Dealing With Serious Traffic Violations

Sure enough, seeing just how many vehicles are driving around the roads and highways all over the nation, it is only natural that traffic violations occur every single day. Hence, it is very important, vital even, to know about the types of traffic violations as well as the most effective ways to protect yourself from them, especially in case you or your loved ones are facing some genuinely serious charges.

With that said, traffic violations have but a single purpose – to protect people from unsafe driving by penalizing them for endangering themselves or people around them. Practice shows that people are less inclined to commit such violations in case they are fearful of getting caught. And vice versa – people are not hesitant to violate traffic regulations in case they are certain that the police will not get them. Here are some examples of the types of traffic violations that will provide you with a better understanding of the notion itself.

First of all, there are two general kinds of traffic violations – moving and non-moving ones. Needless to say, moving violations are being committed when the vehicle is in motion. These may include running the red light, speeding and even driving under the influence. Faulty equipment as well as parking infringements may result in non-moving violations. These generally include excessive muffler noise, broken taillights, parking in the non-parking zone, parking in front of a fire hydrant and so on.

A lot of people do not realize that, but the parking tickets that they get are simple minor offenses. These are also known as infractions. These infractions do not imply any criminal charges and you will not risk facing jail, you will not need to be trialed by jury – you will only need to pay small fines and nothing more.

On the other hand, there are also the speeding tickets. Now, these are totally different and may easily involve expensive fines, trial by jury as well as even jail time in some more serious cases. Speeding tickets are issued for what is known as the “strict liability” offense. This means that an individual will be convicted regardless of whether he had any criminal intents or not. The only thing that is necessary to convict him or her is the fact that the act was committed. These offenses may well include:

• Turning into the incorrect lane
• Failing to yield to other vehicles
• Speeding
• Not using the turn signals properly

Of course, some of the traffic violations are a whole lot more serious than others. Some of those are much more serious than the simple infractions and may well be viewed as misdemeanors or even felonies, depending on the circumstances of the violation.

First and foremost, excessive speeding as well as reckless driving are most certainly serious traffic violations. Reckless driving implies that a person was willfully and knowingly driving in a way that was endangering other people around him – other drivers, their passengers as well as the pedestrians. Even though speeding on its own is not reason enough to charge a person with reckless driving, in case that person was speeding AND driving in an aggressive manner, frantically changing lanes, ignoring traffic lights, driving on the wrong side of the road and so on, he or she may be convicted in line with some serious charges. In case you will be convicted for reckless driving, there is a chance that this conviction will remain in your criminal records, you will lose your driving privileges and will be sentenced to spend time in county jail.

In addition, do not forget that driving around without the insurance is also a serious traffic violation as well. Hence, in case you will fail to present the insurance to the law enforcement officer that pulled you over, you will risk losing your driving privileges and will get a traffic ticket. However, depending on the location where you were pulled over, there is a chance that you will be able to avoid the most serious penalties by proving that you actually have the insurance within a certain amount of time. Still, failing to present insurance on the spot may imply hefty fines and traffic tickets as well.

Moreover, do not forget that it is also to carry your license with you all the time as well. However, when it comes to lack of license, there are two types of violations as well – correctable one and the willful one. In case you simply forgot your driver’s license home, you will get a so-called “fix it” ticket, which implies that you will need to prove that you have it within a certain amount of time. Yet, in case you were driving with a suspended or revoked license, it will be a willful violation. In most cases, the license is suspended or revoked due to DUI charges and this means that you are breaking the law. Hence, you may be arrested, taken into custody and charged with a misdemeanor offense.

Sure enough, in case you or your loved ones were charged with a serious traffic violation and you do not want to lose your license or get a criminal record, it is important to use your legal right for an attorney and to get in touch with a qualified as well as genuinely experienced Sacramento criminal defense attorney at the earliest opportunity. Call our law offices at (877) 870-4087.

The Sacramento DUI Specialists