Client was driving home after a long day at work around midnight.  They work very long hours and were tired and simply trying to get home.  Unfortunately they got stopped by a State Trooper for driving 96mph in a 55mph zone on I-95 and received a ticket for reckless driving.  Client said the trooper was very nice but that a speed of 96mph is too excessive.  This case posed a problem for the client because they had a Commercial Driver's License and 96mph is considered very fast.  At this speed people face a potential jail sentence, loss of license, and a misdemeanor conviction.

Our client was a resident of Washington, DC and had a clean driving record.  We recommended our client take both a defensive driving course and reckless driving course.  Many Fairfax County Judges will not allow a reduction from reckless driving when speeds are over 92mph so we recommended our client get their speedometer calibrated.  Sure enough their speedometer was off about 5mph in their favor.

After discussing the case with the Prosecutor and going over the ramifications this charge would have for our client the Prosecutor agreed to lower the speed to 91mph and to amend the charge from reckless driving to speeding.  We still needed a Judge to accept this reduction so we brought the state trooper with us before the Judge and they told the Judge they had no problem with a reduction given everything they had done for court.  Our client was also polite to the trooper at the scene.  After thinking about it the Judge agreed to allow the charge to be reduced to speeding.  This reduction avoids a conviction for a misdemeanor and will, instead, be a speeding infraction.  This reduction should save the client's job and is a reminder why it's important to have a traffic attorney with you in court.