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TRAFFIC CHARGES
Please find a brief description of various traffic charges I can help you resolve.&nsbp; The below information provides a brief explanation for the more commonly issued traffic citations. This list is for informational purposes only - please contact me to further discuss your specific charges.
COMMONLY ISSUED TRAFFIC CHARGES
The most common ticket people need help with is the standard speeding ticket issued by a municipal police officer or state trooper. If you are issued a speeding ticket out of municipal court, you face the assessment of two points on your license if convicted. Three points are assessed if you are convicted of a speeding charge that is issued out of state court. You can tell whether you are charged with violation of a either a municipal ordinance or a state statute by looking at the ticket itself. The ticket will indicate whether you are alleged to violate a state statute (look for a checkmark next to "RSMo") or a municipal ordaincne (look for a checkmark next to "Ord."). Alternatively, look at what police department issued the ticket. If the ticket says, for example, "Maryland Heights Police Department," or, "Wildwood Police Department," you have a municipal charge on your hands, and the ticket will be issued out of whatever municipal court that cooresponds with the police department. If the ticket says St. Louis County Police Department, your ticket will either by issued out of state court or issued out of one of the municipal county satellite courts. If the ticket is written by the Missouri Highway Patrol, it is a FCC charge, explained below.
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FCC tickets are issued by the state highway patrol. The FCC, or Fine Collection Center, is a central depository where all Missouri Highway Patrol issued tickets intially sent. When you get an FCC ticket you have 30 days to act. You can either pay the ticket, and take the 3 points on your license, or you can hire an attorney to have the ticket transferred out of the FCC. Upon receiving the attorney's motion to transfer the ticket, the FCC will send the case to the appopriate state court for disposition. The ticket will be sent to the state court in whatever count you received your ticket in. So, for example, if you were given an FCC ticket in Sunset Hills, that ticket will be transferred to St. Louis County Circuit Court. Once transferred, your attorney will appear in court for you and try to reach a favorable disposition on the charge - generally, having the charge amended to a non-moving, no-point violation.
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A number of north county municipalities, including St. Ann, Pine Lawn, Cool Valley, Edmundson, Northwoods, among others, have set up Accident Reduction Corridors (ARC) along Highway 70. It is never a good idea to speed, but getting caught speeding in an ARC and you will be facing particularly high fines. The fines associated with an ARC Zone speeding ticket are often doubled that of a normal ticket. If you are driving on Highway 70 east of the 270/70 exchange, please be on the look out for the ARC Zone signs, and consider making an extra effort not to speed through those areas.
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If you get caught speeding at a high rate of speeding (25-30+ mph over the limit), your attorney may not have much luck in getting the charge amended. Most courts have strict policies as to what rate of speeding they no longer offer an amended charge. In that situation it is very important to hire an attorney who has experience handling these tickets. There are other ways of avoiding convictions and points that we can discuss.
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Speeding in a construction zone will lead to higher fines. If you get caught speeding in a construction zone with workers present, you will face even higher fines and possibily even jail time. If you have gotten a speeding in a construction zone ticket - and especially if you have received one while workers were present - you should hire an attorney immediately.
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Speeding in a school zone is in many ways simiiar to the construction zone tickets. If you get one of these tickets, you will pay a higher fine. If you get one of these tickets while children were present, you will pay even higher fines and could even face jail time.
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If you were issued a traffic ticket with an auto accident you were involved with, you face extra ramifications for a plea of guilty to that ticket. You will not only be assessed whatever points come with the traffic ticket conviction itself, you will also be assessed an extra 2 points for your involvement in the accident. An attorney experienced with handling these charges can help avoid all of those points, but it will require more leg work. Prosecutors will want to see proof of insurance at the time of the accident along with a letter from your insurance companies accepting liability and showing payout on the accident-based claims.
