Reviewed and updated October 11, 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 October 11, 2026.
Houston County, Alabama, has about 109,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Houston 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: Houston County public records, Houston County arrest records, Houston County warrants, Houston County inmate search, Houston 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 Houston County
The Houston County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Dothan, Ashford, Taylor, Kinsey, Webb, Cottonwood and two more cities make the DUI arrests in Houston County.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Houston County: Wallace Community College at Dothan (campus police); the Dothan-Houston County Airport Authority (other agency).
Together, the five agencies in Houston County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 6,064 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Houston County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Houston 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 Houston County Sheriff's Office, held about 440 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at houstoncountyal.gov/bid_notices/370, phone 334-792-4149. The Houston County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The case is heard in the District Court or a municipal court, brought by the District Attorney or, in a municipal court, by the city's own prosecutor.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at houston.alacourt.gov, phone (334) 677-4800.
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: Houston County arrest records, Houston County police reports and Houston County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in Alabama?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Houston County heard?
In the District Court or a municipal court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at houston.alacourt.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Houston County held?
At the county jail, run by the Houston 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 Houston 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.