What happens if you fail to appear for your DUI hearing?
After a night out with friends, you may have chosen to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after a few drinks. You felt fine, so you likely believed that your driving abilities were not impaired. However, if a police officer has a reason to stop your vehicle and suspects intoxication, you could face charges for driving under the influence.
After the initial arrest, the police may have released you on monetary bail or bond, or of your own recognizance. After your release, you may have felt that your troubles were over for a time and that you did not have to worry until you appeared in court. However, if you push your case out of your mind, you run the risk of missing your court date.
Serious infraction
Failure to appear in court is a serious infraction. When you receive notice that you have to appear in court, you need to lock the included hearing date into your mind. Because you did not make the appointment yourself, you may have a lower likelihood of remembering the date. However, the court sticks to a strict schedule, which is why officials make your appointment. If you forget your court date or otherwise do not appear, you could face serious consequences, including additional criminal charges.
Additional charges and impacts on your DUI
You may think that a charge for failing to appear would not be a big deal, but in reality, you could face a misdemeanor or even a felony charge for not appearing. As a result, your criminal case only gets more complicated. Authorities may even put a warrant out for your arrest, especially if you failed to show up for a DUI hearing. If you face a conviction for a failure to appear charge, you could endure serious consequences.
Avoiding such a scenario
Your best options for dealing with the possibility of failing to appear in court is to avoid this type of situation altogether. This task should prove relatively easy, as you could take proactive measures to ensure that you remember your court date. You could write it on a calendar, set alarms in your phone, have friends or family members remind you of your court date, or take many other steps to ensure that you appear on time.
If authorities have charged you with DUI, you will still need to address that allegation when you show up for court. Though you may have shown up on time and avoided additional charges, you still have a serious situation to handle. Therefore, you may want to speak with a Colorado attorney about your DUI defense options.
