Excess Speed Prince William Virginia Lawyer Reckless Driving
Excess Speed Prince William Virginia Lawyer Reckless Driving
Philips v. Commonwealth
Facts:
Defendant was driving on a highway in the Commonwealth in excess of eighty miles per hour. As a result, he was issued a summons for reckless driving by speed. The trial court conducted a trial on the charge. At the close of the evidence, the Commonwealth proffered a jury instruction instructing the jury that in order to find him guilty of reckless driving by speed, the jury had to find beyond a reasonable doubt that James was traveling on a public highway and that he was traveling in excess of eighty miles per hour. Jury in the Circuit Court of Prince William County convicted defendant of reckless driving by speed, in violation of Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-862. Defendant appealed.
Excess Speed Prince William Virginia Lawyer
Issue:
- Whether the trial court erred in denying his proposed jury instruction that improper driving, an offense set forth in Code § 46.2-869, is a lesser-included offense of reckless driving by speed?
Discussion:
The Court held that the improper driving was not a lesser-included offense of reckless driving by speed. Every commission of reckless driving by speed did not also constitute improper driving. In addition, improper driving was not composed entirely of the elements of reckless driving by speed. Improper driving required an additional finding of slight culpability, an element excluded from § 46.2-862. The plain and unambiguous reading of § 46.2-869 made clear that authority rested with the trial judge and not the jury to make the lesser degree of culpability determination. In the alternative, an attorney for the Commonwealth may have reduced a reckless driving charge to improper driving at any time before the court’s decision. Thus, only the trial judge, or the prosecutor before the verdict was rendered, had the prerogative to reduce a reckless driving charge to improper driving under § 46.2-869. For these reasons, this court affirmed the judgment of the trial court.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket.
A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Reckless Driving Lee Virginia Lawyer Speeding Prosecution
Reckless Driving Lee Virginia Lawyer Speeding Prosecution
Jeffery v. Commonwealth
Facts:
Defendant was charged with driving while intoxicated and issued a summons for speeding.
Reckless Driving Lee Virginia Lawyer
Issue:
- Whether the defendant’s speeding violation constituted reckless driving under Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-862 and that her prosecution for driving while intoxicated was therefore barred
Discussion:
Defendant contended that her speeding violation constituted reckless driving under Va. Code Ann. § 46.2-862 and that her prosecution for driving while intoxicated was therefore barred by Va. Code Ann. § 19.2-294.1, which prohibited conviction of both reckless driving and driving while intoxicated where both charges arose out of the same act or acts. The Commonwealth contended that the offense to which defendant pleaded guilty was simply a speeding offense for which a bond could be posted and not the reckless driving offense contemplated by Virginia law. However, the court held that, because defendant was charged with speeding at a rate that constituted reckless driving, the prosecution of the case against her for driving while intoxicated was barred by § 19.2-294.1. The court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss, which it treated as a plea in bar.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket.
A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Speeding Fairfax Virginia Lawyer Evidence Summons Offense
Speeding Fairfax Virginia Lawyer Evidence Summons Offense
Greener v. Commonwealth
Facts:
Defendant challenged the judgment of the General District Court for the County of Fairfax (Virginia), which convicted defendant of speeding. The charge identified the location of the offense as one county, but at trial, defendant presented evidence that it occurred in a different county.
Speeding Fairfax Virginia Lawyer
Issue:
- Whether the defendant was guilty of speeding in the county as charged in the summons?
Discussions:
At the conclusion of the Commonwealth’s evidence and again at the conclusion of the trial, defendant moved to strike the evidence and dismiss the charge based upon the evidence presented that the offense had in fact occurred in a county other than the one indicated on the summons. On this point, the evidence of the Commonwealth and that of defendant were in conflict. At the conclusion of all of the evidence and after defendant moved to strike the Commonwealth’s evidence that the attorney for the Commonwealth moved to conform the summons to the evidence. The court reversed and held that under Va. Code Ann. § 16.1-137, a court’s discretion in amending or issuing a new warrant in order to conform the warrant to the proof was not unlimited. When the evidence was concluded and defendant’s motion to strike was made, the court was bound to take the warrant as it then read. Throughout the trial, defendant had challenged the venue of the prosecution and accordingly, under Va. Code Ann. § 19.1-244, any question of venue was not waived. The court concluded that the defendant was not guilty of speeding in the county as charged in the summons, and dismissed the charge.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket.
A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Speeding Chesterfield Virginia Lawyer Calibration Evidence
Speeding Chesterfield Virginia Lawyer Calibration Evidence
Julian v. Commonwealth
Facts:
Defendant appealed a judgment of the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County (Virginia), which convicted him of speeding in violation of Va. Code Ann. § 46.1-193.
Speeding Chesterfield Virginia Lawyer Calibration Evidence
Issue:
- Whether the defendant was prejudiced as the summons incorrectly identified the subsection of the statute under which defendant was charged?
