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Traffic Ticket

A traffic ticket is a summons and quote issued by police officers to motorists and other road users who are unsuccessful to mind traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms; cite a moving violation, such as more than the speed limit, or a non-moving violation, such as a parking ticket. Traffic tickets are generally heard in traffic court.

Generally, a ticket is a notice that one has committed a minor or sometimes major legal violation, for which a fine must be paid and postmarked and sent by the due date, and/or an appearance in court must be made (See: order). Typically, this means a parking ticket for parking in an unlawful way or allowing a parking meter to expire, or a traffic ticket for a moving violation such as speeding. The latter are usually issued after traffic stops.

            A traffic ticket may go by the more proper name of violation ticket.

Characteristically, a traffic ticket is handed to a driver straight away after the offence has been observed by a police or traffic officer. Though, it can also be delivered by mail is the case with photo radar tickets.

The traffic ticket sets out the nature and detail of the alleged offence. Typical information includes:

• An claim that you have broken a traffic act including the accurate section of the law being relied upon;

• The name of the authority

• The name of the traffic decree which has been supposedly broken or pursuant to which the ticket is issued;

• The date, time and place of the alleged offence;

• The name and address of the person to whom the ticket is issued;

• Identification of the vehicle including license plate; and

• Information on how to contest or dispute the allegation including the name and address of the place to either acknowledge the allegation or pay the fine, or to contest the ticket.

Speeding ticket –

 A ticket issue for driving above the speed bound Ticket - an order issued to a lawbreaker (especially to someone who violates a traffic regulation).

United State Traffic laws…

In the United States, most traffic laws are codified in a variety of state, county and municipal ordinances, with most minor violations classified as civil infractions. Although what constitutes a "minor violation" varies, examples include: non-moving violations; defective or unauthorized vehicle equipment; seat belt and child-restraint safety violations; and insufficient proof of license, insurance or registration. A trend in the late 1970s and early 1980s also saw an increased tendency for jurisdictions to re-classify certain speeding violation as civil infractions.^[1] In contrast, for more "serious" violations, traffic violators may be held criminally liable, guilty of a misdemeanor or even a felony. Serious violations tend to involve multiple prior offenses; willful disregard of public safety; death, serious bodily injury or damage to property. ^[1]

Each state's section of Motor Vehicles maintains a file of motorists, as well as their convicted traffic violations. Upon being ticketed, a motorist is given the option to mail in to the local court—the court for the town or city in which the violation took place—a plea of guilty or not guilty within a certain time frame (usually ten days, although courts generally provide leniency in this regard).^[2]

If the motorist pleads not guilty, a trial date is set and both the motorist, or a lawyer/representative on behalf of the motorist, and the ticketing officer, are required to attend. The motorist may be given the chance to move the hearing for a reason such as "a work disagreement or travel", and rearrange the hearing for a time at which the ticketing officer is improbable to attend. ^[2] If the officer or representative fails to attend, the court judge will often find in good turn of the motorist and allow going the charge, ^[2] although sometimes the trial date is moved to give the officer another chance to attend. The court will also make supplies for the officer or prosecutor to attain a deal with the motorist, often in the form of a plea bargain that may reduce the impact from that which would be incurred from pleading guilty without attending court.^[2][3] If no agreement is reached, and the prosecutor feels it is worth his time to charge the motorist, both motorist and officer, or their respective representatives, officially attempt to prove their case before the judge, who then decides the matter.^[2] The motorist may, for example, put forward a reason the violation they are is accused of was justified, such as to "get out of the way of an ambulance or avoid a collision with another motorist", and call into doubt the level to which the officer recall the specific details of the state of affairs among the many tickets they have issued.^[2] For relatively minor offences, this strategy is usually effective- the National Motorists Association, which provides a kit outlining how to fight a traffic ticket to its members, goes so far as to offer to pay fines for members who challenge their tickets in court and are found guilty.^[3]

If the motorist pleads guilty, the result is equivalent to conviction after trial. Upon confidence, the motorist is generally fined a monetary amount and, for moving violations, is additionally given "point" demerits, under each state's point system. In the cases where the motorist is registered in a different state from where the violation took place, individual agreements between the two states decide if, and how, the motorist's home state applies the other state's confidence. If no agreement exists, then the conviction is local to the state where the violation took place. In some instances, failure to pay the fine may result in a suspension to drive in only the city or state to whom the fine is owed, and the motorist may continue to drive elsewhere in the same state.

