Spalding County DUI Court Process

Ask for a jury trial on a Griffin city DUI and the case leaves the municipal court entirely. It gets bound over to the Spalding County State Court, in front of the same judge who hears every county DUI. That mechanism funnels almost all litigated impaired-driving work in the county into one courtroom, so who sits there matters more than usual.

Every misdemeanor DUI charged in Spalding County goes to the State Court at 132 E. Solomon Street in Griffin. The clerk's criminal division is at (770) 467-4745; the main State Court clerk line is (770) 467-4728. Filing hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The people who decide the case

Judge Josh W. Thacker presides over the entire misdemeanor docket, which means every DUI arraignment, plea negotiation, and jury trial. He treats misdemeanor cases seriously and expects strict courtroom decorum. Patrick M. Shepherd, the Solicitor General, is the chief prosecutor for every misdemeanor in the county and controls who gets into pretrial diversion. Because the docket runs through one judge and one prosecutor, defense work here turns heavily on knowing how each of them handles DUI evidence and sentencing.

Diversion, and who qualifies

Spalding has no standalone DUI court with its own staff and docket. What it has is a Pre-Trial Diversion program run by the Solicitor General under O.C.G.A. § 15-18-80, with outside supervision by JAG Probation. Admission is entirely the Solicitor General's call and can't be appealed. The office routinely turns away anyone with a prior felony, a long record, or past offenses involving weapons or violence, and charges carrying a mandatory minimum jail term that can't be suspended are generally out.

Participants sign up for 1 to 12 months of supervision, usually including a clinical substance-abuse assessment, a defensive driving course, random drug screens, community service, and program fees capped at $1,000. Finish it and the charge is dismissed by nolle prosequi, which keeps a DUI conviction off the record.

There's also a Veterans and Mental Health Accountability Court, started in 2017 and presided over by Judge Sidney R. Esary. It takes misdemeanor defendants with a military discharge or a diagnosed mental illness and substitutes intensive group counseling and random testing for standard sentencing.

What gets you turned away at the door

No cell phones, pagers, or smartwatches in Judge Thacker's courtroom. Leave them locked in your car, out of sight. The security checkpoint at the main E. Solomon Street entrance backs up badly during the morning docket call, so plan to arrive 30 to 45 minutes early to clear the magnetometer and find the right courtroom before your name is called. Missing the call risks a bench warrant.

The dress standard is business casual at a minimum: pressed slacks and a tucked-in collared shirt, or a conservative dress or slacks with a blouse. Shorts, tank tops, hats, and anything with an offensive logo get you removed or your case pushed to a later date, which just runs up the legal bill.

For representation familiar with the local evidentiary standards and Judge Thacker's habits, use the attorney directory on this site. Defendants who can't afford counsel are assigned the circuit's contracted public defender through the State Court.