Gonzalez, FL Criminal Defense Law Firms & Lawyers

Your record can be expunged through a motion for expungement of your criminal record. Once the Motion is filed to seal your record, a Judge will review your file and determine whether you are eligible for your record to be expunged. Drug distribution is an offense that can prevent employment, and you are doing the right thing by looking to get that charge expunged. You may want to contact an experienced and affordable attorney who can help guide you through the process.

If the court ordered the machine at the time of your sentencing, and the clerk of court simply neglected to inform DMV of the court order, then you may still have to get the machine as ordered (despite the delay in time).  However, if the court, at the time of your sentencing, did not order the machine be installed, you may not have to get it. There was a while (that may have included the years involved in your case -- but I cannot say for sure without doing some research) when a few judges failed to order the machine, even though by law it was to be ordered.  In some of those cases, the DMV took it upon itself to suspend a person's driver's license unless the defendant got the machine installed.  Some of those cases were  challenged in court.  As a result the courts decided if the judge failed to order it, the DMV was without authorization or power to order it.  Consequently, any driver's license suspensions based on a failure to have the machine installed, if the court had not ordered it, were found to be in error. It was not long after that when the state legislature changed the law - giving the DMV authorization to order the machine be installed or the person's driver's license would be suspended.   So there are a number of facts that still need to be determined in your case before the issue of whether DMV has the right to suspend your driver's license can be resolved.  Primarily, was the machine ordered by the court at the time of the "in-court" sentencing.  If "no," then did your sentencing occur before or after the state legislature changed the law that gave the DMV the authority to order the machine (or suspend the driver's license) if the court failed to order the machine at sentencing.    

If you cannot retain private counsel, you will have to wait for the public defender to get around to your case, once appointed. Plead not guilty at the arraignment and ask for the pd to be appointed.