Williamson County DWI Court Process — Step by Step

After a DWI arrest in Williamson County, you are transported to the Williamson County Jail in Georgetown for booking and processing. Standard processing includes:

• Fingerprinting and photographing
• Property inventory
• Magistration (a magistrate reads you your rights and sets bond)

Bond for a first-offense DWI is set by the magistrate and varies by case. An attorney can often negotiate personal recognizance (PR) bond or a reduced cash bond, particularly for first-time defendants.

Once bond is posted, you receive a temporary driving permit (valid 40 days) and a notice that you have 15 days to request your ALR hearing.

Your first formal court appearance is an arraignment at the Williamson County Courthouse, 405 Martin Luther King St., Georgetown, Texas 78626, in the County Court at Law. At arraignment, the charge is formally read and you enter a plea (typically 'not guilty' at this stage).

With an attorney, arraignment is often a brief formality. Your attorney will have already begun obtaining discovery — the dashcam footage, officer reports, breath test records, and other evidence the state has.

If a blood draw was involved, expect a 2 to 4 month wait for DPS Crime Lab results before the case can proceed to a substantive disposition.

Discovery in a Williamson County DWI case includes:

• Offense report and supplemental reports
• Dashcam and bodycam footage (WCSO and municipal departments are equipped)
• Breath test records: Intoxilyzer 9000 instrument printout, calibration records, operator certification
• Blood draw records (if applicable): warrant, chain of custody, lab report
• Field sobriety test records
• 911 call recordings (if applicable)

Texas Defense Team reviews all discovery for constitutional issues, chain-of-custody problems, and technical defenses. In Williamson County, dashcam footage frequently contains evidence that is inconsistent with the offense report — and that inconsistency is powerful defense material.

Dismissal: If suppression issues are identified and successfully argued, the case may be dismissed for lack of sufficient admissible evidence.

Plea agreement: If dismissal is not achievable, your attorney negotiates with the Williamson County DA's office. Whether a DWI charge can be reduced depends on the facts and the prosecutor; plea negotiations on sentencing terms (probation conditions, fine amounts) may also be possible.

Trial: You have the right to a jury trial in Williamson County Court at Law. A jury of six is impaneled for misdemeanor DWI trials. Trial takes approximately 1 to 3 days for a standard DWI case. Texas Defense Team prepares for trial in every case — the state knows this, and it affects the quality of plea offers.

Timeline: How long a case takes varies with the court docket, how quickly discovery and lab results arrive, and whether the case goes to trial.