Traffic tickets issued in the City of Fairfax are heard in the Fairfax City General District Court at City Hall on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:30 a.m. The Fairfax City General District Court is located at 10455 Armstrong Street, Room 100, Fairfax, VA 22030. There is only one courtroom. All traffic cases are heard by a Fairfax County General District Court Judge. The Fairfax City Prosecutor handles the prosecution of these cases. We routinely handle Fairfax City traffic cases and offer a free consultation to discuss your case. We handle these cases because many tickets can have a substantial impact on your driving record. This is because many tickets issued in Fairfax City carry DMV points that can affect your vehicle insurance. Or, if you drive for a living, tickets can affect your employment. In misdemeanor traffic offenses the consequences are even greater. Feel free to give us a call at 703-273-4100 or use the contact form. In many cases we can appear for your case on your behalf so you don't need to appear in court.
How a Traffic Lawyer Can Help with your Fairfax City Ticket
Because most traffic tickets issued in Fairfax City carry DMV points we want to do our best to avoid that scenario or at least minimize it. We contest tickets by sitting down with the Fairfax City Prosecutor and Police Officer to discuss an alternative outcome. Depending on the charge we may negotiate for a reduction to a no-point offense such as Failure to Pay Full Time and Attention under the Fairfax City Code. This happens a lot in cases when a client is charged with going through a stop sign, a u-turn violation, a general speeding, or some other minor offense. In the event the client is facing a misdemeanor charge or an infraction that is more aggravated we may be simply negotiating for a reduction to something that may carry DMV points but of which isn't as severe. The key here is resolving the case in such as way that is better than a Judge would do. In the event we feel we would obtain a better result from the Judge than that is exactly what we will seek to do.
However, not every ticket needs to be contested. Sometimes, the Fairfax City Police Officer will write a ticket for a reduced offense at the scene of the stop and prepayment may be the best course of action depending on the charge. But prepaying a traffic ticket is essentially a guilty plea to the charge so it is important to talk to a traffic lawyer before prepaying the ticket. For example, if you are stopped for speeding but the Police Officer charges you with Failure to Pay Full Time and Attention under the Fairfax City Code, in most cases, this should be prepaid because the offense does not go on the DMV record. Other cases we see involve a person stopped for a high-speed but the Police Officer charges them with failure to obey a highway sign. Again, we need to speak to the person first but in many cases we will recommend prepayment. Our traffic lawyer has handled thousands of traffic tickets and will help you understand your charge and how we can help.
In those cases where we believe we can help, we will want to get some more information. If, for example, you have received a ticket for speeding, it will be important to know the speed alleged, your driving record, and any information about where you were headed and traffic conditions. Any conversation with the police officer should be discussed as well. After speaking about the case we will then want to discuss whether a trial is appropriate or putting together a mitigation package for court. In most cases, traffic tickets in Fairfax City are resolved by plea agreement for a reduced offense with the Fairfax City Prosecutor. Below are some of the cases we handle:
3-point violations:
- Speeding 1-9 mph above the posted speed limit (5 years on driving record)
- Impeding Traffic/Driving Too Slow (3 years)
- Improper passing on the right (3 years)
- Improper turn (3 years)
- Improper Lane Change (3 years)
- Improper U-turn (3 years)
- Improper Driving (3 years)
- Violation of right turn on red (3 years)
- Violation of left turn on red (3 years)
- Driving without lights/excessive lights (3 years)
- Fail to Obey Highway Sign (3 years)
- Stopping on a Highway (3 years)
- Evading Traffic Control Device (3 years)
- Driving Without a License (3 years)
- Hit and Run (3 years) (Damage to Unattended Property)
- Holding a Cellphone While Driving (3 years)
- Watching Television While Driving (3 years)
4-point violations:
- Speeding 10-19 mph above the posted speed limit (5 years)
- Failure to yield right-of-way (3 years)
- Following too closely (3 years)
- Improper signal (3 years)
- Disregard Crossing Guard (3 years)
- Passing stopped school bus (non-reckless)(3 years)
- Failure to obey traffic signal (3 years)
- Hit and Run (3 years or 11 years) (Damage to Unattended Property less than or more than $500)
6-point violations:
- Speeding 20 mph or more above the posted speed limit (5 years)
- Reckless Driving (11 years)
- Driving While License Suspended (11 years)
- DUI/DWI (11 years)
- Eluding (3 years or 11 years)
- Hit and Run (11 years) (Injury to Person or Damage to Property $1,000 or more)
Preparing for your Court Hearing in Fairfax City
Whenever our clients have a traffic ticket, we always prepare them for court whether or not they plan to appear with us. In most cases, we want to prepare a mitigation package for the court date. Case preparation depends on the charge but, many times, it will involve our client taking a defensive driving course before court either in-person or online. In some speeding cases, a speedometer calibration may be important to check for the accuracy of the speedometer. In some cases involving young drivers, there are some Judges that believe that a person's youth works against them due to their inexperience in driving so we may recommend that some community service be done for court.
In addition, to our so-called "legal mitigation," we like to have background information about our client if possible as well. This may mean getting a copy of a high-school or college transcript to show our client is in school, has a license to teach, has a license to practice medicine, or by showing that our client has a security clearance that may impacted by the case. In other cases our client may be a stay-at-home mom with children they care for and were simply running family errands on the day they were ticketed and we want the court to know that. In any case, it is important to humanize our clients before the court so that they're not simply another "defendant." We always have our clients thoroughly prepared for court so that they can obtain the best result possible.
Talk to a Traffic Lawyer about your Fairfax City Ticket
Do not hesitate to reach out to us if you simply have questions or want help for your case. All consultations are free. You can give us a call anytime Monday through Friday or simply use the "contact our firm" form and we will quickly get in touch with you. The Fairfax City General District Court is a municipal court but has the same penalties as every other court in Virginia. So it is important to handle the case with that in mind.