Understanding the Charge Step 1: What Does the Law Say?

If you want to fight your ticket, or if you are trying to decide whether you should, the first thing you should do is find out what you are charged with—that is, not just what your ticket claims you have done but the exact words of the law that you are charged with breaking. In some states, traffic laws are set out in a “Vehicle Code,” while in others they are gathered as part of a “Transportation Code,” “Motor Vehicle Laws,” or under some similar name. No two states have exactly the same traffic laws, but most are very similar.

Look for a number on your ticket that corresponds to the law (often called a “statute” or “vehicle code section”) you are charged with violating. Sometimes it will be hand printed by the officer in a box or blank; other times it’s preprinted on the ticket, with the officer simply checking the appropriate box. In either case, near the statute number you will often find a very short description of the law (for example, “VC [Vehicle Code Section] 22350— exceeding posted speed”). For speeding violations, in most states you’ll also find the speed the officer claims you were going, as well as the posted speed limit on the road where you were stopped.

Next, you should look up and read the law the officer claims you violated.

Using the Internet

The easiest way to find your state’s traffic laws is online. On your state’s website, you can either do a search for the code number of the law or you can scroll through the index of laws usually highlighted on the state’s home page.

Another option is to use a search engine such as Google. Locate the name of your state and the name of the code or the title of the law. For example, searching for “Vermont excessive speed” results in several entries for Vermont Code § 1097, which set out the law regarding excessive speed.

Be sure you are reading current law. Many websites publish state laws, but they don’t always update them when the laws change. Your best bet is to double check the law at your state’s website. These are most likely to be up to date.

Useful Internet Resources

Perhaps the most useful non-state website is the Legal Information Institute website at Cornell Law School has links to many states’ motor vehicle (traffic) codes. Nolo also offers good tips on legal research at their website.

There are several other websites where groups and individuals provide traffic-ticket fighting strategies and information. Some of the best are:

• www.motorists.org
• www.speedtrap.org
• www.radartest.com

Use Public and Law Libraries

If using the internet isn’t an option for you – or if you just like using books, most libraries have copies of their state’s vehicle laws. This could range anywhere from a single dog-eared volume containing just the fine-print text of traffic laws to a complete multi-volume set of all the state’s laws. The bigger the library, the more likely it is to have a more comprehensive collection. It’s a good idea to call the reference librarian to see what’s available before making a trip. In most states you can usually use a courthouse or public law school law library, which will almost surely have a complete set of laws. Often the easiest way to find the text of the law you are charged with is to show your ticket to the research librarian and ask for directions to the proper book.

Read the Law Carefully

Once you find the law you are charged with, read it carefully to determine which facts the prosecution will have to prove to convict you. Many laws are complex. In fact, they are often so convoluted that it’s not uncommon to find, upon careful reading, that what you did was not, technically speaking, a violation of the exact words of the statute. Always ask yourself the question: What are the elements (or parts) of the offense I am charged with committing?

For example, in most states the law making U-turns illegal reads like this:

No person in a residence district shall make a U‑turn when any other vehicle is approaching from either direction within 200 feet, except at an intersection when the approaching vehicle is controlled by an official traffic-control device.

You should break this law down into its elements by drawing a line between each clause, like this:

No person in a residence district / shall make a U-turn / when any other vehicle is approaching from either direction / within 200 feet / except at an intersection / when the approaching vehicle / is controlled / by an official traffic-control device.

Focusing on each element of a law is often the key to unlocking an effective defense. That’s because to be found guilty of having made this illegal U-turn, the state must prove you violated every element of the offense. In this case, the state would have to show specifically that:

• You were driving in a “residence district”
• You drove your vehicle in a 180-degree turn, or “U-turn”
• Another vehicle was approaching within 200 feet or fewer, in front of or behind you, and
• An “official traffic-control device” at an “intersection” was not controlling the vehicle approaching you.

If you can show that your conduct didn’t violate any element of a traffic law, then the law was not violated and the charge should be dismissed. For example, you should be found not guilty if the area where you were ticketed was not a “residence district,” or the vehicle the officer claims was approaching was more than 200 feet away, or you were at an intersection controlled by an “official traffic control device.”

This type of word-by-word reading of statutes may seem hyper-technical, but it is commonly employed by lawyers and judges. The American legal system is built on the concept that you are innocent unless the state can prove you committed some clearly defined conduct—for example, driving a motor vehicle faster than 65 mph on a public road. (Note, that even if you conclude you really have violated every element of a law, your case is not hopeless.)

What Next?

If, after doing this, you are not certain whether you can challenge the law, there are further steps you can take to find out.  See Step 2: More Research. If at this point you know you can challenge the law, the next step is to decide whether it’s worth your time and energy, read 6 Ways to Fight Your Traffic Ticket. 

Excerpted and adapted from Beat Your Ticket: Go to Court & Win, by David W. Brown (Nolo).