OVI / DUI Lawyer For Upper Arlington, Ohio

DUI/OVI In Upper Arlington, Ohio
The Dominy Law Firm lawyers handle DUI / OVI cases in Upper Arlington, Ohio. Upper Arlington is a suburb adjacent to Columbus in Franklin County. There are many DUI/OVI tickets written in the Upper Arlington area, as the area is patrolled by the Upper Arlington Police Department, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and the Columbus Division of Police. DUI/OVI cases from this area are filed in either the Upper Arlington Mayor’s Court or the Franklin County Municipal Court. The court in which the case is filed is determined by which agency issued the ticket and the number of prior DUI/OVI convictions of the driver. In either court, the cases are prosecuted by the Upper Arlington City Attorney’s Office.

Whether you are charged with DUI/OVI in Upper Arlington or you are an Upper Arlington resident charged with DUI/OVI elsewhere, you are probably asking questions like these: What’s going to happen in court? Is there any way to avoid a DUI/OVI conviction on my record? What should be my first steps?

First Steps When Charged With DUI/OVI
The first step should be to learn about DUI/OVI. This website is a good way to do that. There are several pages in this site from which you can learn about many DUI/OVI topics. Another good way to learn about DUI/OVI is the book ‘Ohio DUI / OVI Guide’. That book is a quick read but contains what you need to know before going to court and before hiring a lawyer. It’s available for purchase from online bookstores, and you can download the e-book for free from this website.

Appearing In Court For DUI/OVI
After being charged with OVI/DUI in Upper Arlington, the first court appearance (the arraignment) is within five business days. At the arraignment, you will enter one of three pleas: guilty, no contest, or not guilty. You should also appeal the Administrative License Suspension. If your case is in the Upper Arlington Mayor’s Court you also have the option of transferring your case to the Franklin County Municipal Court because you have a right to have your case in a ‘court of record’ and the Upper Arlington Mayor’s Court is not that type of court.

If you plead guilty or no contest at the first court appearance, the judge will likely impose the sentence immediately, and the case will be finished that day. It will also be on your permanent record. If you plead not guilty, additional court appearances will be scheduled. You can then obtain the prosecution’s evidence, challenge that evidence, and present your own evidence in an effort to improve the outcome of the case.

As the first court appearance happens so quickly, you need to make some time-sensitive decisions. You’ll need to decide whether you will plead guilty or contest the DUI/OVI, and you’ll need to decide whether the leave your case in the mayor’s court or transfer it to the municipal court. You’ll also need to decide if you will hire an attorney to represent you. If you decide to hire an attorney, you’ll need to choose a specific attorney. Choosing an attorney is an important decision, and there are several attorneys who handle Upper Arlington DUI/OVI cases. You’ll want to find an attorney with expertise in DUI/OVI defense and experience with Upper Arlington cases.

Attorneys For Upper Arlington DUI/OVI Cases
The attorneys at the Dominy Law Firm have expertise in DUI/OVI defense. To develop expertise in this area, a lawyer must be proactive, as most of the topics related to drunk driving defense are not taught in law school. Those topics include breath alcohol testing, field sobriety testing, and forensic gas chromatography for blood and urine testing.

If you would like to learn more about the Dominy Law Firm, please see this website’s ‘About Us’ page and ‘Attorney Profiles’. You can also read about the Dominy Law Firm’s case results and client reviews on this site. If you have a case in Upper Arlington or you are from Upper Arlington and you and have a DUI/OVI case in another central Ohio court, you can arrange a free phone consultation by completing a CONTACT FORM or by calling 614-717-1177.