Your Car After a Maryland DUI Arrest
Generally speaking, after someone is charged with a DUI in Maryland, their car may be impounded. Usually, officers can legally park the car, or the car is already legally parked when an individual is arrested. In circumstances when a car is towed, it is usually taken to a different location and is not released to a person for a certain period of time. Sometimes that period of time is 24 hours, sometimes a bit less. The reason for this is because many people are often released from jail after they are charged with DUI, but before they are completely sober.
An officer does not want to give them access to their vehicle immediately after their release under the assumptions that they will get behind the wheel of their car when it is unsafe to do so. During that period of time, if the person’s car is in the tow lot, fees must be paid to secure the car’s release. It is usually released to the person without incident. In DUI cases, vehicles are held for a long period of time to gather evidence unless the person was involved in a serious accident that resulted in an injury to another party.
What to Expect When Retrieving Your Vehicle
Usually the vehicle is parked. A DUI charge in Maryland does not typically result in a search of the vehicle. Sometimes that might happen, but it is not as pressing as it would be in a more serious criminal offense. The vehicle is towed to a particular parking space at the lot. A person goes to the lot, identifies themselves, and identifies their vehicle. They sign some paperwork, make any required payments, and their car is released to them.
What to Bring When Retrieving Your Vehicle
It is important for the person to bring some kind of identification when retrieving the car. Generally, the documents that show their registration are in the vehicle. But bringing some kind of identification is appropriate. People may find it difficult to locate their identification because a Maryland police officer confiscated their driver’s license at the time of their arrest. Any kind of photo ID is helpful, in addition to some form of payment such as a check or credit card. Payment is usually expected to be made immediately upon release of the vehicle.
If Police Found Incriminating Evidence in Vehicle
A person’s car may be legally searched by a police officer after their arrest. This is a legal search incident to an arrest. If the officer finds an illegal bag of controlled dangerous substances or anything illegal for that matter, the officer is permitted to charge that person.
Those charges happen at the same time as the DUI arrest because the search is usually done with some immediacy to the arrest itself. That could have many ramifications for a Maryland DUI case. It could change the issues of bond or pre-trial release conditions. All kinds of things can be affected by any additional illegal contraband found in the vehicle.
Benefits of Hiring a Maryland DUI Attorney
A Maryland DUI lawyer can help the person locate their vehicle very quickly and also provide them with guidelines on the things they need to retrieve their vehicle. Retrieving their vehicle is usually not that complicated after a DUI case. People are under a great deal of stress at that time, and dealing with new issues they never dealt with before. A lawyer can assist the person in dealing with the issues including having their vehicle impounded.