The law was revised to include all emergency workers on the side of the highway, including tow truck drivers.  The revision took place on January first of this year.  So the best bet going forward is be aware of the any vehicles workers, etc. on the side of the road and get into the other lane!

As of July 12th, 2011, texting while driving is now a deemed primary offence which means law enforcement has the authoirty to pull you over if your texting. Prior to this change, the driver had to engage in some other illegal activity to be stopped and then the additional texting charge could be cited.

For more details, see the governor’s press release at:
http://www.governor.ny.gov/press/071211drivingwhiletexting

With summer on the doorstep, the road construction crews will be actively working and I expect the work areas will be heavily monitored by State and local police departments.

Speeding in a work zone can be very costly. If your convicted of violating NYS Vehicle & Traffic Law 1180(f), your fine will be double putting it in the neighborhood of $400. Also, two work zone speeding convictions within 18 months will result in license suspension. The points are calculated in the same manner as non-work zone speeds, so if your work zone violation is 6 points or more, you will have to pay the Driver’s Responsibility Assessment in addition to the fine.

Beware the work zones!

One of the most obvious legal issues is “who is driving the car”. New York City uses the camera to catch red light violators and I have been told this has been a problem. I represented a client in upstate New York on a speeding violation. She told me she had received one of these New York City red light ticket violations, and the photo showed she was not the operator of the vehicle. Regrettably, she paid the ticket versus fighting it, but after getting the subsequent speeding ticket, she was quit upset.

Locally, law enforcement has attached cameras to their police cruisers to catch drivers operating vehicles that have suspended registrations. I have received a number of calls for suspended registration matters for the Colonie Town Court and the Guilderland Town Court. One of my first questions to my prospective client was “what did you do to get pulled over? Was it speeding?” Now I am not surprised to hear “nothing”, “I was just pulled over and given the one ticket”. Sadly, the suspended registration ticket is a misdemeanor offence that is considered a crime in NYS. Registrations can be suspended for a variety of reasons, but insurance lapse, even for one day, is one of the most common causes. If you happen to receive one of these tickets, contact a traffic lawyer as soon as possible. If your not able to afford a lawyer, you may qualify for a public defender.

Unfortunately there is a lot of misinformed people on exactly what the course will do for you. The accident prevention course gives you a 4 point credit as you accumulate points to 11 points and license suspension. Contrary to what some may think, the course does not erase the 4 points or any convictions from your record. Your record will show both the course completion date and credit period as well as any convictions.

The accident prevention course will not prevent a mandatory suspension or revocation. For example, if your convicted of 3 speeds within an 18 month period, completing the course to reduce the points will not bar the revocation.

Completing the accident prevention course and obtaining the point reduction will not affect your requirement to pay a driver responsibility assessment. In NYS, driver’s who accumulate 6 or more points within an 18 month period are required to pay a civil penalty of $300 (more if its greater than 6 points). Completing the course will not prevent payment of the civil penalty.

Once you complete the accident prevention course, the credit is applied to the previous 18 months from the actual date of completion and may be applied against all violations that occurred in this particular time period. The course credit is never applied forward to any future violations.

There is good news in all this. The NYS DMV will accept the completion of on-line courses from DMV accredited providers. Information regarding these online courses can be found on the official NYS DMV web page at https://harmonia.dmv.state.ny.us/pirp/.

If you’re a NY driver who has received a speeding or traffic ticket and you have accumulated a number of convictions on your record, its best to secure a copy of your driving record from the NYS DMV, then call a skilled traffic lawyer right away!

