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Howard County
(Kokomo) Indiana DUI courts and procedures © 2010 Paul Stanko. All rights reserved. This information about Howard County (Kokomo) Indiana DUI DWI OWI OUI courts and procedures is brought to you as
a public service by attorney Paul Stanko, Indiana DUI DWI OWI
OUI Drunk Driving defense lawyer. Call Toll Free (888) 778-2656
or email indianadui@yahoo.com for a FREE, No Obligation, completely
confidential initial consultation concerning your Howard County
(Kokomo) Indiana DUI case. I. Overview DUI
DWI OWI OUI cases in Howard County are usually filed in Superior Court #3 in Kokomo. This is regulated by local rules. II. Court-specific information For your convenience, contact information
concerning Howard County’s DUI court is presented below:Howard Superior Court #3 Hon. Douglas
A. Tate, Judge 104 N. Buckeye Street, # 110 Kokomo, IN 46901 Phone: (765) 456-2220 Fax: (765) 456-7003 III. Case
Management, Procedures and Scheduling - Initial Hearing.
At your initial hearing, the court officially informs you of your constitutional rights and the charges against you,
enters your not guilty plea, and sets future court dates. You should never plead guilty at your initial hearing unless you
have an attorney with you and have negotiated an acceptable plea agreement. You must appear in
court for your initial hearing whether you have an attorney or not. Regardless whether your case
is a misdemeanor or felony, it is wise to obtain DUI counsel before the initial hearing date. - Your
constitutional rights.
These are your constitutional rights, as provided by Indiana
law (verbatim excerpt from Indiana Code):IC 35-33-7-5 Informing of accused At the initial hearing
of a person, the judicial officer shall inform him orally or in writing: (1) that he has a right
to retain counsel and if he intends to retain counsel he must do so within: (A) twenty (20) days
if the person is charged with a felony; or (B) ten (10) days if the person is charged only with
one (1) or more misdemeanors; after this initial hearing because there are deadlines for filing
motions and raising defenses, and if those deadlines are missed, the legal issues and defenses that could have been raised
will be waived; (2) that he has a right to assigned counsel at no expense to him if he is indigent; (3) that he has a right to a speedy trial; (4) of the amount and conditions of bail; (5) of his privilege against self-incrimination; (6) of the nature of the charge against
him; and (7) that a preliminary plea of not guilty is being entered for him and the preliminary
plea of not guilty will become a formal plea of not guilty: (A) twenty (20) days after the completion
of the initial hearing; or (B) ten (10) days after the completion of the initial hearing if the
person is charged only with one (1) or more misdemeanors; unless the defendant enters a different
plea. In addition, the judge shall direct the prosecuting attorney to give the defendant or his
attorney a copy of any formal felony charges filed or ready to be filed. The judge shall, upon request of the defendant, direct
the prosecuting attorney to give the defendant or his attorney a copy of any formal misdemeanor charges filed or ready to
be filed. - Other Court Dates.
If your case is
not resolved at the Initial Hearing, subsequent hearings such as pretrial conferences will be set before any trial date. It
is essential that you have counsel for any of these subsequent court dates.
Communities in Howard County include
the following: City of Kokomo; Towns of Greentown and Russiaville; Townships of Center,
Clay, Ervin, Harrison, Honey Creek, Howard, Jackson, Liberty, Monroe, Taylor, and Union; Unincorporated communities of Alto,
Cassville, Center, Darrough Chapel, Guy, Hemlock, Indian Heights, Jerome, Judson, Kappa Corner, New London, Oakford, Phlox,
Plevna, Ridgeway, Shanghai, Sycamore, Vermont, West Liberty, and West Middleton.
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