Five Kinds of Reckless Driving in Virginia
Since 2014, the number of fatal traffic collisions in Virginia has increased 24 percent. To reverse this trend, many local law enforcement agencies actively target reckless drivers. A reckless driving citation is much worse than a traffic ticket. Reckless driving is a misdemeanor that carries the possibility of jail time. Additionally, reckless driving citations usually cause auto insurance rates to skyrocket. These matters have other collateral consequences as well.
For a Leesburg reckless driving lawyer, reducing a reckless driving citation to a simple traffic infraction is usually the number one goal of plea bargain negotiations. These negotiations resolve about 95 percent of criminal cases. So, in most cases, reckless driving defendants don’t need to go to court to reduce the impact of these citations.
Driving an Out-of-Control Vehicle
All vehicles must have brakes which are in good, working order and properly adjusted. Section 46.2-853 (driving vehicle which is not under control; faulty brakes) often applies to towed vehicles and overweight vehicles.
Trailers are vehicles too. They must have sufficient brakes which the towing driver is able to control. This section could also apply to vehicles towing disabled vehicles. Someone needs to be in the disabled vehicle to operate the brakes.
Trucking regulators routinely give weight waivers to overweight vehicles, such as semi-trucks carrying large construction equipment. However, these drivers must adjust their brakes to ensure the brakes are strong enough to manage the greater weight.
Unsafe Passing
The unsafe passing law is different in Virginia than most other states. Two-lane highways dominate much of outlying Northern Virginia, which is still mostly a semi-rural area. It’s always illegal to pass on the crest of a hill, even if that area isn’t a designated no-passing zone. Section 46.2-854 doesn’t apply on four-lane undivided highways.
Obstructed Driver View
Section 46.2-855 is similar to the infamous “dangling air freshener” law that Virginia and almost all other states have. The difference is that the dangling air freshener law, which also applies to religious artifacts and almost anything else that hangs from a rear view mirror, is a simple traffic ticket. Section 46.2-855 is a misdemeanor.
This law applies if the number of occupants in a vehicle exceeds the number of seat belts (usually two in the front seat and three in the back seat). Technically, these extra passengers must obstruct the driver’s view, and police officers almost always give testimony to that effect.
Passing at a Railroad Crossing
This section resembles the aforementioned hill-passing prohibition. Railroad crossings are always no-passing zones, whether or not they’re designated as such.
Speeding
Yes, speeding could be reckless driving in Virginia, if an officer feels that a driver “exceeds a reasonable speed under the circumstances and traffic conditions existing at the time, regardless of any posted speed limit.” These reckless driving citations are very common on old freeways in bad shape or during bad weather. Drivers who weave in and out of traffic, even if they aren’t exceeding the speed limit, could also receive Section 46.2-861 citations.
Reach Out to a Savvy Loudoun County Lawyer
There’s a big difference between an arrest and a conviction in criminal law. For a confidential consultation with an experienced criminal defense attorney in Leesburg, contact Simms Showers, LLP, Attorneys at Law. We routinely handle matters throughout Northern Virginia.
Source:
13newsnow.com/article/news/local/mycity/virginia-beach/virginia-traffic-fatalities-increase-24-over-past-decade-and-its-costing-the-commonwealth-billions/291-92ca47e7-54a0-459a-b578-9f6db01cf0d9
