If you are arrested for DUI in Tampa you will be assigned to a Hillsborough County Judge in a manner that is different from many surrounding counties. In Hillsborough County if you are arrested for driving drunk you will be assigned to a judge based on your last name. Six different judges handle all the DUI cases in Hillsborough and the system of dividing the case load by last name is done to alleviate one judge being burdened with too many cases.
If your last name begins with a C, K or R then Judge Cheryl Thomas would handle your case. If you have a last name that starts with the letters D, M, N, X or Y your judge would be John N. Conrad. Judge Elizabeth Rice handles DUI cases for people with last names beginning with the letters A, E, J, I, Q, T, V and Z. In Courtroom 17 of Division A Judge James Dominguez will handle all DUI cases for the last names starting with G, S, O and U. Judge Lawrence Lefler gets the H, L and W cases and lastly is Judge Margaret Courtney. Judge Courtney handles cases involving people with the last names that start with B, F and P.
Along with the different judges are different sets of State Attorneys who will prosecute your case. These variables are all factors that come into play when you are discussing all possible options with your DUI lawyer following a DUI arrest in Tampa. It is very important you hire a lawyer that practices in Hillsborough County and is familiar with how the DUI process in Tampa works. Stephen Higgins of Finebloom and Haenel works within the Hillsborough County court system on a daily basis and spends most of his time working with people charged with DUI.
