DESK APPEARANCE TICKET PROCEDURES
Each county in New York manages Desk Appearance Tickets in its own unique way. One commonality across jurisdictions is that you must appear on the date and time ordered by the ticket, at the location specified. Your failure to appear when and where you are directed by the Desk Appearance Ticket may result in a warrant for your arrest being issued.
That being said, under the right circumstances it is sometimes possible to adjust the date of the appearance as long as the District Attorney's Office agrees to it. Usually, the District Attorney's Offices are reluctant to change dates unless exceptional circumstances can be shown. You will need to engage an attorney to accomplish this since the District Attorney's Office will be reluctant to speak directly with those who are accused in this context.
It is also possible that an attorney can be engaged to appear on your behalf, if there is a particularly compelling reason for your inability to appear in person. There can be an element of risk in having an attorney appear on your behalf, because the judge may be so unpersuaded as to the reason that he may issue a warrant for your arrest. Choosing to have an attorney appear for a DAT on your behalf should only be done after carefully considering all the alternatives with your lawyer.
If you do not have a lawyer, remember to bring your copy of the Desk Appearance Ticket with you to court. You will hand this to a Court Officer who will then give you further instructions (usually to sit and wait until your name is eventually called by the public defender).
If you do not have a lawyer, and you believe you would qualify to have a public defender represent you, you would be well advised to bring documentation proving that you are indigent, such as tax returns, and therefore unable to afford a lawyer. Simply telling the judge that you can't afford a lawyer is unlikely to be persuasive on its own.
It is not necessary to bring witnesses to the court appearance. Witnesses are for a hearing or trial, neither of which will happen on your first appearance on a Desk Appearance Ticket. Your appearance on the record will probably last about a minute or so.
Get there as early as possible, especially if you do not have a lawyer and are applying for a public defender. If you get there late, and it is crowded, it could be a very long day for you. Also, if you get there late, it is theoretically possible that the judge will issue a warrant for your arrest – not a good way to start off your case.