Louisiana DWI Paperwork Explained: What Each Document Means
In this article, I will explain the various documentation you may, or may not, have received when you got your DWI in Louisiana. I will detail what they mean and what you need to do with it.
Appearance Bond & Summons
When you get a DWI or DUI, the police officer will either book you in jail or issue a summons. Just because the police officer issues you a summons in lieu of booking you in jail does NOT lessen the severity of the DWI. It’s not like the police officer is saying, “Aww, this isn’t a bad DWI. It’s no big deal.” To be clear, whether you are booked or receive a summons, the DWI is the same. Usually, the officer doesn’t book you due to jail overcrowding. This is very common. The only difference is that when you receive a summons, you do not have to go to jail, then post bond to get out of jail.
Appearance Bond
If you were booked in jail, the judge will have set a bond for you to post so you can be released. The bond ensures the court that you will appear at all court dates, NOT just the first court date. You can only get your bond money back after ALL the court dates and the case is concluded. Upon posting bond, the jail will give you an appearance bond receipt. This document will have the bond amount, conditions of bond, surety, your information, the court’s information, and court date, if any. It is important because if there are specific bond conditions such as the requirement that you install the ignition interlock device within 15 days, then you need to follow that. Also, this document may have your arraignment date printed on it. You need to calendar that date and make sure you or your lawyer appears so you don’t get a bench warrant which could lead to your bond being revoked and you going back to jail.
Bond Receipt Slip
If a bail was paid to bond you out, the jail will often give you a bond receipt slip showing how much was paid. Keep this in your records in case you need it after the case has concluded.
Summons
If you were not booked in jail, the officer will give you a citation or summons sometimes called Uniform DWI Arrest Citation. This can be a skinny document on thick paper. It may look like a traffic ticket. Don’t be fooled, it is a DWI, not a traffic ticket. It may include the court to appear at near the top of the summons and the court date at the bottom. The police officer will write the DWI statute number in the middle. You may see a 98.1 or similar number handwritten or typed. That is the DWI statute. Do not ignore the court date. If you miss the date, the court will issue a warrant for your arrest. I’ve heard people say they didn’t sign any of the paperwork during the arrest. That won’t make a difference to the judge because signing only acknowledges that you received the paperwork. The officer will likely acknowledge as a witness that you received it.
Court Notice
Some police departments and jails will give you a yellow or pink slip that it titled “Court Notice.” It will include the court date and time to appear and information on the courthouse. The deputy may sign the bottom acknowledging that he provided it to you. Therefore, if you do not appear, his acknowledgment will serve to allow the judge to issue a bench warrant for your arrest.
Official Notice of Withdrawal of Driving Privileges
The Official Notice of Withdrawal of Driving Privileges is a white 8 x 11” document that has your information filled out. The officer may check boxes and fill in BAC information from the breathalyzer. This document serves as your temporary license for 30 days after the DWI. I recommend you keep this on when driving at all times in case you get pulled over. Due to the Implied Consent law, if you refuse the breathalyzer or blow over the limit, the officer can take you license. Nevertheless, you can still drive for the next 30 days. However, you need to request an administrative hearing during that time to try to save your license. We do this for our clients. Also, check with your lawyer to see if there are any other conditions to you driving during that 30 days. I find that many times, this document is not given to the arrestee. This is usually by accident. Especially if you are booked in jail, the deputy may not package up all your arrest paperwork and give it to you. If this is the case, we can discuss how you can maintain the temporary license and what proof you need.
Arrestee’s Rights Form
The Arrestee’s Rights Form is a boilerplate form with a ton of small-font preprinted language. It is important because it lists all the rights that you had while being arrested for DWI. It also lists the penalties involved for either refusing the chemical tests (breath, urine, blood) or testing over the limit. The police officer will read this document to you prior to asking you to submit to the breathalyzer. Then, if you refuse, he will mark it down as a refusal and sign. He will ask you to sign it acknowledging that you were read your rights.
Affidavit of Probable Cause
This document may come in various forms depending on the police department. The purpose of the affidavit is to provide facts to the judge from the police officer that support the arrest. Then, the judge will set a bond if the facts are sufficient to support the crime of DWI. It is a necessary part of any arrest. The police must have an affidavit of probable cause to support detaining anyone. If you received a summons, there won’t be an affidavit such as this. Keep in mind, this affidavit is only a brief synopsis of the arrest. The officer only includes enough facts to support probable cause to arrest. This is not the complete police reports. That will come later when your lawyer requests them from the DA through the discovery process.
Intoxilyzer Results
The intoxilyzer results document is a white 8 x 11” document with your information printed and the test results at the bottom. If you refused the breathalyzer, it will say REFUSED. This is important to give to your attorney because the test results are very important in both your criminal case and license case. The fact that you refused the test is highly important as the consequences are different than if you blew. If you don’t have this document, your attorney will likely get it later from the DA. Your blood alcohol results or fact of refusal will also be notated on your other documents.
Certification of Arrest
The certification of arrest is another normal sized white document with your information handwritten or printed. The difference between the certification of arrest and the official notice of withdrawal of driving privileges is that the certification will have some additional information at the bottom detailing how the officer came into contact with you. Specifically, he will detail if there was a crash, traffic violation, or you were asleep in your parked vehicle. He will detail any symptoms of DWI upon contact which may include odor of alcohol, red bloodshot eyes, unsure balance, and slurred speech.
DWI Arrestee’s Handout
The DWI Arrestee’s Handout is a multiple-page preprinted document that explains your rights regarding license suspensions and hearings. It also details possible penalties including length of suspensions and jail time. I find that this document is not very to the arrestee unless he is also a lawyer. Your case is different than all other DWIs. There will be some information in the handout this is applicable, and some that is not. Your lawyer can explain what you need to know from this form.
Wrecker Slip
If the police impounded your vehicle during the DWI arrest, the officer will fill out an inventory form and call a wrecker service. This form will detail any personal belongings in the vehicle when it was turned over to the wrecker service to haul it to the impound yard. After your release from jail, take this slip to the impound yard to request your vehicle. You’ll need to pay impound fees before they will give you the keys and access to the yard.
Importance of DWI Paperwork
All these documents that I described above are important. However, if you are missing some or all the documents, do not worry. Your attorney should know how to get all the information he/she needs to start the process. Rarely is a case where all these documents are given to the arrestee. If something is missing, that doesn’t mean you have a defense to the DWI. It just means you weren’t issued a document. The described documents are procedural in the process of issuing a DWI. There are many more documents that will be provided to your lawyer in the discovery process that are very important to the DWI case. Do not feel like you need to run out and get the “reports.” The police department will only give you a crash report if there was an accident. They will not give you the full police reports. Those must be obtained through the court system and requested by your attorney.
What To Do Now
If all this paperwork seems confusing or too much to handle, it’s ok. That is why it is best to contact a DWI lawyer immediately after the arrest/summons. We can explain everything as it pertains to your specific case. We will have you send us all your DWI paperwork so we can examine what you need and what you don’t. Contact us if you need a Shreveport DWI lawyer or for anywhere in Louisiana..
This article was written by Louisiana DWI attorney Carl Barkemeyer of Barkemeyer Law Firm.
