RECENT BLOG POSTS
New Virginia Driving Laws are Now in Effect (as of July 1, 2021)
Photo by Giammarco on UnsplashAs of July 1, 2021, there are several new traffic law amendments that greatly widen legal protections for drivers in the Commonwealth of Virginia. (Last year's notable traffic law changes were summarized in this previous post from 2020.) Up until now, police officers in Virginia routinely used “equipment violations” to justify traffic stops for Driving Under the Influence and Driving While Intoxicated (DUI/DWI) investigation purposes. But with brand new legislation now effective, the Virginia General Assembly has severely restricted a police officer’s authority to pull a driver over for an equipment violation alone. These new amendments may now give drivers charged with Driving Under the Influence or Driving While Intoxicated (DUI/DWI) under § 18.2-266 a...
Holding a Phone Prohibited While Driving in Virginia
Photo by Alexandre Boucher on UnsplashAs of January 1, 2021, Virginia makes merely holding a cell phone while driving unlawful under Virginia Code § 46.2-818.2. The penalty for a first time offense is $125 and the penalty goes up to $250 for a second offense or if the offense occurred in a work zone. The law reads as follows: A. It is unlawful for any person, while driving a moving motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth, to hold a handheld personal communications device. B. The provisions of this section shall not apply to: 1. The operator of any emergency vehicle while he is engaged in the performance of his official duties; 2. An operator who is lawfully parked or stopped; 3. Any person using a handheld personal communications device to report an emergency; 4. The use of an...
Reckless Driving for Failing to Give Proper Signals
Photo by Tim Gouw on UnsplashOf all the different ways a person can be charged with reckless driving in Virginia, a reckless driving charge for failing to give proper signals is one of the more rare ones used. This law is codified under Virginia Code § 46.2-860 and is very short, being only one sentence. "A person shall be guilty of reckless driving who fails to give adequate and timely signals of intention to turn, partly turn, slow down, or stop, as required by Article 6 (§ 46.2-848 et seq.) of this chapter." As innocent as it may seem to fail to give a proper signal, any charge of reckless driving is still considered a class 1 misdemeanor under Virginia law and carries with it the possibility of harsh penalties, including up to a year in jail, up to a $2,500 fine, and a potential...
Virginia State Police Enforcement of Reckless Driving
Recently, the Virginia State Police have taken to Twitter to show that they are enforcing traffic laws in the Hampton Roads area. They recently tweeted a snippet of a traffic summons for a driver in Norfolk charged with reckless driving by speed at 131 mph in a 55 mph zone. With an alleged speed differential of 76 mph, if the Trooper can prove his case, it will be likely that the judge will impose active jail time on the driver. Yes, you’re reading this traffic summonses correctly... a #VSP Trooper stopped a vehicle on I-564 in #Norfolk for 131 mph in a posted 55 mph. #ExcessiveSpeedKills #Drive2SaveLives #SlowDown pic.twitter.com/3l4zyr8joT — VA State Police (@VSPPIO) June 13, 2021 Please be warned that judges are tough on speeding in Virginia! In many jurisdictions in Virginia, judges...
March-April 2021 Case Results: RD by speed avoided at 98 mph and 95 mph, RD racing avoided at 107 mph, misdemeanor eluding charge avoided, and Elevated BAC on a DUI 2nd kept out.
DISCLAIMER – EACH CASE IS UNIQUE AND CASE RESULTS DEPEND ON YOUR INDIVIDUAL SITUATION. CASE RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN ANY FUTURE CASE UNDERTAKEN BY THE LAWYER. Below we feature a sampling of notable case results for March and April of 2021. We helped clients avoid reckless driving convictions for speeds as high as 98 mph (Chesapeake GDC) and 95 mph (Virginia Beach GDC), and avoid jail for speeds as high as 100 mph (Northampton GDC). Clients also avoided misdemeanors for reckless driving for racing at 107 mph (Norfolk GDC), failure to appear (Virginia Beach GDC), no operator's license (Virginia Beach GDC), eluding the police (Southampton GDC), and misdemeanor tunnel height violation (Hampton GDC). A client with a DUI 2nd offense avoided additional mandatory...
