Traffic Lawyer in Virginia Beach

If you are charged with Reckless Driving in Virginia Beach then the government must establish that the officer was either in uniform or displaying their badge or displaying some other sign of authority. A relevant Virginia code section for this is §VA Code 46.2-102. The first paragraph of this code section states:

“State police officers and law-enforcement officers of every county, city, town, or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth shall enforce the provisions of this title punishable as felonies, misdemeanors, or traffic infractions. Additionally, notwithstanding § 52-22, state police officers may enforce local ordinances, adopted under subsection G of § 46.2-752, requiring the obtaining and displaying of local motor vehicle licenses. Fifty percent of the revenue collected from such enforcement shall be remitted by the locality to the Department of State Police and disposed of by the Department to cover its costs of operation. Every law-enforcement officer shall be uniformed at the time of the enforcement or shall display his badge or other sign of authority. All officers making arrests incident to the enforcement of this title shall be paid fixed salaries for their services and shall have no interest in, nor be permitted by law to accept the benefit of, any fine or fee resulting from the arrest or conviction of an offender against any provision of this title.”

Therefore, if you are in a trial for a Reckless Driving by Speed charge make sure that the officer says at least one of these things:

- They were in their uniform or

- They were displaying their badge or

- They were displaying some other sign(s) of their authority

If the officer fails to mention any of the above your lawyer should make a motion to dismiss.

*Please note, some Courts and Judges are reluctant to dismiss a case on this particular argument because the statute does not clearly spell out what Courts should or should not do in the event that an officer fails to establish that they complied with the above code section.

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