FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

A police officer must have probable cause that a traffic violation has occurred or that the occupants of the vehicle are engaged in criminal conduct before that officer can lawfully stop a vehicle.

A police officer may detain someone if he/she can point to specific and articulable facts giving rise to a reasonable suspicion that the person stopped is, or is about to be, engaged in criminal conduct. This temporary seizure must be reasonably related in scope to the justification for its initiation.

A police officer must have probable cause to arrest an individual. Probable cause to arrest exists where the totality of the facts and circumstances known to the officers at the time of arrest would warrant a reasonably cautious person to believe a crime has been committed.

You are under arrest if a police officer takes you into "custody." This means that you believe you are not free to walk away from the scene of the contact with the officer. Not every stop by a police officer means you are under arrest. If stopped only for a short time, then you may have been "detained," rather than legally arrested.

Washington law requires that if a driver is arrested for DUI or physical control, law enforcement must impound the vehicle and the vehicle cannot be redeemed for a minimum of twelve hours from the time it arrives at the impound lot.

Only in very limited circumstances. The police may only search your vehicle if they have reason to believe that evidence relevant to the crime of arrest may be found in the vehicle.

Possibly. It depends on the agency and the equipment installed in the police car. Some local law enforcement agencies have installed video and audio equipment in many of their police cars. If there is a video of your stop and arrest, you have a right to view this video and your attorney can obtain a copy.

Yes, these documents will be provided to your attorney as part of “discovery” along with other police reports created at the time of your arrest.

Possibly. This may lead to the suppression of any statements you may have made to the officer. You also have the right to talk to an attorney before making a decision to take or refuse a breath or blood test. Failure to advise you of this right may lead to the suppression of your breath or blood test results or any allegation that you refused the test.

No. You have an absolute right to refuse to incriminate yourself by making statements. If your case went to trial, the prosecutor and officer would not be allowed to even mention the fact that you were asked questions and did not answer.

Yes. The police are required by law to give you a reasonable opportunity to contact an attorney by phone. In many areas there is an on-call attorney assigned to take these phone calls at all hours of the day and night.

If you request to speak with an attorney, the police are required to give you access to a phone and provide you a chance to call an attorney. You may choose to attempt to contact an attorney you already know or find one in a phone book. However, the best option is to ask to speak with the on-call attorney who will be available to consult with you about your options.

Yes. The name and contact information for that attorney should be listed in the police officer's report.

While it is certainly easier for your attorney to negotiate for a good deal when you treated the arresting officer with respect, often people waive important rights and provide incriminating evidence in the context of “being cooperative.” You can, and should, very politely tell the officer that you wish to speak with an attorney and do not waive any rights.

Having a clean criminal history and a clean (or relatively clean) driving record can help in negotiating your case. Your criminal history, or lack of history, would generally not be relevant if your case went to trial.

Absolutely not. This is common practice with some law enforcement agencies and it has no bearing on the filing of charges.

Yes. The officer will write a police report and you may review a copy. The easiest way to view this report is for your attorney to make a discovery request. The prosecutor must provide this report to your attorney.

It means that you will receive a notice in the mail of when and where your first court date is scheduled. If you were arrested for DUI, physical control, or Minor DUI you should talk to an attorney as soon as possible as you will likely need to request a hearing with the Department of Licensing even if the officer did not give you written notice.

You will need to attend all court appearances unless your lawyer has advised you that your attendance is not required. If you fail to appear for court and you do not have permission to not be present, the court may issue a warrant for your arrest.

You should dress professionally – at a minimum dress “business casual.”

Try to be there approximately 15 minutes early. Never appear late.

Generally, your attorney will advise you if there is anything specific that you need to bring. It can be helpful to bring all your paperwork related to the case with you when you appear in court.

Yes, unless the court “waives” your presence. Ask your attorney how this can be done.

You most likely have a warrant out for your arrest with a bail amount set. There are three ways to take care of this:

• Post the bond with the court or through a bail bonds company; or
• Bring a motion to "quash" the warrant;
• Turn yourself into the jail.

Police officers and other witnesses are not required to appear unless it will be a hearing in which testimony about the facts of your case will be taken. Generally, this only occurs at a motion hearing or at trial.

At arraignment (or intake) you are formally informed of the charge(s) against you and asked to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. Arraignment is also the opportunity for a judge to impose conditions of release or require bail if appropriate.

