Articles Posted in St. Louis Traffic Tickets

Yes, there is a possibility to still drive to work or school if your driver’s license has been suspended. But there are very specific rules that govern how the suspension works in the state of Missouri. This means that it is absolutely in your best interest to find an experienced traffic attorney to help you in the process.

If your license has been suspended, it is most likely due to having accumulated too many points on your driving record. You are assessed points when you receive a traffic citation for having violated the motor vehicle laws in Missouri. The term ‘points’ is a bit of a misnomer, though. When people initially hear that word, they automatically think that it is something good (like scoring points for your team). But in the context of traffic tickets (like speeding, illegal lane change, etc.), points are a bad thing (and you should really think of them as strikes). The more points that accumulate in a short period of time, the greater the likelihood that you will have your license suspended (or even revoked). In addition, it is also a really good way to have your automobile insurance go up (which is just another added expense to your already difficult budget).

But if this has happened, and your license has been suspended as a result, then you can apply for what is called a Restricted Driving Permit. This permit can be had if you have served at least thirty (30) days of your license suspension. It will allow you to drive for the limited purposes of getting to work, school, medical appointments, and other essential daily activities. You do not have to fill out any special form for this, as your local motor vehicle office can issue the permit on its own. But you will have to provide them with what is called an SR-22 form, which shows that you have proper vehicular insurance to drive. This restricted driving permit is valid for sixty (60) days’ time.

Assuming you want to get your privileges back, there are a few things you should do in such a situation. The state of Missouri will allow the opportunity to reinstate your driver’s license, but it depends on why your privileges were revoked in the first place.

Let’s say you have had your license suspended or revoked because of too many points on your record from speeding tickets (each time you are cited for a traffic violation, a certain number of points are assessed against your driving record; as they build up over time, the state will eventually impose a stiffer penalty). This can happen in a number of ways, but here a few examples: if you accumulate eight (8) points in eighteen (18) months, your driving privileges will be suspended for thirty (30) days if it is the first suspension, sixty (60) days if it is the second suspension, and ninety (90) days if it is the third suspension. If you accumulate twelve (12) points in twelve (12) months, eighteen (18) points in twenty-four (24) months, or twenty-four (24) points in thirty-six (36) months, your driving privileges will be revoked for one year.

If this is the situation in which you find yourself, the procedure moving forward would to file an SR-22 form (which proves up automobile insurance), and maintain such proof of liability insurance for two years from the starting date of your suspension/revocation, and pay a $20.00 fine.

Yes, an officer can do that if he/she deems the situation calls for it. A common example would be when you get pulled over for speeding, and when the policeman asks to see your proof of insurance, you realize that you have forgotten where it is. This is a great opportunity for the officer to write two citations (one for driving in excess of the posted speed limit, and no proof of automobile insurance).

Of course, this does not mean that your license is going to be taken away from you. Even the best of us get caught from time to time speeding; and it’s not terribly unusual for someone to forget to put their new insurance card in the glove compartment. And the courts recognize this fact, which is exactly why they give you the chance to make up for it.

At this point, you have three choices: 1) you can simply sign the back of the ticket, pay the associated fine, and be done with it; 2) you can try and challenge the ticket in court at a designated hearing, in front of the judge and against the prosecutor; or 3) you can hire an experienced attorney to take care of everything for you.

An FCC ticket stands for Fine Collection Center. This is the department in Jefferson City, MO, that handles traffic tickets that have been issued by State Highway Patrol Officers. This kind of ticket does not come with a court date (as you can expect to see on a typical citation from a local police officer). Rather, it will simply tell you that the fine is ‘Due in 30 days.’

Of course, one option that you have at this point is to simply mail in the amount of money to the collection center in order to pay off the fine. This will certainly take care of the ticket, but it will not prevent ‘points’ being assessed against your driving record. For each traffic violation, a certain number of points are put on your record (it is probably better to think of them as ‘strikes’ as opposed to ‘points,’ because that kind of gives the impression that you have scored something!). As these points accumulate over time, it is probable that your automobile insurance premiums will go up, and it is also possible that you could lose your license to drive. For instance, if you are pulled over by a HYPO for speeding, three (3) points are assessed for such an infraction in Missouri.

There is, however, a better way to deal with these traffic tickets. An experienced lawyer can get the moving violation (i.e. driving in excess of the posted speed limit) reduced to a non-moving violation (like excessive noise or illegal parking). This has the double effect of preventing any points from attaching to your driving record (because no points are assessed for a non-moving violations), and your insurance rates will not be adversely affected.

Yes, there is a possibility that this could happen if you are cited for multiple infractions that appear on your driving record. The key to avoiding this outcome is to make sure that these infractions never make onto your record in the first place. That is where an effective attorney becomes invaluable.

If you are pulled over, receive a ticket for a moving violation, and simply pay the associated fine, the ticket is certainly taken care of. But each time this occurs, the citation is placed on your driving record, and a certain number of ‘points’ are assessed against you. The more points that are assessed, the greater the risk of your driver’s license being either suspended or revoked (not to mention a higher insurance premium). For instance, if you receive four (4) points in the span of twelve (12) months, the Missouri Department of Revenue will you a notification of the fact that you are accumulating a lot of points. This is a sort of warning letter. If you get eight (8) points in eighteen (18) months, the Department of Revenue will suspend your driving privileges (for a minimum of thiry (30) days, and up to ninety (90) days, depending on how many more you receive in that timeframe).

A full revocation of driving privileges can occur in the following situations: twelve (12) or more points in twelve (12) months; eighteen (18) or more points in twenty-four (24) months; twenty-four (24) or more points in thirty-six (36) months. If any of these accumulations occur in the set out timeframe, the Department of Revenue can revoke your license for one (1) year.