Reckless Driving for Failure to Yield Right of Way
Photo by James Coleman on UnsplashVirginia makes it a reckless driving offense for failing to yield the right of way. Most of the time that we see this type of reckless driving charge it is because an accident occurred. Specifically, Virginia Code § 46.2-863 states: A person shall be guilty of reckless driving who fails to bring his vehicle to a stop immediately before entering a highway from a side road when there is traffic approaching on such highway within 500 feet of such point of entrance, unless (i) a "Yield Right-of-Way" sign is posted or (ii) where such sign is posted, fails, upon entering such highway, to yield the right-of-way to the driver of a vehicle approaching on such highway from either direction. It is interesting to note that law enforcement could have charged the same...
Why I Enjoy Being a Criminal Defense Attorney
When I first started doing criminal defense work a decade ago, family and friends would wonder how I could with a clear conscience defend guilty people. How is that standing up for justice? Although I do defend some guilty people, I would rephrase the question to, “Why would I want to defend those charged with crimes?” Notice that I did not say that I defend criminals because not all my clients are criminals. Not all of my clients are guilty of the crime for which they are accused. I am however a lawyer who specializes in being a defender of the accused, each and every time we face a trial. Consider our client Keith, who was charged with reckless driving by speed for going 116 mph when he was in fact innocent. The officer pulled over the wrong person and Keith found himself on the...
January-February 2021 Case Results: Felony Destruction of Property, Felony Eluding, Racing, DUI 2nd, and Reckless Driving Charges Avoided
DISCLAIMER – EACH CASE IS UNIQUE AND CASE RESULTS DEPEND ON YOUR INDIVIDUAL SITUATION. CASE RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN ANY FUTURE CASE UNDERTAKEN BY THE LAWYER. Below we feature a sampling of case results for January and February of 2021. We avoided convictions for racing (a type of reckless driving charge), felony eluding, felony destruction of property, misdemeanor hit and run, reckless driving by speed for speeds as high as 116/55, driving under suspended license, no operator's license, and more. Dismissals occurred in cities such as Virginia Beach, Hampton, Norfolk, Suffolk, Accomack, and Portsmouth. Notable cases: January 5, 2021, Norfolk GDC 85/55 RD reduced to 19 over. January 7, Virginia Beach GDC 104/55 RD, no active jail time or license suspension....
Why Everyone Needs a Dashcam: My Client’s Story of Being Charged With 116 mph in a 55 mph Zone
What would you do if you were wrongfully stopped by a police officer and charged with a jailable offense when you were actually doing nothing wrong? This happened to my client on July 5, 2020 on his way to the midnight shift at Norfolk Naval Base on I-564. Keith was driving to his work shift but was not in a rush. As a military service member for 18 years, he had it ingrained from military training to arrive early and be ahead. Keith was stopped by a Norfolk police officer shortly after 11:00 p.m. and his life was interrupted. Thankfully the officer didn’t arrest Keith on the spot and take him to jail. Instead, Keith was summoned to appear in Norfolk General District Court and charged with going 116 mph in a 55 mph zone! In Virginia, it is not uncommon for judges to give jail time for...
November-December 2020 Case Results: Felony Hit and Run, DUI’s and Reckless Driving by Speed Avoided
DISCLAIMER – EACH CASE IS UNIQUE AND CASE RESULTS DEPEND ON YOUR INDIVIDUAL SITUATION. CASE RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE OR PREDICT A SIMILAR RESULT IN ANY FUTURE CASE UNDERTAKEN BY THE LAWYER. Below we feature a sampling of case results for November and December of 2020. We avoided convictions for felony hit and run, driving under the influence (DUI), reckless driving by speed, possession of marijuana, failure to appear in court, no operator's license, and more. Dismissals occurred in cities such as Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Northampton, Accomack, Newport News, Hampton and Suffolk. Notable cases: Driving Under the Influence (DUI's) avoided on November 30 (Hampton General District Court) and December 2 (Virginia Beach General District Court). Attorney Braden Carroll put on a...