The Metropolitan Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles is the primary traffic court for the city of Los Angeles. The Metropolitan Courthouse is located at 1945 S. Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA, 90007 Metro court handles traffic tickets, DUI cases, and criminal cases. The Metropolitan Courthouse is a very high-volume court. Like all things run by the government, it’s going to take you hours if you need to go there.
Located near the intersection of the 10 and 110 freeways just south of downtown Los Angeles, you know you are getting close when you see the giant chair in the parking lot across the street. To avoid spending a full day in court at the Metropolitan Courthouse, you may want to consider hiring a Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney to appear in court on your behalf.
If you are willing to walk in downtown LA, you can park at the offsite lots for $3-$9. You can also take a chance with a meter, but this is risky since you never know just how many hours you will be stuck in line at the Metropolitan courthouse. If you save money on the meter, but get stuck with a parking ticket, you aren’t really saving money. If you are really on a budget you can look for free street parking which is not secure or readily available, but sometimes free is your only price option. The best place to look for free parking starts one block east of the courthouse.
Once you find a place to park, the next challenge is getting into the building at the Metropolitan Courthouse. Security is tight so you are looking at a long line to get through a metal detector just like the airport. If you are outside the building on the ground level, just look for all the people lined up along the side of the building like they are trying to get into a club. If you parked underground, you ride the elevator up to the first floor then EXIT the building (even though you were already in) so that you can go get in the back of the big line to go through security and get back in to the Metropolitan Courthouse.
Once you finally make your way through the traffic, parking and security, your next battle is locating the right line to stand in. Whether it’s the traffic clerk’s window, GC Services, the criminal clerk, the health office for DUI program referrals, count on waiting in line for at least 30 minutes. If you need to actually visit one of the courtrooms to see the Judge or any of the numerous clerk’s offices hidden throughout the courthouse, be prepared to spend at least half a day.
