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Sterling Heights DUI

The 41A District Court in Sterling Heights hears DUI cases from Sterling Heights. It is the sister Court to the 41A (Shelby) District Court in Shelby Township. Unlike its counterpart, however, which has one Judge and covers three municipalities, the 41A Sterling court has only one city under its jurisdiction, but three Judges to handle the workload. The 41A Sterling Heights Courthouse is always busy and it processes a lot of Drunk Driving cases.

A DUI in Sterling Heights will land a Driver in front of one of the three sitting Judges on the 41A Sterling bench: Judge Michael Maceroni, Judge Steve Sierawski, or Judge Kimberly Wiegand. In my experience as a Detroit DUI attorney, I have found that this bench is made up of fair-minded Judges who are guided as much by common sense as anything else. No one wants to pick up a Drunk Driving charge anywhere, but chances are, anyone reading this already has, or at least is checking things out for someone who has. In that regard, the 41A Sterling Heights Court is as good as any a place to face such a charge. The three Judges here are fair and kind. They are the opposite of some of the nightmare stories the reader may have heard about some Judges in other jurisdictions.

Avoiding Jail for a 1st Offense DUI in Sterling Heights can be accomplished rather handily, primarily because this is NOT a Court that sets out to lock up first time DUI Offenders. This is precisely what I meant earlier when I indicated that the 3 Sterling Heights Judges are guided by common sense. Rather than just “pound” a DUI Defendant, the Court will want an honest look at why a person made such an error in Judgment, and what kind of education (meaning classes, or counseling) or oversight should be Ordered to reinforce better choices in the future. As a DUI lawyer, my job is to help my Michigan Client avoid as much of those things as possible.

Whether a person is facing a 1st Offense DUI, or even a 2nd Offense DUI, they will, at some point during the case (unless it can be “knocked out” for some technical, legal reasons), be required to undergo the legally required alcohol screening test (a written test that is scored), before the Judge imposes their Sentence. This test is part of a larger interview process conducted by the Court’s Probation Department called a “PSI,” or Pre-Sentence Investigation. The end result of this PSI process is that, on the day of Sentencing, a person stands before the Judge and the Judge has a written Recommendation, prepared by the Probation Department, advising him or her exactly what kind of Sentence to impose. The most important factor in formulating that Recommendation is how the person did (that is, how they scored) on the alcohol assessment test.

If a person doesn’t do as well as they could have on that test, they can wind up being Ordered into all kinds of stuff, including what may seem like endless classes and counseling, and they might have to provide breath or urine tests any number of times per week, as well. If they really botch things up, they might end up wearing an “alcohol tether” on their ankle. There really are countless things that a person can stuck having to do (and pay for) short of going to Jail.

It becomes my job to avoid as much of that as possible. This means that, while staying out of Jail is great, there are a lot more headaches to avoid than just that. That’s where a competent Michigan DUI attorney comes in and make things better.

In a 2nd Offense DUI, the need to do well at the PSI stage applies every bit as much as it does in a 1st Offense case. Accordingly I will thoroughly prepare my Client to do well on that alcohol assessment test, and help them get into a more convenient, less demanding (and perhaps less expensive) counseling program than would otherwise be the case if they just limited their concerns and efforts to merely staying out of Jail. Sure, avoiding Jail is important, and is job number one at first, but once it looks like that has been accomplished, the focus shifts to avoiding all the other heat that typically comes with any 2nd Offense Drunk Driving charge.

In a 2nd Offense case, the Law requires that some kind of counseling be Ordered by the Judge as part of the person’s Sentence. If a person can be guided into Counseling as the case gets up and running, an experienced Detroit DUI Lawyer can use that to their strategic advantage during the case. In addition, by having chosen a program they can afford, and fits their schedule, they will avoid just waiting for the Judge to Sentencing them to counseling at some other place may does not fit their budget, needs, or schedule. This is one of the many benefits of being proactive, rather than just reactive.

In the end, the 41A Sterling Heights District Court Judges, like most other Judges in the Macomb County Court system, do not default to a “one size fits all” kind of DUI process that is the bane of other Courts outside the County. This means that the extensive experience I bring as a DUI Lawyer who has been Practicing in this Michigan Court for over 20 years can help a person not only stay out of Jail, but avoid many of the other burdensome consequences that might otherwise normally be handed down.