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Prince William County Speeding Tickets: Penalties

Speeding is pursued very seriously by Virginia law officials. Consequences can include fines, accumulating demerit points on your license, increased insurance rates, and even jail time, if the offense is serious enough. A Prince William County speeding ticket lawyer can help you navigate the offense to obtain the best result possible for your situation.

Speeding is a traffic infraction which is punishable by a fine as well as by demerit points on a driver’s license. In Prince William County, a speeding ticket conviction can cause insurance rates to increase. Too many demerit points can also cause a license to be suspended. The penalties can negatively impact your life financially through the fines. They can also negatively impact your freedom if you are jailed for larger offenses. If you accumulate too many driving points, then your driving privileges could also be taken away because too many demerit points result in a license suspension.

Prepaying Speeding Tickets and Other Traffic Offenses

You can prepay a speeding ticket in Prince William County, but doing so is not always the best option because it is the same as pleading guilty in court without giving yourself the opportunity to contest the charges. It is better to go to court, because even if you are guilty and there is no defense for having it reduced or dismissed, you could at the very least argue sentencing and possibly have the punishment lowered.

Traffic offenses can be very serious in Prince William County, ranging from just minor infractions to major infractions, which can have very serious consequences. A speeding ticket attorney in PWC can help represent you in cases ranging from small to large by explaining the charges to you and helping you understand what that means, while building a strong defense to mitigate the damages.

Major and Minor Traffic Offenses in Prince William County

In Prince William County and throughout Virginia, some minor traffic offenses are an improper turn or driving without lights. Major infractions are a DUI, reckless driving or attempting to elude police officers.

Infractions, Misdemeanors, and Felony Traffic Offenses

The difference between infractions, misdemeanors and felony traffic offenses is in the immediate and long-term consequences. A traffic infraction has the least amount of long-term consequences. It is not punishable by jail time, and consists of a fine and demerit points on your license. Over time, the conviction as well as the points will disappear from the driving record. So while it may affect your insurance premiums, it is not permanent. In contrast, misdemeanors and felonies are both criminal offenses. These carry harsher penalties and can include jail time as well as heavier fines and traffic infractions.

Criminal Record and Traffic Offenses

The conviction not only affects your driving record, but also has an effect on your criminal record. Unlike the driving record which disappears over time, the criminal record is permanent and lasts forever. Basically, the conviction and the record will disappear for an infraction. However, with a misdemeanor or a felony there are long-term consequences, since you have a criminal record available to the public for the rest of your life. This can potentially affect you if someone does a background check, for example, or in certain types of employment which do not allow people with a criminal background to be hired.

How a Prince William Speeding Ticket Attorney can Help

The role of an attorney in a serious traffic case in Prince William County is to get you through the case as quickly as possible while trying to get you the best results possible for your particular facts. An attorney does this by having you do things outside of court which may help you, such as taking driver improvement classes, doing community service, having your speedometer calibrated, and presenting evidence for your defense in the light most favorable to you in court.

They also know how to cross examine the police officer who issued you the ticket in the first place, and they know which questions are going to provide answers for a good defense. The attorney’s role is to cast reasonable doubt on the facts presented by the officer and demonstrate that what the officer is saying does not amount to the charges against you. This is done in hopes of having your charge dismissed or reduced, or at least having the penalties reduced.

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