Oxford, NC – The District Attorney’s office held a week-long session of District Court from September 28, 2015 through October 2, 2015. This week-long session was the first of its kind in Granville County and was scheduled for the disposition of Driving While Impaired (DWI) cases only. The week-long DWI session was a collaborative effort between the offices of District Attorney Michael D. Waters and Granville County Clerk of Superior Court J. Yancey Washington. District Court Judge John W. Davis presided over the week-long session. Further assistance was provided by the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys (Conference). Rashad A. Hauter, a DWI Resource Prosecutor with the Conference, assisted the District Attorney’s staff in the prosecution of these cases. Mr. Hauter is a native of Vance County and a graduate of Southern Vance High School.
Fifty-three cases were set for trial during the week-long session, and forty-one of those cases were resolved. Of those forty-one cases, twenty-eight cases were resolved by guilty plea or a guilty verdict by Judge Davis. Two defendants were found not guilty. Eleven cases were dismissed for insufficient evidence. Ten cases were continued to another court date and three defendants failed to appear and an order for their arrest was issued.
Many factors contribute to the successful prosecution of a DWI, including the presence of the arresting officer for his or her testimony and the return of any toxicology results from the SBI laboratory. The District Attorney’s office made every effort to coordinate all factors in an effort to begin to reduce the backlog of pending DWI cases in Granville County.