The Town of Herndon General District Court hears traffic cases on Wednesdays at 9:00 a.m. and cases are decided by a Fairfax County General District Court Judge. The Herndon Town Attorney handles the prosecution of these cases. If you receive a summons from the Town of Herndon Police for a ticket, your case will be heard at 765 Lynn Street, Herndon, Virginia 20170. Some traffic tickets are relatively minor while others can have a much larger impact on your record.
The roads in Herndon we see the most tickets written are Elden Street, Herndon Parkway, Sterling Road, Spring Street, and Van Buren Street. These roads are small and contain business and residential districts so the speed limit is lower in these areas. Because people are typically coming off of major roadways with higher speed limits it might not be obvious to realize the substantial dip in speed limits.
If you receive a ticket in the Town of Herndon you may be able to prepay the ticket. However this is a guilty plea to the charge so you may wish to contest the ticket to avoid DMV points and other consequences. If the ticket is not prepayable then the charge is more serious. In either case we recommend contacting our traffic attorney for a free consultation. In some cases we may recommend to simply prepay the ticket while, in other cases, we may recommend that we contest the ticket. For many cases we can appear for your Town of Herndon Court case on your behalf and handle the traffic case so you don't need to appear. Feel free to give us a call at 703-273-4100 or use the contact form below and we would be happy to speak with you.
Traffic Tickets in the Town of Herndon and DMV Points
The Virginia DMV issues demerit points depending on the severity of the traffic offense. Some tickets will result in more "points" than other tickets. For many people this can mean an increase in insurance rates for the driver which is why it isn't always a good idea to simply prepay the ticket or plead guilty to it. However, whether or not it is worth contesting the ticket and trying to achieve a better outcome depends on the specific case. For example, if the Town of Herndon Police Officer substantially reduces the charge for you on-scene then you're not as likely to get a better result in court. But in cases where you have a good driving record and there isn't anything aggravated in the case then it may be worthwhile hiring a traffic attorney.
The way our Herndon Traffic Attorney works around DMV demerit points is through negotiation with the Herndon Town Attorney or by argument to the Judge for a reduction of the charge to something else. For example, in many cases, we will seek a reduction of the original charge to Failure to Pay Full Time and Attention under Herndon Town Code 42-8. This is because that amended charge is a non-reportable offense for DMV purposes. As a result, it does not appear on the VA driving record so it doesn't affect DMV points.
Below are some of the cases we handle in Fairfax County which encompasses the Town of Herndon:
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)
Town of Herndon Court Process
The Town of Herndon Courthouse is a glass building that takes you underground and contains one courtroom. You can park in an adjacent parking deck or streetside. Upon entry into the courthouse there is security so it's best to be mindful of what you bring in. Cellphones are permitted in the courthouse. However, because the courtroom where you will be is underground, cell service is spotty. We always recommend people dress appropriately for court since you will be appearing before a Judge. We also recommend arriving at least 15 minutes prior to your court hearing so you have time to get settled in.
In the Town of Herndon (as with other jurisdictions), the Judge will call the docket by police officer. When the Judge calls your name they will ask if you plead guilty, no contest, or not guilty. The Judge will hear your case right away if you plead guilty or no contest and dispose of the case. If you plead not guilty then you are asking for a trial and your case will be "passed over" and heard towards the end of the docket with the other contested cases. In the event the case involves an accident, you have entered a not guilty plea, and it's the first-time in court the Judge will likely continue the case for witnesses so a trial can be had at a later date.
If your traffic ticket is a misdemeanor charge the Judge may recommend you request a continuance to reschedule your case to a later date so you can speak to an attorney. This is because you could face jail time, a loss license to drive, and a hefty fine. Judges can typically tell right away if the person should have a lawyer with them and will give them the opportunity to obtain representation. As with all jurisdictions the laws of Virginia apply to the Town of Herndon and so do the penalties.
For our clients their court experience will be different than that noted above. They will not need to address the Judge or Police Officer as we do that for them. In many cases our clients are not in court with us and we simply keep in touch with them by phone and by email. For those clients that are in court with us they simply wait patiently in the courthouse watching other cases. We will ask the Judge to call our case when we're ready. Typically we are ready once we have spoken to the Herndon Town Attorney and have either worked out an agreement or have decided to have a trial.
In the event the Judge finds you guilty of an offense you will likely be required to pay a fine and court costs. The clerk's window is just outside of the courtroom and payments can be made. You can also pay the fine and court costs later if you wish since you have at least 90 days to pay the fine and court costs. It is recommended you see the clerk before leaving even if you're not paying at that moment so you can obtain information on how to make payment either online, by mail, or by phone. For our clients we provide this information by email to them.
We Offer a Free Initial Consultation to Discuss your Town of Herndon Traffic Ticket
The Letnick Law Firm, PLC has handled thousands of traffic cases and we routinely appear in the Town of Herndon Courthouse. We understand that your case is important to you and it is important to us. We have over 150 reviews from prior clients because we care about our clients objectives. These objectives are discussed during your initial consultation and we absolutely pursue your case with them in mind.