The deadline nobody tells you about.
A California DUI is two separate cases. One is criminal, and it's heard at Amador Superior Court in Jackson. The other is administrative, run by the DMV, and it decides whether you keep your licence.
The DMV case has a 10-day deadline from the date of arrest to request a hearing. It runs whether or not you've spoken to anyone, and the criminal case has no bearing on it. If that window closes without a request, the suspension proceeds without anyone putting your side of it.
If you're reading this inside those ten days, call now and we'll deal with the rest afterwards. (916) 277-8299.
How to choose a DUI attorney in Amador County.
I'm Chris Parkhurst, Esq., State Bar number 203402, and I've been defending DUI cases in Northern California since 1999. You work with us directly rather than with an intake team.
Amador is a small county with one courthouse and one District Attorney's office. In my opinion the question worth asking any attorney here is simply whether they have actually appeared in that building, and how recently. Local familiarity is the whole of what a county-level attorney has to offer that a stranger doesn't.
What you've actually been charged with.
Most California DUI arrests are charged under Vehicle Code section 23152. Whether it's a misdemeanour or a felony depends on your record and on whether anyone was injured — an injury allegation moves it to a different section entirely, and prior convictions within the relevant period change the exposure again.
I'm not going to set out penalty ranges here, because the range that applies to you depends on facts I'd need to read. For how the charge itself works, see DUI defense. For what happens to your licence, see licence and DMV hearings.
Who stopped you matters.
Amador County is policed unevenly, and for a DUI that's directly relevant:
- Jackson, Sutter Creek and Ione each run their own police department.
- Plymouth and Amador City have none. The Amador County Sheriff covers both, so an arrest there produces a Sheriff's report.
- The California Highway Patrol works Highway 49 and Highway 88 through the county, and a lot of Amador DUIs are CHP stops rather than city ones.
This matters because the report is the case. What equipment was used, how the stop was documented, whether body-worn footage exists and how field sobriety testing was recorded all vary by agency. Highway 88 in particular carries drivers who don't know the road, heading up toward Kirkwood and over Carson Pass.
So when you call, tell me who stopped you and where.
Where your case is heard.
Amador Superior Court, 500 Argonaut Ln, Jackson, CA 95642. (209) 257-2600
Prosecuted by the Amador County District Attorney, 708 Court St, Suite 202, Jackson, CA 95642. (209) 223-6444
Everything criminal in Amador County runs through that one building, which at least removes one question. For the wider county picture — the jail, the Sheriff, the cities — see criminal defense in Amador County.
How I handle an Amador DUI.
- The DMV request first. If the ten days are still open, that gets done before anything else.
- Read the file. The stop, the reason for it, the testing, the paperwork. Whether the officer had a lawful basis to stop you at all is where a surprising number of these cases turn.
- Test the science. Breath and blood results depend on equipment, calibration, timing and procedure. Each of those is checkable.
- Negotiate. Working directly with Amador County deputy district attorneys. Most cases resolve here, and the leverage comes from knowing exactly what the file supports.
- Trial where the offer isn't reasonable. At Amador Superior Court in Jackson.
Questions I get every week.
How long do I have to act on my licence after an Amador County DUI?
Ten days from the arrest to request a DMV hearing. That is a separate proceeding from the criminal case in Jackson, it runs on its own clock, and nobody at the roadside is required to remind you. Miss it and the suspension proceeds without anyone arguing your side. More on how a DUI takes your licence.
Where is my Amador County DUI case heard?
At Amador Superior Court, 500 Argonaut Ln, Jackson, CA 95642. (209) 257-2600 Amador County has one courthouse, so every DUI arising in the county goes there. More on how that court and that District Attorney work: Amador County.
Who arrested me?
It depends where you were stopped. Jackson, Sutter Creek and Ione each run their own police department. Plymouth and Amador City don't — the Amador County Sheriff covers both. And the CHP works Highway 49 and Highway 88 throughout. Different agency, different report. If you're trying to help someone who is in custody, this walks through what to do first.
I was driving back from a tasting room in the Shenandoah Valley.
That is a common way an Amador DUI starts. Plymouth sits at the gateway to the appellation and the roads out are two-lane. The route you took and who stopped you both matter to what the file contains.
Is a DUI always a misdemeanour?
No. It depends on your record and on whether anyone was injured. Which section gets charged changes the exposure substantially, so the honest answer is that it depends on facts I would need to read. See DUI defense for how the charge itself works.
What will it cost?
It depends on the charge, whether it resolves before filing and whether it goes to trial. I quote a flat fee for a defined scope, agreed in writing before you pay anything. The consultation is free. I've written more on how criminal defense fees actually work.
Get started.
Being arrested is one of the more frightening things that happens to people, and the waiting afterwards is often worse than the arrest itself. In my experience things are rarely as bad as they feel in that first week — but the ten-day licence window is real, and it doesn't care how you feel about it.
I treat my clients the way I would want an attorney to treat my mother, if she met with one. Call me and meet me personally. You'll see what I mean.
Call (916) 277-8299. The consultation is free.