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ANATOMY OF A TRAFFIC CASE IN TEXAS

The vast majority of Texans have, at some point in their lives, received a ticket for a traffic violation.  Unlike most other violations of the law, a traffic ticket doesn’t bear the same stigma of criminality and is often viewed as a minor offense that even the most law-abiding citizens may be guilty of on a frequent basis.  However, don’t let the prevalence and the commonality of a traffic ticket fool you.  Trying to resolve a traffic ticket in Texas is at best an annoyance, and at worst, a convoluted maze of red tape that can have you banging your head against the wall in no time.  From the moment you see the red lights flashing in your rearview mirror and hear the dreaded siren, you enter the confounding world of Texas traffic law.

While not considered a serious offense by most people, many Texans don’t realize that a traffic violation is still a criminal offense in the state of Texas.  The list of possible traffic violations that you can be guilty of in Texas seems endless: speeding, speeding in a construction zone, speeding in a school zone, running a red light, failing to signal, failing to yield to right of way, loud muffler, expired registration/inspection, driving without a valid driver’s license etc. (maybe here we can add a link that people can click on to see the sheer variety of cases that they could be charged with).  The list goes on and on.  Each type of case has varying degrees of repercussions and different methods of resolution.  For example, a speeding or moving violation may result in a fine, put negative points on your driving record, or raise your insurance rates.  Other, more straightforward violations such as expired registration can be dismissed with a ten dollar dismissal fee if you update your registration within ten days

The Arraignment

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The first step in resolving your ticket is to show up for your arraignment.  During your arraignment, you will appear to court at the designated date and time, the judge will tell you what you have been charged with, and then you will enter a plea of guilty or not guilty.  If you enter a plea of not guilty, a future trial court date will be set for you.  You must tell the judge whether you want a judge or jury trial.

It is your responsibility to show up to your arraignment at the specified date and time.  While the arraignment process appears simple, it often goes awry when people fail to appear on their court dates.  Many people simply forget to show up, but others find it difficult to appear due to professional and personal responsibilities.  Your arraignment may be scheduled at an odd time for you.   For instance, your court date may be set for the middle of the day when it is impossible for you to leave work, or it may be set at night when you have family responsibilities that make it difficult for you to make the trip downtown.  If you find yourself in such a situation, you will quickly discover that the court is not sympathetic.  If you fail to appear for your arraignment for any reason, the court will issue a warrant for your arrest.

If you have hired Sullo & Sullo to handle your case before your arraignment date, you will not have to worry about any of these potential pitfalls.  Our attorneys will appear at your arraignment, plead “not guilty” on your behalf, and set your case for a future jury trial date.  You will not have to appear for your arraignment and worry about a potential warrant for your arrest.

JURY TRIAL

“But, wait!” you say.  “I don’t want a jury trial!  I just want my traffic ticket handled in an efficient manner so it can be dismissed or, alternatively, kept off my driving record.”  We know, and believe us when we say we have your best interest at heart.  The majority of cases that we set for a jury trial never get argued to a jury.  Why?  Because most of them are resolved on that date through either a dismissal or a program that keeps the ticket off your record.

At Sullo & Sullo we set the majority of our cases for a jury trial because we feel that is the best chance of getting your case dismissed.  Setting the case for jury trial forces the state to prepare a case against you.  On the day of trial, the prosecutor must have a witness present whose testimony can prove the case against you beyond a reasonable doubt.  If the prosecutor cannot offer a suitable witness or if she feels she does not have a viable case, then she is forced to dismiss the case.  If the prosecutor feels that she has sufficient evidence to go forward with your case, then, based upon years of experience, we feel that a jury, rather than a judge, would be a more fair and impartial decider of your case.

The long road ahead: the jury trial docket

After docket call, you must be prepared for a long day.  You can bring reading material, but just make sure you don’t read anything when the judge is on the bench.  While you may be one of the fortunate few who are released early, it is more likely that you will be in court anywhere from three to eight hours.  The process is long and can be tedious but the Sullo attorneys are utilizing those hours to research your cases, look for any possible errors or defects in your case, to speak to your police officers and to prepare for trial.

