In New York, if you receive a traffic ticket, or if you face a more serious traffic-related criminal charge, you must deal with the matter and resolve it. If you are charged with any traffic violation on Long Island or in New York City, contact a Nassau County traffic ticket attorney at once.
For how long does a traffic violation remain on your driving record in the State of New York? If you are ticketed for a traffic violation – or charged with a traffic-related crime – what are your legal rights? What steps can you take to avoid a conviction?
Keep reading this brief discussion of traffic violations, your rights, and the law in New York, and you’ll find the answers you may need, but if you are personally dealing with a traffic violation or a more serious charge, you must be advised and represented by a Nassau County traffic lawyer.
What Are the Facts About New York Traffic Tickets?
Tickets for speeding are the most frequently-issued traffic tickets in the State of New York, followed by tickets for running a red light or stop sign, driving an uninspected vehicle, driving without a valid license, and operating a cell phone while driving.
The New York City Police Department issues more traffic tickets than any other police agency in the state, followed by the Nassau County Police Department and the Suffolk County Police Department.
In terms of gender, male drivers receive almost three times as many traffic tickets as female drivers in New York, and in terms of age, drivers who are in their twenties receive far more traffic tickets in this state than motorists in any other age group.
How Long Do Violations Stay on Your New York Driving Record?
A hard copy of a motorist’s New York driving record is called a Driving Record Abstract. It lists the motorist’s license suspensions or revocations, traffic and traffic-related convictions, and any traffic accidents the driver has been involved in.
According to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, accidents you are involved in and most traffic violation convictions are displayed on your driving record for three additional years beyond the remainder of the year when the conviction or accident occurred.
Convictions for (DWI) Driving While Intoxicated in this state remain on someone’s driving record for fifteen years from the conviction date and permanently on someone’s RAP sheet. Convictions for (DWAI) Driving While Ability Impaired remain on someone’s driving record for ten years from the conviction date and permanently on someone’s RAP sheet.
A driver’s license suspension for a chemical test refusal stays on a driving record for five years from the suspension date. Criminal convictions for serious driving-related crimes (vehicular homicide, for example) may remain permanently on someone’s New York driving record and permanently on someone’s RAP sheet.
How Long Do Points Stay on Your Driving Record?
The Department of Motor Vehicles assigns points to drivers for traffic violation convictions. Here’s how the point system works. All traffic tickets in New York carry from two to eleven points – from the date of when the violation occurred.
If a driver compiles six or more points at any time, that driver will be required to pay a “Driver Responsibility Assessment” – $300 for the first six points and $75 for each additional point. Your license will be suspended if you compile eleven or more points in an 18-month period.
After 18 months, any points you have accumulated no longer count toward your total points for a Driver Responsibility Assessment or a driver’s license suspension. However, the points themselves will be seen on your driving record for as long as the conviction stays on your record.
How Should You Handle a Traffic Ticket?
By itself, a single traffic ticket may not seem that important, but if you ignore or overlook a ticket in this state, it could eventually become a serious legal problem. When you ignore a traffic ticket, the court will enter a default conviction against you.
After a default conviction, if you still don’t pay the fine, your license will be indefinitely suspended. You will still have to deal with the ticket, and you will be charged a separate penalty in order to have your driver’s license restored.
What Will a Traffic Lawyer Do on Your Behalf?
Never pay a traffic ticket in this state without fighting the charge first. Paying a ticket is the legal equivalent of pleading guilty, which will add points on your driving record and increase your automobile insurance rates.
If you receive a traffic ticket in Nassau County, Long Island or anywhere else in New York, you should understand that the laws and the court system in this state are so excessively complicated that it is for all practical purposes impossible to defend and represent yourself effectively.
However, a Nassau County traffic ticket attorney knows the system thoroughly and will work on your behalf for the best possible result. In several types of traffic cases, a traffic ticket attorney may convince a prosecutor or judge to offer you an acceptable plea agreement or dismiss the charge.
What Are the Possible Outcomes of a Traffic Ticket?
However, if you are issued a traffic ticket, you have the right to plead not guilty, and your attorney will work to have the charge reduced or dismissed. With the help of a Nassau County traffic lawyer:
- The charge could be reduced or dismissed.
- You could be entirely acquitted of the charge.
- If convicted, you could pay a lesser fine – or no fine whatsoever.
When You Receive a Traffic Ticket, What’s the Right Choice?
Contesting a traffic ticket in New York is always the right choice. The worst possible outcome of contesting a traffic ticket is that you will be convicted and pay the fine – just as you would have done if you had not contested the ticket.
But a Long Island traffic ticket attorney can often bring a traffic ticket case to a much better resolution. Every traffic ticket and traffic case is unique, so you’ll need a traffic ticket attorney who can provide you with aggressive, effective defense representation.
Every conviction for a moving violation adds points on your driving record and will most likely increase your insurance rates, so if you are ticketed on Long Island or in New York City, make the call promptly and arrange to discuss your case with a traffic ticket lawyer in Nassau County, Long Island.
