Cocoa DUI Lawyer | Shield Firm

Cocoa is not Cocoa Beach

The two names get mixed up, but Cocoa is the city on the Indian River that is home to historic Cocoa Village, while Cocoa Beach is a separate town across the water. An arrest in Cocoa is commonly made by the Cocoa Police Department, not the Cocoa Beach department.

The difference matters because the arresting agency produces the reports, the video and the breath records that make up the core of the evidence. Both cities are in Brevard County, though, so DUI cases from either one are filed in Brevard County Court.

Roads where Cocoa DUI stops commonly happen

Evenings in Cocoa Village bring traffic onto US 1 and the nearby streets, while State Road 520, State Road 524 and I-95 carry drivers in and out of the city. Officers often make DUI stops on these roads for weaving, speeding or an equipment problem.

Any stop has to rest on reasonable suspicion. If it did not, a motion to suppress can ask the court to exclude what followed, such as the field sobriety exercises and the breath test result. Whether that issue exists depends on what the video and reports show.

Brevard County Court and a separate license track

A Cocoa DUI is filed in Brevard County Court, part of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit. Hearings can be set at any of the county's three courthouses: the Moore Justice Center in Viera, which is the main one, or the courthouses in Titusville and Melbourne. Which one is a decision for the court.

At the same time, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles begins an administrative suspension. A formal review hearing has to be requested within 10 days of the arrest, or the suspension takes effect.

Talking with a lawyer about a Cocoa arrest

The firm's nearest office is in Satellite Beach. The firm is led by David Cannady, a former Florida prosecutor admitted to The Florida Bar in 2014. Calls are answered 24 hours a day, and the case review is free.

Cocoa at a glance

County: Brevard County
Court: Brevard County Court, which sits at the Moore Justice Center in Viera and at courthouses in Titusville and Melbourne
Circuit: Florida's Eighteenth Judicial Circuit
The firm's nearest office is in Satellite Beach. See Satellite Beach office.

Other Brevard County cities

General information only, not legal advice. Every case depends on its own facts, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Cocoa DUI questions

Both are Brevard County Court cases. The two cities are in Brevard County, so a DUI from either one is filed in that court, in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, and the court picks which Brevard courthouse hosts each hearing. The arresting agencies are different, though, and each keeps its own reports and video.

Usually the reason for the stop, the officer's notes on the field sobriety exercises, any camera video and the breath test records. Breath testing in Florida uses the Intoxilyzer 8000, regulated by FDLE, and a 20 minute observation period is required first. Problems in any of these areas can matter, depending on the facts.

Before that date there is booking and either bond or a first appearance, usually within 24 hours. The first formal court date is the arraignment, where the charge is read and a plea is entered, at whichever Brevard courthouse the court assigns. In many misdemeanor DUI cases, a lawyer can file a written plea of not guilty so the client does not have to attend.

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