Not guilty! There are very rare exceptions to this rule and an experienced attorney can advise you if you have any questions. Generally, the judge will expect you to plea "not guilty" at arraignment and such a plea will not be held against you in the future.

Absolutely not. Before entering a plea of guilty you should always discuss your case with an experienced lawyer. Even if you are feeling guilty and want to take responsibility, it may still be possible to have charges reduced or dismissed. You will always have opportunities in the future to change your plea.

Possibly - it depends on the judge and the specifics of your case and your criminal history. For most misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor cases, you are allowed to remain out of custody on your personal recognizance (a promise to return to court and follow the judge's conditions). However, judges in some courts on DUI and physical control cases routinely require bail in certain circumstances. If you are charged with a crime related to domestic violence it is very likely that the judge will issue a no contact order at arraignment.

A judge may order that a defendant pay a certain amount of money to remain out of custody while a criminal charge is pending. You may post bail directly with the court or through a bonding company. If you failed to appear at a hearing, this money would be forfeited to the court.

A pre-trial hearing is scheduled so that the court can monitor the progress of your case and address any issues that may have come up. Often, a pre-trial hearing is an opportunity for your attorney to negotiate with the prosecutor. It is common for cases to be continued at a pre-trial hearing to allow the parties more time to negotiate and complete the investigation. If an agreement is reached, then your case can be resolved at a pre-trial hearing with a disposition and sentencing if appropriate. If your case is not resolved through negotiations, it would be set for trial.

Yes, it is very common for a these pre-trial hearings to be continued so that the attorney can have more time to negotiate and investigate on your case.

You have a constitutional right to a "speedy trial." This means you can require that a trial in your case be scheduled within 90 days (60 days if you are in jail) of your first court appearance. A speedy trial waiver extends this time period to allow your attorney more time to negotiate and investigate your case. It is very common to waive (or extend) your right to a speedy trial and would be required for your case to be continued.

A motion hearing is when legal motions are brought before the judge. Depending on the specific motion being brought, witnesses may or may not be required to appear and testify. At a motion hearing the judge considers the evidence presented and then makes a legal decision based on the facts and law as argued by the parties. Motions to suppress evidence and/or dismiss a case based on violations of your constitutional rights (i.e. lack of probable cause to arrest, failure to advise you of your rights) are heard at a motion hearing.

Generally, yes. However, no witnesses may be called if the motions do not require testimony or the facts are not in dispute and the parties stipulate to the relevant evidence.

You and your attorney will talk about whether or not you will testify at this hearing. No one can force you to testify, that is a decision you alone (with the help of your lawyer) must make.

At this hearing both the prosecution and defense must announce whether they are ready for trial.

This is a trial where the judge hears all the evidence and decides if you are guilty or not guilty of the charge(s).

This is a trial where people from the community (the jury) hear all the evidence and decide whether you are guilty or not guilty of the charge(s). A jury will be six people for misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor cases and twelve people for felony cases.

You have an absolute right to decide if your case goes to trial or not. However, if your case is not resolved with a negotiated plea bargain or other disposition your options may only be to plea guilty as charged or proceed to trial.

You can never be forced to testify. You have the absolute right not to testify and a jury would be instructed that they cannot hold your failure to testify against you. However, there may be cases in which you should testify. Whether or not you testify is a decision best made between you and your lawyer.

Yes, you can have any witness who can present relevant information testify on your behalf. These witnesses can be subpoenaed to appear.

You have a right to a trial by jury, and in our experience judges do not penalize people for exercising this right – to do so would be improper. However, if some particularly bad facts came out at trial that were not otherwise known, or if the judge thinks you were dishonest while testifying, then the judge may take this into consideration at sentencing.

At a sentencing hearing the judge listens to a recommendation from both the prosecutor and your attorney as to what the appropriate punishment should be. You also have a right to speak on your own behalf at a sentencing hearing. After listening to the recommendations, your comments, and considering the facts of the case and your criminal history, the judge makes a decision and imposes a sentence. The judge may follow the recommendation of the parties, but is not required to.

This is an opportunity to present any facts about yourself you think would help the judge make an appropriate sentencing decision. This is also an opportunity to take responsibility for any poor decisions you may have made and explain to the judge why you believe you won't be in a similar situation in the future.

This means that you will be interviewed by a probation officer and the probation officer will then give a report to the judge about what they think the sentence should be.

It is very uncommon for this to happen in any misdemeanor case. If you are sentenced to jail time, the court will generally give you a "commitment date" by which you would be required to turn yourself in to the jail.