultimately moved to the Common Pleas Court. For misdemeanor cases, including DUI (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio), the Municipal Court hears the case from beginning to end. The Dominy Law Firm has criminal defense lawyers who represent clients for OVI in the Licking County Municipal Court.
This page contains information about the Licking County Municipal Court. If you are facing an OVI charge in this court, you should take the time to educate yourself about your particular offense, as well as the court process you will go through. If you are charged with OVI, you may also want to research OVI issues, and those issues are discussed in other pages of this website.
Contact Information For The Licking County Municipal Court
Address: 40 West Main Street, Newark, Ohio 43055
Phone: 740-670-7800
Website: Licking County Municipal Court
Personnel At The Licking County Municipal Court
The Licking County Municipal Court has two judges. Each judge is independently elected, and each judge operates their courtroom separately, with the assistance of a bailiff and other court staff. The prosecutors are from the Newark Law Director’s Office or the Licking County Prosecutor’s Office, and some municipalities in Licking County also have their own prosecutors. The Clerk of Court, also independently elected, maintains the court records and processes payments for fines and court costs, with the assistance of deputy clerks.
Court Process
Misdemeanor criminal cases, including OVI cases, start with an arraignment. At the arraignment, the defendant is given the options of pleading Guilty, No Contest, or Not Guilty. If you plead Guilty or No Contest, your case will most likely be finished at the arraignment. If you plead Not Guilty, there will be additional court appearances.
If you plead Not Guilty, the next court appearance is a pretrial hearing. At the pretrial hearing, you or your lawyer discusses the case with the prosecutor and negotiates an agreed outcome (but there is not much plea bargaining in this court). At the pretrial hearing, the judge also addresses the Administrative License Suspension if you have filed an appeal of the suspension. If the parties do not reach an agreement, the judge holds a motion hearing to decide legal issues which were the subject of a motion to suppress evidence. If the case is still not resolved, you may have a trial in which the jury or judge decide if guilt is proven. If you are convicted, the judge will hold a sentencing hearing to determine and impose the sentence.
Lawyers for Cases in the Licking County Municipal Court
Most people do not anticipate being charged with a criminal offense or OVI and do not have experience in the court system. If you are one of those people, it is probably wise to hire a lawyer. If you hire a lawyer, you want to hire one who has expertise in your type of case and practices in the court where your case is being held.
The lawyers at the Dominy Law firm have expertise in OVI defense and practice in the Licking County Municipal Court. Our lawyers wrote and edited the Ohio DUI/OVI Guide, which you can download for free from this website. If you would like to discuss your case in the Licking County Municipal Court, you can schedule a free consultation about representation by calling us at 614-717-1177 or by submitting a CONTACT FORM.