St. Petersburg DUI lawyer

Pinellas County DUI cases are prosecuted by the Office of the State Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit, which covers Pinellas and Pasco counties and describes itself as overseeing several diversion programs as an alternative to traditional prosecution. One of them is built for exactly one kind of case: a first-time misdemeanor DUI (or boating DUI). The office calls it the DUI Rehabilitation of Offenders Program, D.R.O.P., and publishes its rules in full.

This page sets those rules out, because in St. Petersburg they decide more about a first DUI than anything else local. The Florida offense itself, its penalty ladder and the 0.15 enhancement are on the Florida DUI law page.

Where a St. Petersburg DUI is handled

The Sixth Judicial Circuit describes the Pinellas County Justice Center, at 14250 49th St. N. in Clearwater, as the primary criminal and judicial facility for the county: it houses the circuit and county courts, the clerk and jury assembly, and handles criminal cases and traffic offenses. The State Attorney’s Pinellas office is at the same address. The St. Petersburg Judicial Building downtown serves south Pinellas, and the circuit lists its primary focus as family court, civil matters and public judicial services.

The Justice Center has free parking in the courthouse lot, and PSTA bus routes 49 and 52 stop nearby. Everyone goes through security screening, and the circuit asks visitors to allow extra time in the busy morning hours.

Two deadlines that are easy to confuse

The license. After a failed or refused test, Florida suspends the license administratively, and you have 10 days to request a review from the department. That is a state proceeding, separate from the criminal case in county court, and the suspension is already running while you decide.

D.R.O.P. The State Attorney’s deadline is procedural, not measured in days: the application must be in at or before the second pretrial hearing. It takes four things — the D.R.O.P. application, a statement of prior record, a waiver of speedy trial (for an unrepresented defendant, a written plea of not guilty with the waiver), and a $50 money order or cashier’s check payable to the State of Florida. A driver licensed in another state must also provide a complete driver record, and anyone with a prior DUI arrest must show court papers proving that case ended in a way that still allows D.R.O.P.

The program also sets a timing rule on the defense: the plea resolution has to be entered before any defense motions, any demand for speedy trial and any depositions. The State Attorney says that a failure to follow those rules disqualifies the case.

What D.R.O.P. asks for, and what it ends in

Who is eligible. The State Attorney decides, case by case, and says eligibility may turn on factors it does not list. The published criteria exclude a breath or blood result above 0.150 (no extrapolation is allowed), a crash with bodily injury or significant property damage, a minor child in the vehicle, an accompanying leaving-the-scene or felony charge, any pending charge or current supervision such as probation, any prior DUI or boating DUI — including one resolved by diversion or a reduced charge — and anyone without a valid license on the day or holding a CDL. A refusal does not rule a case out.

The pre-conditions. Twenty hours of community service with an approved provider, which cannot be bought out; a DUI school approved by the state motor vehicle department; and the M.A.D.D. Victim Impact Panel, which the office says is the only panel it accepts.

The result. Once those are done within the contract’s time frame, the State amends the charge to reckless driving under section 316.192 and recommends a disposition by tier, always subject to the court’s approval or modification:

• Tier 1 — 0.120 or below, and drug DUIs. A guilty plea to reckless driving with adjudication withheld; probation of up to six months; a $100 fine plus costs; 50 community service hours in total (the 20 already done count); a ten-day vehicle immobilization; no alcohol or drugs, no bars; and random testing at your own expense. The office states that after a withhold and successful probation there are no points on the license.
• Tier 2 — above 0.120 up to 0.150, and test refusals. The same plea, but the State recommends adjudication of guilt; probation of up to nine months; a $250 fine plus costs; the same 50 hours, immobilization and testing; and a state-approved driver improvement course.

Failing the probation can bring a violation with up to 90 days in jail and up to a $500 fine, the office warns. A case that does not qualify stays on the ordinary track, under the Florida penalties.

Which track a Pinellas DUI is on

The same State Attorney prosecutes every Pinellas County case, from St. Petersburg to Clearwater, so the question is not which office but which track.

Every D.R.O.P. recommendation is subject to the court’s approval or modification, and the State Attorney decides eligibility case by case.

For veterans the circuit also has a Veterans Treatment Court for non-violent misdemeanor and third-degree felony defendants whose charges stem from injuries or mental health problems resulting from their service. It lasts 12 to 24 months, with an appearance before the judge every 30 to 45 days, and the State Attorney decides eligibility on an application. The other Florida pages on this site are Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

Common questions about St. Petersburg DUI cases