Your attorney will call you up and speak to you individually.  Please be patient.  The attorney must speak to every client in the courtroom and this will take some time.  When you are called up, the attorney will introduce him or herself and discuss your options with you.  In most situations, the attorney will explain to you that he is working on your case and that the officer is present and ready to testify against you in trial.  The attorney needs time to speak to the officer, research the facts of the case, research the law on the case, and discover any weaknesses of your case.  In order for your attorney to do all this in a diligent manner, you will need to stay for the remainder of the day.  If you are not willing and ready to stay for the remainder of the day, then the attorney will provide you with options to resolve your case through a program that keeps your ticket off your record.  Some judges will require a fee and a period of probation during which you may not receive any more tickets.  Other judges will require you to take defensive driving.  While we would prefer that you be willing to stay and fight your case, we also understand that your time is valuable and that you may have other commitments. 

By 11:00 a.m., some of the cases will have been resolved and you will notice that the courtroom may appear to be thinning out.  By that time, the Sullo attorney will have resolved a number of cases through dismissals or special programs that keep the ticket off the defendant’s record.  Some defendants wonder why they are still sitting in the courtroom when other people in the courtroom had their cases resolved.  The simple answer is that no two cases are exactly the same.  You may have hired Sullo for a speeding case while the person sitting next to you was charged with a registration violation.  Clearly, those two violations would be handled very differently since a registration violation is a much simpler case.  Even if the person next to you was charged with a speeding case as well, your two cases may have to be handled very differently depending on how fast you were going, where you were pulled over, and which officer pulled you over.  While each case is resolved differently based on the facts of the particular case and the client’s willingness to remain in court, you can be confident in the knowledge that the attorney on your case is working diligently to try to get your case dismissed. 

If you are still sitting in the courtroom when the judge announces the lunch break, that means that you are most likely in the pool of cases that are ready for trial.  Do not be alarmed.  Although you may never have testified in a jury trial before, you have an experienced attorney by your side who will walk you through the process step-by-step.  (Andrew, I added this next section in..do you think I should keep it?) The attorney will explain to you that if you are found guilty at trial, the jury will have a fine range to consider based on the particular offense.  Furthermore, depending on the violation, it could go on your driving record.  While this may see like a big risk to take, you should know that you are presumed innocent until proven guilty.  At Sullo &Sullo, it is our position that since the law says the state has to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, we should hold them to that burden.

When you return from lunch, the attorneys continue to speak with the police officers and try to get your cases dismissed.  Once the attorney knows for sure that your case will not be resolved without a trial, your attorney will sit with you and hash out all the details of your case.  During this conversation, please tell your attorney everything that happened at the scene of the alleged violation and any other information that you feel may be relevant to the case (Were there other cars around you that the officer may have clocked?  Did the officer say anything inappropriate to you?  Could anything have obstructed the officer’s view? Etc.).  The attorney will usually prepare you for the questions that you will most likely be asked when you take the stand to testify.

When the judge is ready to call the first case to trial, he/she will usually begin with the oldest case on the docket.  If your case is not the oldest case on the docket, YOU WILL HAVE TO RETURN ON ANOTHER DATE.  While this is very frustrating, the reality is that the court doesn’t have the resources to try more than one jury trial a day in each courtroom.  The court clerks will give you another court date and the Sullo attorney will return with you on that date.

If you are the defendant chosen for trial, then your attorney will instruct you to take a seat at the front of the courtroom next to him/her at the attorney table.  After a few administrative tasks are taken care of, the bailiff will bring in a group of prospective jurors.  Make sure to stand up when the jurors are brought into the courtroom and to smile at them. 

SulloLaw.com

Sullo & Sullo, LLP is a full-service law firm with the experience and technology to meet the needs of both individual clients as well as business clients in both the public and private sectors. Sullo and Sullo is among the top three criminal defense firms in the city of Houston, Texas. With a growing civil division focused on the particular needs of small and mid-sized businesses.

Sullo and Sullo was founded on one principle: meet the needs of today’s client through the use of innovative technologies and avoiding the multi-tiered staffing and high overhead that burden traditional law firms our fees and expenses are significantly lower than those charged by other attorneys and firms who do similar work.

Our approach is to work with clients to help define and then achieve their objective as part of the over-all business team. The firm enjoys many close working relationships with individuals and organizations that provide specialized skills upon which the firm calls upon as needed to meet the special needs of our clients. Where appropriate, we assemble the best available experts to work with clients in areas such as international affairs, language, tax and technology.

We are one of the first “virtual firms,” in which clients can receive a consultation on legal matters via e-mail and retain our services online through our website. Our understanding of globalization, ever-changing technology and the lives of people today has led us to offer this unique service.

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