Who polices Putnam
Putnam has its own police department, and town officers make most of the arrests here, handling booking and either releasing you on a written promise to appear or setting a bond.
Interstate 395 crosses the town, and stops on the highway may be state police work rather than the town department. Your paperwork names the arresting agency, and that decides who to call about a bond, not where the case is heard.
Where your case goes
Putnam cases are prosecuted at Danielson Superior Court, GA 11, a short way south down the interstate. The court page covers parking and the morning docket.
Note the address does not match the town name: the courthouse is in Danielson, which is a borough of Killingly rather than a town of its own. That catches people out, so go by the street address on your paperwork.
Released, the paperwork carries your date. Held, you are taken to court the next business day.
After the arrest
The bond is what decides whether you sleep at home. A written promise to appear or money posted and you leave with a date; short of that you wait for court the next business day. Booking is on the arrest page, the bond on the bond and bail page.
Say nothing about the stop or the incident to anyone, and count every call out of custody as recorded, because it is.
Where the arrest is a family violence arrest, the timing is fixed at the next business day, and the protective order issued then can shut you out of your own house that afternoon. The arraignment page explains the appearance; the what to expect page explains the rest.
Common charges in Putnam
Interstate traffic puts DUI and drug possession high on what GA 11 sees out of Putnam, with larceny and shoplifting, assault, and domestic violence and family violence behind them. A first offense often qualifies for a diversionary program ending in dismissal.