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If you receive a driving while suspended (DWS) or driving while revoked charge, you need an attorney. DWS and DWR charges carry possible jail time, high fines, and lead to the assessment of enough points to suspend or revoke your license even longer. DWS charges should not be taken lightely, and you should make sure whatever attorney you choose sufficiently explains exactly what you must do to successfully handle the charge. It will be of great importance to have your license reinstated if you are hoping to reach a favorable outcome on your DWS charge. If you need help getting reinstated or analyzing the best method as to clearly up the problems keeping you suspended, please contact me.
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Careless and Imprudent Driving tickets can be issued for many reasons. Some reasons for issuance are much more serious than others. I have had some clients receive C&I tickets for squeeling their tires, others for texting while driving, and others for much more serious offenses involving property damage. Even if the underlying cause for your C&I tikcet does not seem serious, keep in mind that anyone looking at your driving record, including your insurance provider, will only see you were convicted of a C&I charge, they will have no way of knowing if it was due to a silly mistake or a more serious driving infraction. That being the case, it is very important to have an attorney handle your C&I charge.
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Driving without insurance is a serious offense. You put yourself and other drivers at risk when you drive without insurance. That being the case, if you do not have insurance and you receive a citation for it, it is very important that you obtain insurance immediately after being issued the ticket. Your attorney can then provide the prosecuting attorney with proof of your after-acquired insurance and may be able to have your charge amended to reduce the negative ramifications a conviction for driving while uninsured would have on your drivers license.
Of course, an even better scenario is one where you can prove that you were actually insured on the day you received the ticket. Courts will generally dismiss no insurance tickets when the driver can prove he or she was insured the day the citation was issued, but you may be required to pay court costs.
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Minor traffic violations can generally be amended to non-moving violations. You should expect to pay a slightly higher fine than you would by simply paying the ticket outright and taking a conviction. Even with the higher fine, it is generally cheaper in the long-run to have an attorney handle these tickets to avoid the points and the cooresponding increase in insurance premiums.
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COMMONLY ISSUED TRAFFIC CHARGES
- Speeding Tickets
- FCC Tickets
- Speeding in an ARC Zone
- High MPH Speeding
- Speeding in a Construction Zone
- Speeding in a School Zone
- Tickets Issued with an Accident
- Driving While Suspended / Revoked
- Careless and Imprudent Driving
- Driving Without Proof of Insurance
- Stop Sign, Failure to Signal, Violate an Electric Signal, other minor violations
- Driving While Intoxicated
- Other questions relating to traffic law. . .
*** TRAFFIC CHARGES ***
Standard Speeding Tickets
The most common ticket people need help with is the standard speeding ticket issued by a municipal police officer or state trooper. If you are issued a speeding ticket out of municipal court, you face the assessment of two points on your license if convicted. Three points are assessed if you are convicted of a speeding charge that is issued out of state court. You can tell whether you are charged with violation of a either a municipal ordinance or a state statute by looking at the ticket itself. The ticket will indicate whether you are alleged to violate a state statute (look for a checkmark next to "RSMo") or a municipal ordaincne (look for a checkmark next to "Ord."). Alternatively, look at what police department issued the ticket. If the ticket says, for example, "Maryland Heights Police Department," or, "Wildwood Police Department," you have a municipal charge on your hands, and the ticket will be issued out of whatever municipal court that cooresponds with the police department. If the ticket says St. Louis County Police Department, your ticket will either by issued out of state court or issued out of one of the municipal county satellite courts. If the ticket is written by the Missouri Highway Patrol, it is a FCC charge, explained below.
FCC (Fine Collection Center) Tickets
FCC tickets are issued by the state highway patrol. The FCC, or Fine Collection Center, is a central depository where all Missouri Highway Patrol issued tickets intially sent. When you get an FCC ticket you have 30 days to act. You can either pay the ticket, and take the 3 points on your license, or you can hire an attorney to have the ticket transferred out of the FCC. Upon receiving the attorney's motion to transfer the ticket, the FCC will send the case to the appopriate state court for disposition. The ticket will be sent to the state court in whatever count you received your ticket in. So, for example, if you were given an FCC ticket in Sunset Hills, that ticket will be transferred to St. Louis County Circuit Court. Once transferred, your attorney will appear in court for you and try to reach a favorable disposition on the charge - generally, having the charge amended to a non-moving, no-point violation.
