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Shelby Township
DUI
Michigan Attorneys for Criminal, DUI, and Driver's License Restoration Cases.
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Shelby Township DUI

The Judge

The 41 District Court in Shelby Township presides over DUI cases from Utica, Macomb Township, and, of course, Shelby Township. Judge Douglas Shepherd is a veteran Macomb County Judge who is universally liked and respected by everyone, no matter which side of a case they may be on. It doesn’t take an expert Michigan DUI attorney to observer that fairness, honesty and integrity are standard in everything he does.

In my corresponding blog article about this Court, I noted that Judge Shepherd has the bearing and presence of a man who could have easily gone into the clergy, and I further pointed out that, in that regard, he is very forgiving, although his forgiveness must be earned.

Keeping You Out of Jail

In a DUI case, whether it is a 1st, 2nd or even 3rd Offense, my first job is to keep my Client out of Jail. The undeniable truth is that anyone facing a Michigan DUI or DWI pays a lot of money to have their Lawyer keep them from getting locked up. Staying out of Jail in a Utica DUI case, or a Macomb Twp. DUI case as well as a Shelby Twp. DUI case can be managed rather easily in a normal 1st or 2nd Offense DUI if the right steps are taken.

Probation

Interestingly enough, the 41A Shelby Court does not have its own Probation Department. Instead, it “uses” the Probation Office of its sister Court, the 41A District Court in Sterling Heights. The Probation Department is one of the most decent anywhere. Nevertheless, a Client with a Shelby DUI case must be properly prepared to deal with Shelby, and not Sterling Heights. Judge Shepherd is his own man, albeit a really nice one.

Shelby represents another of those Courts where the Judge understands that a 1st Offense Drunk Driving may represent a completely out of character incident for a person, and that such a person does not need endless classes or counseling. In some cases, a person can avoid any kind of Probation altogether. With a good DUI attorney, even if the Judge feels Probation is warranted, it can be made “Non-Reporting” so that a person doesn’t have to come in every month and meet with a Michigan Probation Officer.

In a 2nd Offense DUI, Jail can be avoided if you are willing to “hit the ground running.” Staying out of Jail in any case is a matter of doing the right work.

Preparing for Probation Screening

As with so many things, realizing such favorable outcomes is all in the preparation. Great results do not happen by accident. This is part of the reason I will usually meet with a new DUI Client for about 2 hours. First, we’ll go over your case, and then we’ll begin talking about the alcohol assessment test which is part of the requirement to do with the probation department, and start preparing for it.

No one is happy about having to face a DUI charge, but if it happens to be in this Court, there should be some comfort in the knowledge that there is really no better place (maybe a Court or two equally as good) in which to have to deal with it. Certainly, a person can find some comfort in knowing that if they are Arrested for Drunk Driving in either the City of Utica, or Macomb Township or Shelby Township, with only one or two exceptions, everyplace else is tougher, and worse, and often much more so.

In a DUI case in the Shelby Court, Fines and Costs are always reasonable, and tend toward the more “affordable” rather than the outrageously expensive, at least in terms of how such Fines and Costs are passed out in other Detroit-area Courts.