Traffic Ticket Overview
The information provided below is a broad, general overview of traffic violations and mentioned below are some of the violations for which people are often given traffic tickets. Also briefly discussed is the difference between noncriminal traffic violations and criminal traffic violations, criminal traffic offenses, strict liability traffic violations, and moving and non-moving violations.
Types of Traffic Tickets: Noncriminal traffic infractions and criminal traffic offenses
In Florida, traffic tickets can be issued for violations of the law, which can be either a criminal offense or a noncriminal offense. Under Florida law, a noncriminal traffic offense is considered a civil offense as opposed to a criminal offense, and it is referred to as a traffic infraction. It is not punishable by incarceration/jail time. It is punishable by monetary penalties such as fines and court costs, points being assessed against a person’s driver’s license, and suspension/revocation of a person’s driver’s license or driving privilege in certain cases. In general, most traffic tickets that are issued are for noncriminal or infraction traffic offenses. In general, under Florida traffic law, noncriminal or traffic infraction offenses include tickets for offenses such as speeding, red lights, improper passing, improper backing, failure to yield right of way, careless driving, u-turns, failure to use turn signal, driving on a suspended license without knowledge, driving with an expired driver’s license expired for 4 months or less, and driving with an expired registration/tag/license plate expired for 6 months or less. In Florida, in general, traffic ticket cases that are being handled in front of a traffic hearing officer rather than a County Court Judge or a Circuit Court Judge are noncriminal traffic infractions.
In contrast, a criminal traffic offense is considered a criminal offense, and it may be either a felony or a misdemeanor. Criminal traffic offenses are punishable by incarceration/jail time. Traffic criminal violations are also punishable by monetary penalties such as fines and court costs, points being assessed against a person’s driver’s license, and suspension/revocation of a person’s driver’s license or driving privilege in certain cases. In general, in Florida courts, criminal traffic cases that are being handled in Circuit Court involve felony crimes, and criminal traffic cases that are being handled in front of a County Court Judge involve misdemeanor crimes. In general, under Florida law, criminal traffic offenses include tickets for offenses such as racing, reckless driving, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) /driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving on a suspended license with knowledge, driver’s license expired for more than 4 months, registration/tag/license plate expired for more than 6 months, fleeing or eluding law enforcement, vehicular homicide, and DUI manslaughter.
If you have been charged with a traffic offense, whether a noncriminal traffic infraction or traffic criminal violation, you should not hesitate to call the law firm at 954-448-5300 for your FREE, no obligation consultation. You can discuss your specific legal case or legal matter with attorney Patricia Jones, not a receptionist, assistant or paralegal, and you can learn about your rights under the law and your right to fight back!
Traffic Tickets for Criminal Violations: Misdemeanors and Felonies
Traffic charges must be taken as seriously as any other criminal charges, especially when a traffic offense rises to the level of a misdemeanor or felony, which carry the potential for harsh consequences, not to mention possible consequences on your driver’s license, employment, insurance rates, and maybe even your immigration and naturalization status.
Under Florida law, a traffic criminal offense can be either a misdemeanor or a felony. In general, the more serious traffic crimes are usually felonies and the less serious traffic crimes are usually misdemeanors. Under Florida law, in general, felonies are punishable by more than one year of incarceration/jail time. Under Florida law, misdemeanors are either first degree misdemeanors or second degree misdemeanors. In general, under Florida law, first degree misdemeanors are punishable by no more than one year of incarceration/jail time, and second degree misdemeanors are punishable by no more than 6o days incarceration. For certain criminal traffic offenses, the statute for the particular crime sets forth the amount of incarceration possible.
In Florida, common traffic criminal offenses that are misdemeanors include violations such as racing, reckless driving, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) /driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving on a suspended license with knowledge, driver’s license expired for more than 4 months, tag expired for more than 6 months, and fleeing or eluding law enforcement. Under Florida law, traffic offenses such as vehicular homicide, DUI manslaughter, and driving while license permanently revoked are felony crimes. Also, some traffic criminal offenses, like driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may, fleeing or eluding a police officer, reckless driving, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) or driving while license suspended or revoked, may be charged either as a misdemeanor or felony depending upon the circumstances of the case.
If you have been charged with a traffic criminal offense or any type of misdemeanor or felony crime, you should not hesitate to call the law firm at 954-448-5300 for your FREE, no obligation consultation. You can discuss your specific legal case or legal matter with attorney Patricia Jones, not a receptionist, assistant, or paralegal, and you can learn about your rights under the law and your right to fight back!
Traffic Tickets: "Strict Liability Offenses"
The majority of traffic tickets are issued for "strict-liability" offenses. This means that no particular criminal intent is required to convict a person of the offense. The only proof needed is that the person did the prohibited act. Strict-liability traffic offenses typically include such offenses as speeding, failure to yield, failure to use turn signals, turning into the wrong lane, driving a vehicle with burned out headlight, tail light, brake light, or turn signal, parking in a no parking zone, or having an overdue parking meter.
If you have been charged with any kind of traffic violation, you should not hesitate to call the law firm at 954-448-5300 for your FREE, no obligation consultation. You can discuss your specific legal case or legal matter with attorney Patricia Jones, not a receptionist, assistant, or paralegal, and you can learn about your rights under the law and your right to fight back!
Traffic Tickets:Moving Violations vs. Non-Moving Violations
In general, a moving violation occurs whenever a traffic law is violated by a vehicle in motion. Some examples of moving violations are speeding, running a stop sign or red light, u-turns, drunk driving. In general, non-moving violation, by contrast, is usually related to parking or faulty equipment. Examples include parking in front of a fire hydrant, parking in a no-parking zone, parking in front of an expired meter, a cracked windshield, a burned out taillamp light, a broken turn signal lamp light, or a burned out headlamp light.
Under Florida law, in general, if you are convicted of a moving violation, the department of motor vehicles, which in Florida is called the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV), may assess points for convictions of certain violations of motor vehicle laws and it can suspend a person’s driver’s license or driving privilege for having a certain amount of points. The length of the driver’s license suspension depends upon how many points are accumulated with certain periods of time. Also, having convictions for certain traffic offenses within a certain time period can result in the department of motor vehicles labeling you as a habitual traffic offender (HTO) and revoking your driver’s license for five (5) years.
If you have been charged with committing any traffic offense, whether a moving violation or a nonmoving traffic violation, you should not hesitate to call the law firm at 954-448-5300 for your FREE, no obligation consultation. You can discuss your specific legal case or legal matter with attorney Patricia Jones, not a receptionist, assistant, or paralegal, and you can learn about your rights under the law and your right to fight back!
Got a Traffic Ticket? An Experienced Attorney Can Fight Back For You!
Getting a traffic ticket is one of the most undesirable situations that many thousands of us have experienced. And, the discomfort does not end with the police officer handing you the ticket and telling you that you are free to go on your way. Then comes the uncertainty and anxiety of how are you going to handle it or how to get it dismissed. It makes good sense to seek advice and services from an experienced professional in the business. When you have health issues, you go to a doctor; and when your car breaks down, you let a mechanic fix it. If you have a traffic ticket or tickets, attorney Patricia J. Jones can use her knowledge and years of experience defending against traffic violations for you. Do not hesitate to call the law firm of Patricia J. Jones, P.A., Traffic Tickets Defender at 954-448-5300 for your FREE consultation with attorney Patricia Jones. You can discuss your specific legal case or situation with attorney Patricia Jones, not a receptionist, assistant, or paralegal, and you can learn about your rights under the law and your right to fight back!
