{"id":3650,"date":"2017-03-18T00:15:57","date_gmt":"2017-03-18T00:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-195849-4032129.cloudwaysapps.com\/the-location-of-a-michigan-dui-case-is-critically-important\/"},"modified":"2025-02-06T14:52:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T19:52:14","slug":"location-michigan-dui-case-critically-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/blog\/location-michigan-dui-case-critically-important\/","title":{"rendered":"The Location of a Michigan DUI case is Critically Important"},"content":{"rendered":"

It has been a while since I\u2019ve addressed how the location<\/a> of a DUI case<\/a> directly impacts the way things will turn out, but I find myself<\/a> explaining this so often that I think it\u2019s about time to look at it again.\u00a0 This will be a VERY short article because it\u2019s more about this simple, single point, rather than anything else, but its importance in terms of what happens<\/a> to you cannot be overstated.\u00a0 In the Detroit area, and that means primarily the Tri-County area of Wayne, Oakland<\/a> and Macomb<\/a>, the \u201cwhere\u201d of a DUI charge<\/a> is absolutely critical.\u00a0 Someone facing a DUI<\/a> in one court could wind up on reporting probation<\/a> with all kinds of classes and counseling and testing whereas, in a different court and under the same case facts, he or she could simply be required to do nothing more than pay a fine.\u00a0 The location factor is so dominant that whenever my staff approaches me about a new DUI client<\/a> or inquiry, my very first question is \u201cwhere?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Drunk driving<\/a> gets a lot of attention in the media<\/a>, so it shouldn\u2019t come as a surprise that consequences are getting harsher, and not easier.\u00a0 This applies everywhere.\u00a0 Yet even within that larger trend, it has always been the case that certain jurisdictions are more forgiving than others in drinking and driving<\/a> cases.\u00a0 In the broadest sense, Oakland County is considered \u201ctougher\u201d than either Macomb or Wayne, and you won\u2019t find a single practicing lawyer who disagrees with that.\u00a0 Certainly a few of the very toughest courts are located in Oakland County, but just a few days before this article was written, I was in an Oakland County court where my client was sentenced to a very short term of probation that was much less demanding than one could ever expect almost anywhere in either Wayne or Macomb County, so there is no hard and fast rule to any of this.\u00a0 Beyond this purposefully general observation, I\u2019m not about to publish any kind of \u201crankings\u201d about who\u2019s tougher than who, and will save those discussions for the safer confines of the attorney-client relationship.\u00a0 Instead, we\u2019ll stick to the larger point that in DUI cases, just like in real estate, the 3 most important things are location, location, and location.<\/p>\n

I characterize DUI cases as \u201caccidents of geography\u201d because no one ever plans on getting arrested<\/a> for drunk driving in the first place, so no one plans their route to make sure that if they do get pulled over, it\u2019s somewhere better, rather that worse.\u00a0 Instead, when a DUI happens, it just happens<\/a>, wherever and whenever.\u00a0 Even so, I know that even I breathe a sigh of relief when I hear my client\u2019s case is location I know to be \u201ceasier.\u201d\u00a0 And let me be perfectly clear so that any Judge reading this understands; the idea of tougher versus more lenient, or one court somehow being \u201cbetter\u201d than another has nothing to do with judicial ability or integrity.\u00a0 Instead, it is natural and understandable for a DUI lawyer<\/a> to view things from the perspective of his or her client, and unless you\u2019re some kind of masochist, it\u2019s just human nature to want less consequences, rather than more.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure every single Judge out there thinks his or her way of handling these cases is the best (in much the same way that every Mexican restaurant owner probably thinks his or her salsa is the best), but the simple fact is that to anyone going through a DUI, less is ALWAYS more, and therefore always more preferable.<\/p>\n

Beyond not publishing any kind of rankings or ratings here, I have always, within my numerous DUI articles<\/a>, avoided being specific about what has happened<\/a> to any client of mine in any particular court.\u00a0 In a world that sees toughness as a good thing, I fail to see the value of publicly announcing how resolving a case more leniently in a certain court does anything good.\u00a0 I understand how some lawyers may find a marketing value in explaining that, in such-and-such a court, I was able to get my client non-reporting probation<\/em>, but I cannot imagine that the Judge would be happy to have someone blabbing about that kind of break all over the internet, and I\u2019m sure it does nothing to help keep that kind of outcome possible in the future.\u00a0 Note to all my lawyer colleagues: Shut up – at least a bit, and provide less identifying information about the location of your successes because soon enough, you\u2019ll scare every Judge you name into being tougher by making them fear getting an unwanted reputation for going too easy on drunk drivers.<\/p>\n

In addition to just knowing that location matters, I think it\u2019s very important that the lawyer know the actual locations.\u00a0 In my practice, I generally confine my DUI representation to Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties, because this puts me in the same courts and in front of the same Judges all the time.\u00a0 I know how every Judge does things.\u00a0 That isn\u2019t, nor should it really be anything special, but it can be lost, particularly with the operations that try and service the whole state, or otherwise try to be all things to all people.\u00a0 I have never driven far enough to prove or disprove this, but I am made to understand that in some of the more distant courts, being a lawyer from the Detroit-area isn\u2019t an asset, and can be seen as taking business way from the locals.\u00a0 For my part, I will, on occasion, venture a bit past the immediate Tri-County area, but never really beyond any of the surrounding counties (meaning St. Clair, Lapeer, Livingston, Washtenaw or Monroe).\u00a0 As a result, I never feel like a guy from too far away, and within the greater Detroit area, always feel known and at home.<\/p>\n

If there\u2019s one thing I hate in my own personal inquiries, it\u2019s the marketing \u201cteaser\u201d where you\u2019re given a little information in an attempt to \u201chook\u201d you for more.\u00a0 I almost feel like I\u2019m doing that here, but there really isn\u2019t much more to say beyond the idea that location is a huge factor in what will happen in any given DUI case.\u00a0 In that sense, it is what it is, and there\u2019s nothing you can do to change where your case is handled.\u00a0 If the reader leaves understanding that the \u201cwhere\u201d of a DUI case is one of its most important aspects, then I\u2019ve done my job well enough.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re facing a DUI anywhere in the Detroit area and are looking to hire a lawyer, take your time and do your homework.\u00a0 Read articles and websites.\u00a0 When you\u2019ve narrowed things down to a few lawyers, pick up the phone and call around.\u00a0 All of my consultations are done right over the phone, and you can find my office<\/a> ready to help, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., at 586-465-1980.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It has been a while since I\u2019ve addressed how the location of a DUI case directly impacts the way things will turn out, but I find myself explaining this so often that I think it\u2019s about time to look at it again.\u00a0 This will be a VERY short article because it\u2019s more about this simple, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":8521,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dui"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3650","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3650"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3650\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8522,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3650\/revisions\/8522"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.randalawyers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}