I once worked with a guy who found himself in traffic court in Northern Virginia. It was a full docket and he had to wait while those in front of him were processed. He noticed a disturbing pattern. Everyone preceding him was there to answer for reckless driving, and they were all getting jail time.
"You are hereby sentenced to 30 days in county lockup."
"But, Judge, I'll lose my job if I'm away that long." The judge looked at him.
"What would be your commute time from the courthouse?"
"Twenty minutes, Judge. Both ways."
"You have an 8 hour 40 minute pass every workday for the duration of your sentence. If you're late once, this will be rescinded and you'll spend the entire remainder of your sentence in lockup."
Ouch. Virginia takes its reckless driving statute seriously.
One day, Andrea was cruising through Virginia and her speed matched the tempo of her playlist. Out of the corner of her eye she caught the blur of a grey state trooper as she sped past. She looked down and realized she was flying. When she checked her mirror, the trooper was already in pursuit with lights flashing. She was clocked going 12 over the limit and so it became an automatic invitation to traffic court.
Based on my coworkers experience, we thought it prudent to hire a lawyer. On the designated court date well before Andrea's docket came up he was at least earning his fee. He pressed the flesh with everyone involved. He ascertained from the trooper that Andrea was not in any way belligerent and was in fact very polite and apologetic. With the prosecutor, he pointed out that this was her first offense and she hadn't had a moving violation in well over 5 years. He assured us everything would be OK, but I've watched enough Law & Order to realize that it's not over until the gavel falls.
It turned out well. She was fined with points, but the points could be mitigated by taking an online vehicle safety course. Our lawyer cautioned us that the first offense was relatively easy to mediate, but a second offense, not so much.
Consider this a PSA. If you find yourself on the I-95 corridor in Virginia, you'd be well advised to stick to the speed limit. Otherwise, you could find yourself 30 days in the hole as an honored guest of the State of Virginia. If that happens, I'll be a good wing man. Give me a call. I can at least get you burger....and a good lawyer.
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