The following is an all too common scenario for many New York drivers:
While on vacation, you received a speeding ticket for travelling 70 mph in
a 55-mph zone. You tucked the ticket in your glove compartment and continued on
your merry way. Within a short time, the ticket, fine and/or court appearance
were forgotten. Just last week, a NY State trooper stops you for violating the
new NY Move Over Law, VTL 1144-a NY. The police officer checks your license and
discovers that you failed to appear for the previous speeding ticket. Your
license was suspended by DMV. Though you were pulled over for a relatively
routine traffic violation, you are now facing a criminal charge for driving with
a suspended license.
If you have been charged with driving on a suspended license, instead of facing just fines and points you could be facing jail time.
VTL 226(3) prescribes two very serious penalties for failure to appear in court. First, VTL 226(3)(a) says that if a person fails to appear at a hearing, his driver’s license, registration or driving privileges may be suspended.
Second, VTL 226(3)(b) states that when a person fails to appear at a hearing, it will be considered an admission to the charges that he faced.
In relation to our hypothetical, when you failed to appear in court at the date and time stated on the speeding ticket that you received in December 2010, your driving privileges were suspended and you might have been found guilty of the speeding charge in absentia.
Now, when you were stopped for violating the NY Move Over Law, you are facing a charge of aggravated unlicensed operation (AUO) of a motor vehicle, i.e. driving on a suspended license.
VTL 511 says that a person operating a motor vehicle while his license is suspended or revoked faces a criminal charge that varies depending on whether the offense is in the first, second or third degree.
Fines and Charges For Failure to Appear in Court
The minimum fine is $200 to $500 and the jail sentence can span from 30 days up to whatever time is prescribed.
If you faced VTL 511(1)(b), which is aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the third degree, conviction for such a charge could result in a minimum fine of $200 and 30 days in prison.
Needless to say, a simple forgetting of a speeding ticket may result in a very serious criminal charge and attempting to combat such criminal matters without an attorney is NOT recommended.
New York Suspended License Defense
An aggressive NY traffic attorney has proven methods to properly handle AUO tickets. First, an attorney can resolve any outstanding tickets that brought about the suspension. This is a critical step because resolution of the ticket that caused the suspension can lead to reinstatement of your driving privileges.
Secondly, the attorney will handle all court appearances and attempt to
negotiate reduced charges for the AUO offense. The importance of hiring an
experienced and aggressive cannot be underestimated if you failed to appear for
a traffic violation. The Rosenblum Law Firm has a proven track record resolving
these matters.
Call the Rosenblum Law Firm today at 1-888-883-5529.
The Rosenblum Law Firm, P.C. 110 Great Oaks Blvd. Albany, NY 12203 TOLL FREE : 1-888-883-5529 Local : 518-690-0445 Albany Law Office
The Rosenblum Law Firm, P.C. 777 Passaic Ave. Suite 290 Clifton NJ 07012 TOLL FREE : 1-888-883-5529 Clifton New Jersey Law Office
The Rosenblum Law firm fights speeding ticket cases in all of New York and New Jersey including Albany County, Rockland County, Orange County, Erie County, Westchester County and Onondaga County in New York and the New Jersey counties of Bergen County, Essex County, Hunterdon County, Union County, Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Ocean County, Cape May County and Hudson County. This includes the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, Syracuse, Ft. Montgomery, Mount Ivy, Nanuet, Ramapo, Jersey City, Paterson, Jersey, Elizabeth, Paramus, Saddle Brook, East Orange, Union, Hillside, Woodbridge, Tinton Falls, Wall, Toms River, Stafford, Cape May and Fort Lee and others near the following roads: Palisades Interstate Parkway, US 6, US 9 W, US 202, I-87, I-287, Route 67, I-95, US 1-9, US 46, Garden State Parkway, Route 17, I-80, I-280, I-78, I-95, US 9, Route 440, Route 18, Route 36, I-95, Route 37, Route 72 and Route 109.
