Q: My boyfriend is on court supervision for a year for a speeding ticket for going 40mph over

A: Hello Asker,

I'm glad your taking this seriously as it can seriously harm his privileges. With regards to his previous supervision, he was found guilty of a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and or $2,500 fine. A condition of his supervision was that he receive no future violations during the supervision period. Failing to comply with this can empower the prosecuting agency to revoke his supervision and resentence him on the original offense. In practice, jail is rare for these types of offenses and most resentencing matters for traffic tickets for speeding tend to result in his supervision becoming a conviction with a potentially higher fine. Depending on the courthouse, it may be possible for an attorney to smooth over this violation and keep his supervision intact by appearing on the termination date but the odds aren't good considering his failure to carry insurance, unlike the failure to yield, was no accident.

As for his new tickets, the bigger concern may well be dealing with the potential for suspension. Depending on his age and whether he has received an insurance ticket before, he may be at high risk for a suspension. My recommendation would be to call an attorney who can investigate further based upon his record what is the risk posed to his license.

Hope that helps and let us know if you have additional traffic law questions.

Sincerely,

Jason A. Wilkins

Traffic Attorney

(630) 445-2293

A: Well, for starters he should invest in getting the advice of a lawyer who handles tickets and suspensions.This is no longer d.i.y. time. Some of what will happen will depend on the terms of the Court's order. He's looking at a suspension both for not having insurance and an additional for screwing up big time. Jail unlikely but if he drives under suspension the Court will figure he didn't pay attention so they need the 2x4 of jail time to get his attention. He could enlist.....

A: Hello Asker,

That's a very good question. Court supervision requires that he not receive any tickets for the duration of his supervision period, pay all fines, and complete any other obligations required like traffic school or community service. Failing to do one or more of these requirements successfully empowers the prosecutor to file what is known as a petition to revoke supervision. This enables the judge to resentence him up to the maximum punishment on the offense. The class A speeding ticket is punishable by up to $2,500 fine and/or 1 year in jail. In practice, this maximum punishment is rarely applied. In your boyfriend's case, the most likely outcome will be a conviction on a criminal misdemeanor and potentially higher fines. Rarely would I anticipate jail.

That said, Peter is correct that it is not advised to go in without at least speaking to a lawyer first who can review the facts of the case with him. Resentencing can result in vastly increased insurance rates (and he will need to get them following this or face suspension), potentially being dropped from his policy, and obtaining a criminal record. For these reasons, it is advised that you seek out representation on the day his supervision is set to terminate to attempt negotiate a better outcome for him.

I hope that helps and let us know if you have any further questions.

Sincerely,

Jason A. Wilkins

Traffic Attorney

(630) 445-2293