My fiance got arrested for a DUI. Who do I go to first, a bail bondsman or a lawyer?

No one wants to spend more time in jail than necessary. Thus, assuming bail has been set and you have the financial resources to hire a bondsman to post bond, I would contact a bondsperson first and get your fiancé out of jail. The typical fee for a bondsperson is 10 to 20 % percent of the amount of bail. Upon receipt of this amount, the bondsperson will post the bond so your fiancé can be released. Once your fiancé is out of jail, he should have sufficient time between his release and his next court date to contact and retain counsel to represent him at future court proceedings. Choice of counsel is a personal and important decision that should be made by your fiancé. If you do not have 10 to 20 percent of the bail amount for the bondsperson¿s fee, or if bail has not been set, I would contact an attorney first. If bail has been set but is greater than you can afford, even with a bondsperson, an experienced criminal defense attorney can file a motion with the Court seeking a bail reduction. If bail won¿t be set until your fiance¿s first court appearance, and there are aggravating circumstances involved that may result in bail being set in an amount greater than you can afford, such as your fiancé has prior alcohol-related offenses or the offense involved an accident, an experienced attorney can appear with your fiancé at the first court appearance to argue for a reasonable bond.