Discussion:
Defendant was convicted of speeding, despite evidence that his speedometer was incorrectly calibrated. On appeal, the court affirmed. The court held that although the summons incorrectly identified the subsection of the statute under which defendant was charged, defendant was not prejudiced because the summons gave him notice of the speeding offense. The court further held that Va. Code Ann. § 46.1-193.1 did not require the trial court to instruct the jury that if defendant’s speedometer was improperly calibrated, then the jury must find defendant not guilty, nor did it make knowledge or intent an element of the speeding charge. The trial court correctly instructed the jury that a police officer’s radar check established a prima facie case of speeding, and that the jury should consider whether defendant’s calibration evidence established his innocence. Finally, the court held that the trial court correctly advised the jury to disregard defendant’s reference to court costs in its closing arguments, because court costs were irrelevant to the offense. The court affirmed the trial court’s conviction of defendant for speeding.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket.
A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Traffic Stop Virginia Drugs Cocaine Lawyers Brunswick County
Traffic Stop Virginia Drugs Cocaine Lawyers Brunswick County
Mc. RENOLD v. COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
Facts:
A police officer observed a pickup truck with an inoperative brake light. He stopped the vehicle and intending to issue Ellis a summons for inoperative brake light. The officer recalled that Ellis and her passenger had a “previous narcotics history.” This conversation took about a minute. On his way back to his vehicle, the officer called for a canine narcotics unit to assist him. He then got back into his vehicle to issue the summons for the equipment violation. The canine narcotics unit arrived and searched Ellis and discovered cocaine. Ellis was convicted by the Circuit Court of the City of Virginia Beach of possession of cocaine.
Traffic Stop Virginia Drugs Cocaine Lawyers
Issue:
- Whether the trial court erred in fails to suppress the evidence of cocaine found on her person during a traffic stop?
Discussion:
The court held that “the officer’s one-minute conversation about drugs cannot be characterized as an exploitive, unconstitutional act. Where a seizure of a person is based on probable cause to believe that a traffic violation was committed, an officer does not violate the Fourth Amendment by asking a few questions about matters unrelated to the traffic violation, even if this conversation briefly extends the length of the detention. Ellis consented to a search while being detained by an officer having probable cause to issue her a citation for a malfunctioning brake light. The drug dog’s multiple alerts and Ellis’s subsequent consent took place before the officer completed the paperwork necessary for issuing a summons for the equipment violation. The brief, incremental delay caused by the officer’s questions regarding drugs did not violate the Fourth Amendment and, a fortiori, did not constitute an exploitive basis for securing Ellis’s consent.” This court finds that no error in trial court reasoning or result, affirmed the trial court judgment.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket. A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Suspended License Virginia Traffic Violation Unlawful Driving Lawyers Louisa County
Suspended License Virginia Traffic Violation Unlawful Driving Lawyers Louisa County
JOHN V COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
Facts:
Defendant “involved in a traffic violation” in Louisa County and issued him a summons for reckless driving. At the time, defendant had a valid operator’s license in his possession. The trooper later determined that defendant’s privileges to operate a motor vehicle had been suspended by an order of the Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) issued on October 19, 1977. The trooper then obtained a warrant charging defendant with unlawfully operating “a motor vehicle on [a] public highway after his privilege to drive had been suspended.” Defendant sought review of the judgment of the Circuit Court of Louisa County (Virginia), which convicted defendant of perjury in contravention of Va. Code § 18.2-434 in connection with his testimony at trial on a charge of driving a motor vehicle on a public highway after his privilege to drive had been suspended. Defendant testified at that trial that he had not received notice that his driving license had been suspended. Defendant was given a traffic citation for reckless driving, and had a valid driver’s license in his possession. The state trooper later determined that defendant’s license had been suspended at the time of the citation. The trooper obtained a warrant charging defendant with driving with a suspended license.
Suspended License Virginia Traffic Violation Unlawful Driving Lawyers
Issues:
- Whether the language of the order accomplishes a suspension of defendant’s driver’s license?
Discussion:
At trial, defendant testified that he had not received notice that his license had been suspended, and the charge was dismissed. Defendant was later indicted for perjury, and the evidence adduced at trial showed that a Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) employee had personally advised defendant that his license had been suspended, and the evidence further showed that a copy of the suspension order had been mailed to and received by defendant. Defendant was convicted and sought review. The court affirmed. Defendant argued that his statement was not false because the notice letter was so vague that it did not advise him that his license was suspended. The court found that the letter was a DMV form letter in which inapplicable terms had not been crossed out, but held that when viewed in its entirety, the letter was sufficient to notify defendant that his license was suspended. The court affirmed defendant’s conviction for perjury over his objection that he did not falsely state that he did not know his driver’s license was suspended because the DMV notice letter was so vague that it did not advise him of the suspension.
The SRIS Law Group Virginia lawyers will do their best to help you with your traffic ticket. Contact a Virginia lawyer from our firm to discuss your traffic ticket. A Virginia lawyer from our firm will talk with you about your traffic ticket in Virginia and advise you about your options. You can count on a lawyer from our firm to try their best to help you obtain the best result possible based on the facts of your case.
We have client meeting locations in Fairfax County, Prince William, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Fredericksburg & Lynchburg.
Article written by A Sris
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm’s unofficial views of the Justices’ opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
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