What to Expect in Leesburg Reckless Driving Cases

If you are charged with reckless driving in Loudoun County, especially in Leesburg, you should expect that your case will be taken very seriously. It is in your best interests to contact a Leesburg reckless driving lawyer who has experience in these courts and practices there often.

Having an attorney who knows how things work in the Leesburg courts means that they can give you the most reliable options and expectations when you are charged with a reckless driving offense.

Reckless driving in Leesburg is a big deal. The judge, law enforcement officer, and prosecutor will not take these cases lightly. Having an experienced Leesburg reckless driving lawyer by your side will make the process easier. A lawyer can talk to the prosecutor, to law enforcement officers, and review the facts against you and discuss what mitigating circumstances may have been in play to help your case.

Process of Leesburg Reckless Driving Case

In the vast majority of reckless driving cases, an individual is not ‘placed under arrest’ and taken to the local Leesburg jail at the time of the offense. A very high percentage of reckless driving cases originate with an individual being pulled over for their driving behavior or an officer arriving to the scene of an accident. When that stop occurs and the officer makes a decision to charge someone with reckless driving, they will most likely do so by issuing a Virginia Uniform Summons.

A Virginia Uniform Summons is identical to the documentation you will receive when you are charged with simple traffic infraction, however a reckless driving charge is much more serious. The officer will scratch out the information about prepaying the penalty and will tell you will have to appear in court on the date given. The law enforcement officer will ask you to sign the summons.

When you sign the summons, you are not admitting guilt, but simply promising to appear on the date on the summons. In the minority of reckless driving cases, the accused is placed under arrest and taken to the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center for processing. This may occur in serious accident cases or cases in which you are charged with reckless driving in conjunction with other criminal offenses.

What Prosecution Needs to Prove

Because reckless driving in Leesburg is a criminal offense, the prosecution must prove all the elements of the specific case section for which you are charged beyond a reasonable doubt. That is known as the “burden of proof.” For civil cases the burden of proof is lower, but for criminal cases it is beyond a reasonable doubt whether or not the offense is murder, manslaughter or reckless driving.

Evidence Used in Reckless Driving Cases

The most common evidence presented in Leesburg reckless driving cases will be officer testimony and scientific evidence after appropriate foundation is laid. This means that the arresting officer will typically explain to the court the circumstances that led to the encounter of your vehicle and what driving behavior he or she observed.

If it is a speed case, the officer may want to introduce certain scientific evidence such as speed data, speedometer calibrations or LIDAR readings in order to support their case. They must lay a proper evidentiary foundation for this evidence and that is often subject to objection by the defense.

Impact of Leesburg Reckless Driving Charge on Out-of-State Drivers

Virginia can only suspend your privilege to operate in Virginia, if you are an out-of-state driver. Virginia courts cannot physically take your out-of-state license the way they can with a Virginia licensed driver. However, your home state may have additional consequences for you. These out-of-state consequences may happen as follows:

First, the Virginia Court, in this case the Loudoun County General District Court in Leesburg, will notify the Virginia DMV of the conviction. The Virginia DMV, through the interstate compact will then let your home state know that you have received a reckless driving conviction in Virginia.

Your home state will then apply points or other penalties if your home state chooses to do so. Different states have different laws and different requirements regarding what they want to see before they institute their own penalties. It varies widely state by state.

If you are an out-of-state driver and you have been charged with reckless driving offense in Leesburg, contacting an experienced Leesburg reckless driving attorney right away. Discussing the facts of your case is the best way to determine whether you need to appear for your court date.

In most cases, it a good best idea for you to appear in court. The reasons for this are that it is easy for your attorney to communicate with you if you are physically there on the day of court. In addition, you may receive additional consideration if you make the effort to appear. However, if you are unable to make it to court in Virginia because you live far away, hiring a reckless driving lawyer in Leesburg means your lawyer will stand in for you in court.