Lamar County DUI Court Process

Lamar County has no State Court, so a first-time DUI from an unincorporated-county arrest starts in the Probate Court of Lamar County under Judge Kathryn B. Martin, at 326 Thomaston Street in Barnesville. Probate Court runs arraignments and bench trials only. It cannot seat a jury.

If you demand a jury trial, the case is automatically bound over to the Superior Court, part of the Towaliga Judicial Circuit that also covers Butts and Monroe counties. That moves you to a different docket with the District Attorney's office prosecuting instead of a local solicitor, under DA Jonathan L. Adams, and usually adds significant delay. Whether that delay helps or hurts depends on the evidence.

The waiver of arraignment

If you've hired a lawyer and plan to plead not guilty, you can skip the arraignment hearing entirely. Your attorney files a written waiver, signed by both of you, with the Clerk of Superior Court a few days before the scheduled date. That enters the not-guilty plea, acknowledges the charges, and moves the case straight to discovery and motions without a court appearance.

Charge stacking and plea leverage

A DUI arrest here is rarely a single charge. It typically comes with failure to maintain lane, open container, speeding, or reckless driving. That raises the bond, but it also gives the prosecutor room to negotiate: a common outcome is dropping the DUI in exchange for a guilty plea to reckless driving.

Courthouse rules

Both courts enforce a business casual dress code. No shorts, tank tops, flip-flops, hats, or sunglasses, and a bailiff sending you back out can be recorded as a failure to appear, which triggers a bench warrant and bond forfeiture. Cell phones and recording devices are generally barred; plan to leave them in your car. Security screens everyone, and no weapon of any kind gets through, including a small pocketknife or a multi-tool.

For local counsel who knows Judge Martin's court and the Towaliga circuit, use the attorney directory on this site.