Traffic Tickets

In fact, if just one inch of your bumper is past the first white line of the crosswalk when the light turns from yellow to red, you are not guilty. With camera tickets, this can be challenged at trial, because there is a video that can be reviewed. Unfortunately, when the ticket is given by an officer it usually comes down to your word against the word of the officer. This can be a difficult battle to win.

A person will often be charged with VC 21453 (a) ‘running a red light’ when they make a right turn and fail to come to a complete stop. Making a “California stop” on a right turn can be charged by the officer in several different ways. The officer can charge it as VC 21461(a), failure to obey a sign, which is a general catch-all that can be used for many illegal maneuvers. The officer can also write the ticket for a violation of VC 21453(b), which deals specifically with right hand turns on a red. Or, of course they can charge it as a VC 21453(a). The difference is that the first two charges carry a $35 base fine and result in a ticket almost half the cost of the VC 21453(a).