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.
Ponchatoula, Louisiana, in Tangipahoa Parish, has about 7,700 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DWI arrest in Ponchatoula starts two cases, a criminal case in the District Court and a license case before the Office of Motor Vehicles, 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: Ponchatoula public records, Tangipahoa Parish DWI, Ponchatoula arrest records, Ponchatoula warrants, Ponchatoula inmate search, Ponchatoula criminal records, Louisiana arrest records and Louisiana inmate search.
The DWI Law in Louisiana
Drunk driving is charged as DWI in Louisiana, at a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or more.
Driving in Louisiana is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DWI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Office of Motor Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.
Who Makes DWI Arrests in Ponchatoula
The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Ponchatoula (filed by the FBI as Ponchatoula Police Department) make the DWI arrests in and around Ponchatoula.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Tangipahoa Parish: Southeastern Louisiana University (campus police).
Together, the seven agencies in Tangipahoa Parish with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 6,303 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Tangipahoa Parish does not break DWI out.
Booking After a DWI Arrest in Ponchatoula
A driver arrested for DWI and kept in custody goes to the parish jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, held about 560 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at tpso.org/resource/jail-guide, phone 866-232-1899. The Ponchatoula inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The District Attorney files the charge, and the case is heard in the District Court.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the parish is at tangiclerk.org/E-Services/Civil-Record-eSearch.
Louisiana has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
A DWI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Office of Motor Vehicles. The driving record, kept by the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, carries the result of both.
The Records a DWI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Louisiana Public Records Law.
- The court file: from the District Court, kept by the Clerk of Court.
- The driving record: from the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles.
More on each: Ponchatoula arrest records and Ponchatoula court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DWI limit in Louisiana?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DWI case from Ponchatoula heard?
In the District Court, brought by the District Attorney. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the parish is at tangiclerk.org.
Where is a person arrested for DWI in Ponchatoula held?
At the parish jail, run by the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DWI arrest in Louisiana?
The Office of Motor Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
Is this the official Ponchatoula website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, parish, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.