The Traffic Attorney - The First Rule of Traffic Court is.....

Ok, so if there is one thing I've learned while being a Maryland DUI attorney, it's that traffic court is unpredictable. In other words, I never know what to expect when I go in there. I know you're wondering, "Well then how can you knowledgeably blog about what goes on in traffic court?"

Well the answer is easy, really. Procedurally, I know what goes on. For example, I am a Maryland traffic attorney, among other things. I know that, by the time you get to court, you most likely have gone through a traffic stop, where a law enforcement officer pulled you over and tried to gather as much information about you as possible. He asked whether you had been drinking and whether you cared to take a few tests.

I know that you either told the officer that you had something to drink, failed those tests, the officer had some other reason to believe you were DUI, or any combination of the foregoing. For whatever reason, the officer arrested and booked you. At the police station, someone most likely took your fingerprints and photograph, searched you, and asked you more questions.

Hopefully, you told the officer you want to speak with a lawyer, but that's another post for another day.

In any event, you're in court for your preliminary hearing or arraignment. I'm with you up to this point. But, the other day, something funny happened on the way to entering a not guilty plea and setting a trial. I was in court with a client, and I checked in with the clerk prior to the Judge taking the bench. The clerk informed me that we weren't on the docket. While that isn't necessarily out of the ordinary, it was odd that my client'c case wasn't even in the court's computer records. Hmmmmm.

Shortly thereafter, the Judge took the bench and informed us that we could leave. The court would issue a notice if anything came up. This is what I meant by not knowing what to expect. The traffic docket is usually flooded with cases. Things fall through the cracks. Sometimes it works out better that way.