The Speedy Trial Act and DUI/OVI charges
January 20, 2008
The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution requires that a defendant charged with a crime like DUI/OVI be brought to trial in an expeditious fashion. However, it does not spell out any exact deadlines. The states are free to pass laws which give citizens more protections, but cannot pass laws that give citizens less protections than the minimum afforded by the U.S. Constitution. In Ohio, Ohio Revised Code Section 2945.71 is Ohio’s Speedy Trial Act. It was passed back in 1974 and gives more protections to Ohio citizens than the Sixth Amendment. R.C. 2945.71(B)(2) provides in pertinent part:
“…[A] person against whom a charge of misdemeanor, other than a minor misdemeanor, is pending in a court of record, shall be brought to trial as follows:… Within ninety days after the person’s arrest or the service of summons, if the offense charged is a misdemeanor of the first or second degree….”
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