Out of State Drivers and Reckless Driving Charges in Fairfax

Charged with reckless driving in Virginia as an out of state driver? The following is information you should be aware of including whether you need to show up in court and how this charge could affect your license in your home state. Reckless driving is considered a class 1 misdemeanor in Virginia and is therefore much more serious than a simple traffic citation.

Out of state drivers will be treated the same exact way as any local Fairfax driver would. Simply stating that you were unaware of the specific traffic laws in Fairfax will not be considered a viable defense.

To learn about the potential consequences you may face or for help building a defense contact a Fairfax reckless driving lawyer today and schedule a free consultation.

What Happens to An Out of State Resident Charged With Reckless Driving in Fairfax County

It is very common for people in the Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland area to be traveling here for business or just traveling through the state to get somewhere else and they do not live here, or they have a DC, VA, or a Maryland license.

Generally speaking, if you are convicted of a moving violation in Virginia, but you have an out of state license, then what happens is if your state is part of the interstate compact on drivers licenses, then Virginia will communicate electronically to the home state and notify the home state of that driver’s conviction.

Then, the home state makes a determination as to how they are going to treat that conviction. So, they might put the conviction on the person’s record, but not assess any type of demerit points. However, some states will indeed do that.

So for instance, if you had a speeding ticket in Maryland and you are a Virginia driver, then the Virginia DMV will find out about it and you will be assessed demerit points for that.

Do You Need to Show Up in Court in Fairfax

The summons will say you must appear on that date. In some situations depending on the facts of the case, it is possible to have your attorney appear in your place, but that is a case by case decision that needs to be looked at by the attorney.

How Are Continuances Handled? Are They Likely to be Granted

In Fairfax County, if there is a conflict with the first court date, then the attorney can request a continuance simply by submitting a written request. Those would be granted without any problem for the most part. It is rare for there to be any kind of problem with that.

When it comes to second and third continuances, motions before the court need to be filed and the attorney has to appear in person to ask for that. So, depending on the reasons, generally speaking judges are accommodating for problems that arise. In short, there is usually no problem with the first continuance, but if it gets to second or third, then there has to be very good reasons for those requests.