Getting a traffic ticket is annoying and inconvenient, but it happens to most drivers at some point. A traffic ticket usually seems like a minor thing, and many drivers try to handle it without legal assistance. Drivers commonly plead guilty and pay the fine or go to traffic school even when they believe they are not guilty, just to save themselves the trouble of fighting a ticket.
However, that strategy could cost you money in the long run. Pleading guilty could lead to higher insurance rates and points on your license and cause a driver’s license suspension.
An Orange County traffic lawyer knows the ins and outs of traffic court. In most cases, your attorney could appear in court on your behalf, so you do not need to rearrange your schedule. An experienced defense attorney can often achieve a much better result than you could on your own, leading to lower fines, fewer points, and sometimes a complete dismissal.
Traffic tickets could be either moving violations or non-moving violations. Non-moving violations include parking tickets, expired registration, and failure to wear a seatbelt, among others. The fines are lower than for moving violations, and no other penalties are associated with them.
Moving violations are infractions that happen when a vehicle is in motion. Speeding, running a light, following too close, unsafe lane changes, texting while driving, and other failures to obey the law are moving violations. The law assigns point values to various moving violations.
Every time a driver is convicted of a moving violation or pleads guilty, the Department of Motor Vehicles adds the appropriate number of points to the offender’s license. According to Florida Statute § 322.27, a driver who accumulates 12 points within 12 months will face a 30-day driver’s license suspension. If the driver accumulates 18 points in 18 months, the suspension period is 90 days. In addition, car insurance rates go up as point totals increase. A driver can avoid points by going to traffic school, but they may only exercise the traffic school option five times in their lifetime.
Some traffic violations could lead to a jail sentence. In these cases, it is essential for an accused to work with a lawyer. Driving while intoxicated is a criminal offense, but there are other criminal traffic violations. Racing, driving recklessly, passing a school bus, a hit and run, and driving on a revoked license are just a few examples of criminal traffic violations.
An experienced attorney in Orange County can often get criminal traffic charges reduced to infractions without criminal consequences, especially when the accused is a first offender. When the charge is an accident DUI or the accused has a prior history of criminal traffic violations, dismissal might not be possible.
The goal for every traffic violation is dismissal. If the ticket is dismissed, the driver does not pay a fine, they do not get points on their license, and they do not have to go to traffic school. It is almost as if the ticket never happened.
An Orange County traffic violation attorney knows how to get a ticket dismissed. Their years of legal training and experience in court have taught them how to review a police report and the prosecutor’s evidence and hone in on weaknesses. Prosecutors usually would rather negotiate or dismiss a case than fight against a well-prepared professional advocate in traffic court.
Using an attorney to fight a ticket often saves a driver considerable time and money. Unless it is a criminal violation, the driver need not appear in court themselves. They save the time and expense of taking a day off and waiting for the judge to hear their case. When the attorney reaches a favorable result, there might be no fine or a smaller fine than the driver was facing. Reduced points or no points translate into lower insurance rates.
Do not let a traffic ticket derail you. An Orange County traffic lawyer could get a ticket dismissed or reduced so that it produces minimal long-term consequences, if any.
You only have 30 days to contest a ticket in most cases. Act now to work with an advocate from The Umansky Law Firm Criminal Defense & Injury Attorneys.
The Umansky Law Firm Criminal Defense & Injury Attorneys
