Negligent Driving, Second Degree
My question involves a traffic ticket from the state of: Washington
A couple of months ago in July, I was driving tired and as I came off the freeway I dozed off momentarily and rear-ended the car in front of me. The driver of the other car was hurt and had to be taken to the hospital.
Fast forward to today, I get a letter saying my driving privileges will be suspended if I don't handle a citation. I dig up some of the papers from the accident, realize one of them is a citation for Negligent Driving in the 2nd degree. Reason I hadn't known is cause nobody told me and most of the words (like instructions about what to do with the citation and such) were so faded the main things I could make out made me think it was an exchange of information sheet or something. Not a good excuse, I know, but in my distracted, emotional state that's how I overlooked it.
Given the circumstances, I don't disagree with the citation (in a lot of ways I probably got off easy and this could've been worse). But I'd just like to ask some questions and understand my situation/options.
- My license is a California driver's license (I was in Washington for an internship and I'm back home now). The letter only mentions any Washington licenses I have will be suspended. Can/Will Washington's Department of Licensing suspend my California license? Or does this just mean I can't legally drive in Washington?
- The base fine for this offense is $250. Reading some of the older threads, apparently the state tacks on a whole bunch of stuff, making it $550 on the citation. I'm looking at 46.63.110, trying to figure out where this $300 is coming from to no avail. Can someone clarify/is this worth figuring out?
- It's obviously past the 15 days now and I'm a thousand miles away. Is there any chance/option of negotiating the fine/making an appeal at this point like over the phone or by mail? Or do I just have to pay the $550 (plus late fee)? And if Washington can't suspend my license, what would be the consequences if I don't end up paying?
Thanks, any help would be appreciated.
Re: Negligent Driving, Second Degree
Your driving privileges in WA will be suspended as of the date on the notice. WA will forward this to CA. CA will probably either suspend your license or not allow it to be renewed. In either case, your days of legally driving will be over until you a) clear the citation, b) pay all the additional fines, and c) pay a "restoration" fee.
As far as the fine, if you look down ALL the way to the bottom line of RCW 46.63.110, you will see:
BTW, $550 is the correct total.
You will probably have to file a Motion to Set Aside Default Judgment. The best bet is to find an attorney up here to handle it for you (yes, this is going to be VERY expensive). But, first step is to call the Clerk of the Court listed on the citation and ask about options. If you find a helpful clerk, they may be able to help.
Barry
Re: Negligent Driving, Second Degree
Thanks for the quick response!
That makes about the license (although re: restoration fee - would I have to pay something like that if I take care of this before the suspension?)
Ah, so with the 70% and 50% fee (250 + .7 (250) + .5 (250) = 550), at least I know where the math is coming from now, though from the first page it sounds like there's going to be a bunch of administrative fees in addition to that as well.
And yea, I'll definitely be calling the clerk's office when they open, just wanted to have some clue as what my choices would be before I did so this helps a lot. Being totally in the dark about this kind of thing, I had no idea a motion to set aside the judgment was even an option. But do I really have cause to file a motion like that and what would an attorney be able to do for me at this juncture? It seems unlikely I'd be able to get the citation deferred or anything (or at least I don't see why it would be) and I still wouldn't be able to show up for any hearing. I don't want to end up in a situation where I'd have to pay a lawyer and the fine. >_>
Thanks again!
Re: Negligent Driving, Second Degree
The problem is that when you fail to respond, a "default" judgment of "guilty" is entered by the court, and your case is closed. In order to reopen the case, you must make a motion to set aside the judgment and reopen. THEN you have other options, such as a deferral, which is fairly automatic, assuming you're eligible (however, some jurisdictions will NOT grant one for a neg-2 ticket).
The reason I say use an attorney is that an attorney will know exactly how to word the motion, file it, argue it (if necessary), and -- hopefully -- get a reasonable outcome (such as a deferral, mitigation, or plea bargain). However, yes, you will probably have to pay the attorney AND some sort of fine. But, think about it -- you fell asleep! You could be dead, along with others!
The important thing now is keeping your license.
Barry
Re: Negligent Driving, Second Degree
Yea, I consider myself pretty lucky.
Called the clerk's office, they said my two options at this point are to pay the balance in full or to pay it in monthly installments.
I asked about the motion, the clerk said it's just for civil cases although according to this it seems like there's procedures for traffic infractions as well so she may have been misinformed, I dunno. The one thing she said I could do is send a letter to the court explaining my circumstances in the hopes of getting a court date, though she cautioned that was unlikely and that I could get an attorney but that still doesn't mean it'd be possible to set a date.
I'm a poor college student, but I do have enough saved up to pay the ticket, so I'm willing to do that if that's what it comes down to. And that would resolve the issue, I'd be out 602 dollars and I keep my license but have a mark on my driving record, which would presumably affect insurance premiums and such.
The other option is to hire an attorney and do what you've described. In both cases I pay x amount of money and keep my license, so the main difference is with regards to my driving record. As I understand from what I've read, the only way that goes away is if I get a deferral (mitigation means I pay less of a fine, plea bargain means I still plead guilty to some offense, I think). The insurance company already knows about the accident, could I be penalized twice by them-one for the accident, one for the citation? If not, I'd rather just pay the ticket and move on.
If so I'd probably still consider it. Though considering the circumstances (someone was hurt, cars were damaged, I was at fault), even with an otherwise clean driving record, I'm not sure someone would be able to argue that I wasn't deserving of the ticket. I don't think I could anyway, but obviously I'm no lawyer.
Do I have that all right? Am I underestimating my chances at a deferral? Are there other consequences to just paying the ticket that I haven't considered (like does a neg 2 affect prospective employment)? Is there any other benefit to the attorney option?
Thanks again for all your help and insight.
Re: Negligent Driving, Second Degree
King and Snohomish counties generally will not let you take a deferral for Neg 2. Not sure about Pierce, Thurston, Lewis, or Cowlitz (I5 corridor counties headed to Oregon). Falling asleep doesn't really fit neg 2 in my opinion; ANY driver could unintentionally fall asleep at the wheel -- however, the court's opinion may differ, and you did say you were "driving tired". I would also suggest an attorney. I got lucky on my Neg 2. I did not ever know that I had been ticketed after the fact. The officer lied and checked the box "ticket served on violator" after he said I would not receive a ticket, then filed one anyway, and never mailed it to me. I found out about it purely by coincidence while looking up a case for my wife. I went into the court as soon as I found it and waited until all the cases were finished, then asked the sitting judge to set aside the default and asked for a new trial. They went to look up my address and it wasn't even in the computer. I got my new trial and got it dismissed with an attorney.