October 25th memorandum

Reproduced with permission from Muni-Mail.com.

AOC: 3rd offender DWI Defendants Must Go Right to Jail from Court

Posted on November 8, 2006

The Administrative Director of the Courts has issued a memorandum dated October 25th to municipal court judges that instructs them to send defendants who have been convicted of third offense drunk driving violations directly to jail from the court room. The memorandum also indicates that when a defendant seeks to enroll in an in-patient program in lieu of jail, that the relevant jail sentence, less any anticipated credits should be served first. Judges may also award discretionary credit for in-patient time accomplished prior to the imposition of the balance of the jail sentence.

There must be "compelling" reasons for deviating from the procedures set forth in the memorandum and they should be adequately spelled out on the record.

Click HERE to download a copy of the October 25th memorandum