I was in Culpeper General District Court the other day to handle a reckless driving by speed ticket for my client. I was simply shocked at what I saw happen.
Another defense attorney got up to handle his case before the judge. It was a driver’s license violation of some type. He apparently had an agreement with the Commonwealth to reduce the charge to no operator’s license in possession, yet he seemed to have no clue what the Code section was (46.2-104) or that it’s just a statutory $10 fine.
If you’re not a Virginia traffic lawyer, this may not seem like a big deal. But it’s HUGE!
There are three routine license violations in Virginia traffic court:
46.2-301 – driving on a suspended license – This is the most serious, and it routinely carries jail time as a real punishment.
46.2-300 – driving without a valid license – This is still a misdemeanor violation, but we can try to avoid jail time.
46.2-104 – no license in possession – This is just a traffic ticket with a statutory fine of $10.
Anytime I’m defending a license offense, I of course try to beat the charge completely. But if that’s not possible, I at least try to reduce the charge to a lesser offense.
Thus, any traffic defense lawyer really MUST know these different statutes, their penalties, and how to navigate them to get the best possible result.