Over the last twenty years, the traffic court process has probably changed more than any other part of the criminal law process, which is saying quite a bit. Courts are much more formal, and the average cost of a citation has skyrocketed. The listed fines haven’t changed much, but the costs and other add-ons could now double the cost of a speeding or other ticket. The indirect costs, such as higher auto insurance rates, could be even higher.
Therefore, a traffic ticket is no longer something you can take care of during your lunch hour. Instead, a traffic ticket is now an all-day affair that, in many cases, stretches out to three or four days. More on that below. The sticker shock that people get when they add everything up makes the process even more overwhelming.
Frequently, overwhelmed people simply quit. That’s always a very bad approach, but one that we keep using anyway. When things start going sideways, the sooner you reach out to a Marietta criminal defense lawyer, the more options you have. If you want too long, there’s nothing anyone can do.
Traffic Ticket Issues
In court, “why” is usually the most important question, as in why the officer issued a citation. Frequently, the answer is municipal revenue or public safety. These are the wrong answers.
Local municipalities definitely need money. The more income they derive from traffic tickets and other such sources, the lower our taxes are, at least theoretically. Traffic tickets are also a major law enforcement tool. In many jurisdictions, traffic stops nab more felons than any other police activity.
However, officers must write traffic tickets to enforce the law, not for any other purpose. Citations issued for revenue purposes or to verify a suspicious person’s warrant status are questionable, at best.
Once again, twenty years ago, courts didn’t care about the officer’s underlying motive. Now, if the officer’s approach was questionable, the matter is on Facebook by the end of the day and on CNN by the end of the week. No one wants such adverse publicity.
The different environment makes it easier for a Marietta criminal defense lawyer to successfully resolve these matters, especially if a defense might apply. This defense doesn’t have to be strong enough to win a poker hand. It only must be strong enough to convince a prosecutor to fold instead of bet.
Fatal variance might be the most common defense. The evidence at trial must match the information in the pleadings. For example, if the citation states that Rachel was driving a white Suburban, but she was driving a white Subaru, the judge might throw the case out of court.
This defense is subject to idem sonans, a Latin phrase that means “sounds alike” and a Legalese phrase that means “close enough.”
Traffic Ticket Escalation
However, in a bench warrant situation, the above discussion is irrelevant. Instead, the only issue is a failure to meet a court-imposed appearance date or deadline, usually a payment deadline or a compliance deadline.
As mentioned, the one-day traffic ticket process could easily become a multi-day process. But the days are nonconsecutive. At a hearing date, the court resets the matter for some reason, usually because the arresting officer did not appear. The new date might be two or three months after the old date. For some reason, many people believe a reset date is an “on-call” date.
Furthermore, as part of a pela bargain, most people must pay money or attend a class, like traffic school. People often let these deadlines slip past, especially if the court has already moved the deadline once. People assume that, in these situations, the court doesn’t think the matter is a big deal.
Usually, judges don’t immediately issue bench warrants in these situations. They might let the matter slide for a few days, or even a week. However, their patience quickly wears out.
Bench Warrant Nuts and Bolts
Despite the name, a bench warrant is more like a court order violation than an arrest warrant. It’s personal. So, when police officers learn about bench warrants, they must make arrests, at least in most jurisdictions.
Usually, police officers don’t learn about bench warrants for several months, or even several years. A data entry clerk doesn’t forward the bench warrant to law enforcement. Instead, the clerk enters the information into a database. The next time the defendant has a run-in with the law, usually at a traffic stop, the warrant pops up, and it’s off to jail.
Bench warrants, like other arrest warrants, do not have a statute of limitations. They remain valid until served.
Probation violation warrants are similar in many respects. These warrants go into the database and officers often serve them months or years later. When a probation violation warrant pops out, the officer doesn’t have a “go forth and sin no more” option to release the defendant, at least in most jurisdictions.
What Happens Next
After an officer serves a traffic ticket bench warrant, the process starts over at the beginning. This time, however, a key additional defense is usually available. In many cases, this defense is a silver bullet.
Since 2019, police officer resignations have increased 40 percent. The retirement rate has increased almost as much. The issuing officer, who is almost always the state’s only witness, must be available to testify at trial. No witness, no case.
However, we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. Before the matter goes back to court, a Marietta criminal defense lawyer must lift the warrant or arrange for the defendant’s voluntary surrender.
Lawyers almost always try the cheap and easy way first. Usually, an attorney can easily restore a bench warrant case to the docket, no matter how old that case is. Voluntary surrender is a last resort that’s almost never necessary, especially in traffic ticket matters.
Traffic tickets escalate quickly, and lawyers can de-escalate them even more quickly. For a free consultation with an experienced Marietta criminal defense lawyer, contact The Phillips Law Firm, LLC. Virtual, home, and after-hours visits are available.
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