Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and September 30, 2026.
DeKalb County, Alabama, has about 73,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in DeKalb County starts two cases, a criminal case in the District Court or a municipal court and a license case before ALEA, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: DeKalb County public records, DeKalb County arrest records, DeKalb County warrants, DeKalb County inmate search, DeKalb County criminal records, Alabama arrest records and Alabama inmate search.
The DUI Law in Alabama
In Alabama the offense is DUI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in Alabama is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by ALEA, separately from the criminal case.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in DeKalb County
The DeKalb County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Fort Payne, Rainsville, Henagar, Collinsville, Crossville, Sylvania and six more cities make the DUI arrests in DeKalb County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in DeKalb County: Northeast Alabama Community College (campus police).
Together, the nine agencies in DeKalb County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,049 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for DeKalb County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in DeKalb County
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office, held about 150 people on an average day in 2021 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at dekalbcountysheriff.org/inmate-roster/filters/current/booking_time=.... The DeKalb County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
A DUI charge from DeKalb County is heard in the District Court or a municipal court; the District Attorney or, in a municipal court, the city's own prosecutor brings it.
The District Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at dekalbda.org.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at dekalb.alacourt.gov, phone (256) 845-8525.
Statewide, Alacourt is the statewide online index of Alabama trial court cases, sold by subscription.
The License Case
The court case is only half the record. ALEA runs a separate administrative case over the license, which can suspend it before the criminal case is decided, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency keeps the driving record the conviction goes on.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Alabama Public Records Law.
- The court file: from the District Court or a municipal court, kept by the Circuit Clerk.
- The driving record: from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.
More on each: DeKalb County arrest records, DeKalb County police reports and DeKalb County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in Alabama?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from DeKalb County heard?
In the District Court or a municipal court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at dekalb.alacourt.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in DeKalb County held?
At the county jail, run by the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in Alabama?
ALEA, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
Is this the official DeKalb County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.