Speeding in an ARC zone Tickets
A number of north county municipalities, including St. Ann, Pine Lawn, Cool Valley, Edmundson, Northwoods, among others, have set up Accident Reduction Corridors (ARC) along Highway 70. It is never a good idea to speed, but getting caught speeding in an ARC and you will be facing particularly high fines. The fines associated with an ARC Zone speeding ticket are often doubled that of a normal ticket. If you are driving on Highway 70 east of the 270/70 exchange, please be on the look out for the ARC Zone signs, and consider making an extra effort not to speed through those areas.
High MPH Speeding Tickets
If you get caught speeding at a high rate of speeding (25-30+ mph over the limit), your attorney may not have much luck in getting the charge amended. Most courts have strict policies as to what rate of speeding they no longer offer an amended charge. In that situation it is very important to hire an attorney who has experience handling these tickets. There are other ways of avoiding convictions and points that we can discuss.
Speeding in a Construction Zone
Speeding in a construction zone will lead to higher fines. If you get caught speeding in a construction zone with workers present, you will face even higher fines and possibily even jail time. If you have gotten a speeding in a construction zone ticket - and especially if you have received one while workers were present - you should hire an attorney immediately.
Speeding in a School Zone
Speeding in a school zone is in many ways simiiar to the construction zone tickets. If you get one of these tickets, you will pay a higher fine. If you get one of these tickets while children were present, you will pay even higher fines and could even face jail time.
Tickets Issued with an Accident
If you were issued a traffic ticket with an auto accident you were involved with, you face extra ramifications for a plea of guilty to that ticket. You will not only be assessed whatever points come with the traffic ticket conviction itself, you will also be assessed an extra 2 points for your involvement in the accident. An attorney experienced with handling these charges can help avoid all of those points, but it will require more leg work. Prosecutors will want to see proof of insurance at the time of the accident along with a letter from your insurance companies accepting liability and showing payout on the accident-based claims.
Driving While Suspended / Driving While Revoked
If you receive a driving while suspended (DWS) or driving while revoked charge, you need an attorney. DWS and DWR charges carry possible jail time, high fines, and lead to the assessment of enough points to suspend or revoke your license even longer. DWS charges should not be taken lightely, and you should make sure whatever attorney you choose sufficiently explains exactly what you must do to successfully handle the charge. It will be of great importance to have your license reinstated if you are hoping to reach a favorable outcome on your DWS charge. If you need help getting reinstated or analyzing the best method as to clearly up the problems keeping you suspended, please contact me.
Careless & Imprudent Driving
Careless and Imprudent Driving tickets can be issued for many reasons. Some reasons for issuance are much more serious than others. I have had some clients receive C&I tickets for squeeling their tires, others for texting while driving, and others for much more serious offenses involving property damage. Even if the underlying cause for your C&I tikcet does not seem serious, keep in mind that anyone looking at your driving record, including your insurance provider, will only see you were convicted of a C&I charge, they will have no way of knowing if it was due to a silly mistake or a more serious driving infraction. That being the case, it is very important to have an attorney handle your C&I charge.
Driving Without Proof of Insurance
Driving without insurance is a serious offense. You put yourself and other drivers at risk when you drive without insurance. That being the case, if you do not have insurance and you receive a citation for it, it is very important that you obtain insurance immediately after being issued the ticket. Your attorney can then provide the prosecuting attorney with proof of your after-acquired insurance and may be able to have your charge amended to reduce the negative ramifications a conviction for driving while uninsured would have on your drivers license.Of course, an even better scenario is one where you can prove that you were actually insured on the day you received the ticket. Courts will generally dismiss no insurance tickets when the driver can prove he or she was insured the day the citation was issued, but you may be required to pay court costs.
