Traffic Court

Traffic courts are dedicated solely to the prosecution and adjudication of traffic law violations. They are usually very busy places. Usually defendants appear in traffic court if they have been accused of a misdemeanor or have committed a violation that requires a mandatory court appearance.

In most states, traffic violations involving alcohol, especially in the case of an accident, require a court appearance. Other issues that require the driver to appear in traffic court include tickets listing multiple violations, and persons who have attended traffic school for a different violation within a specified amount of time.

Failure to Appear

If the police officer or sheriff who gives you a ticket informs you that you will be required to appear in traffic court, take it very seriously. If you are not in the court as required, you will find yourself facing the additional charge of Failure to Appear for a court appointment. Not appearing as mandated can result in a fine, jail time, or both.

Not showing up can cost even more. You may find that your state's Department of Motor Vehicles will step in and take your driver's license. They may even suspend or revoke your driving privileges for an extended period of time. Again, if alcohol or drugs were involved, the penalties are likely to be more severe.

If your ticket represented a non-mandatory violation, you have the option of paying for the ticket, sometimes by phone or online, depending on the state in which you got the ticket. Once you pay the ticket, it will remain on your driving record. Most states allow offenders to take online driver education classes (or classes offered in local schools or community colleges) in order to eliminate having "points" on their driving records. Before you decide how to handle your ticket, especially if you believe you were not guilty of the violation, you should consider that defending your actions may require a visit to traffic court.