The “pull over” law was established to protect law enforcement and emergency personal on the side of the roadway. It is found under section 1144(a) and states as follows:

§ 1144-a. Operation of vehicles when approaching a parked, stopped or
standing authorized emergency vehicle. Every operator of a motor vehicle
shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with an authorized emergency
vehicle which is parked, stopped or standing on the shoulder or any
portion of such highway and such authorized emergency vehicle is
displaying one or more red or combination red and white lights pursuant
to the provisions of paragraph two of subdivision forty-one of section
three hundred seventy-five of this chapter. For operators of motor
vehicles on parkways or controlled access highways, such due care shall
include, but not be limited to, moving from a lane which contains or is
immediately adjacent to the shoulder where such authorized emergency
vehicle displaying one or more red or combination red and white lights
pursuant to the provisions of paragraph two of subdivision forty-one of
section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter is parked, stopped or
standing to another lane, provided that such movement otherwise complies
with the requirements of this chapter including, but not limited to, the
provisions of sections eleven hundred ten of this title and eleven
hundred twenty-eight of this title.

This law is a two point violation, and as I have personally seen while traveling the Northway and the Thruway, is being aggressively enforced.

The cell phone law has been in effect for a few years now, but has been revised as a two point violation. It is found under section §1225-c. Use of mobile telephones. I suspect their will be a higher enforcement of the cell phone law, now that it has more teeth.

Driver’s charged with violating the “pull over” or cell phone law need to understand that the two points will be added to any prior convictions potentially leading to payment of the driver’s responsibility assessment, or suspension of driving privileges. It is still too soon to tell what the Courts and Prosecutors position’s will be in negotiating reductions of these violations.

In NY, the Judges are given discretion on the sentence of the fine. Some of the Courts I go to, the Judge will ask me at the bench if there is anything that should be considered when assessing the fine. I have had clients who have had minimal fines based on Military Duty or severe financial hardship or disability.

In the Albany NY area, most first time fines for low speed offences of 5 to 10 mph over the limit are usually between $200 and $300. First time convictions of 1110a, failure to obey a traffic control device will see a fine of $185 to $235. Seat belt and cell phone violations usually range from $135 to $185.

In addition to the fine is a Civil Penalty called the NYS Driver’s Responsibility Assessment. This penalty starts when a driver receives more than 6 points within an 18 month period. It goes by the date of violation, not the date of conviction. The penalty increases for every point over the 6 points within the 18 month time frame. The Penalty applies to all drivers, in state and out of state. So a driver who is convicted of a 6 point speed ( ex. 87 in a 65 zone) will pay the fine and the surcharge!

A guilty plea by mail can be very costly and can include a higher fine amount, a driver’s responsibility assessment and potential insurance increases. Many times it can be far cheaper to hire a lawyer to go to Court for you.

One of the hottest spots is located on the Northway (I87) in the transition area between the Town of Halfmoon and the Town of Colonie.  The regular posted speed limit for driving going south on (I87) is 65 mph until the speed drops to 55 mph just before the Thaddeus Kosciusko Bridge (also known as the Twin Bridges).  About a mile or two before the bridge, the Northway is a three lane road that has signs indicating the drop with flags showing the change.  Unfortunately a fair amount of drivers will travel slightly over the speed limit when the zone is 65.  When the zone changes and they fail to pay attention, they are pulled over by the New York State Police and ticketed for speeding. For example, if they were going 70 mph, and they do not slow down for the 55 mph zone, its a 4 point speed in NY.  A guilty plea to this 4 point speed results in a fine plus a surcharge and the insurance company possibly raising the insurance rates!  A conviction for a higher speeds such as 76 or 77 mph in a 55 zone, will result in a fine, surcharge and the requirement pay a New York Driver’s Responsibility Assessment of at least $300.

The second hottest spot that I know of where the speed limit changes and a huge number of tickets are issued is on I90, going west in the area of North Greenbush and the City of Albany.  Here to, the speed drops from 65 mph to 55 mph and those drivers whose speeds are wondering over the 65 mph speed limit are sure to see a ticket if they are moving along at 70 or 75 mph in a 55 mph zone.  What makes matters worse here is the posted speed limit has been decreased due to road construction.  A conviction for Speeding in a work zone results in a double fine (usually $300+).  Two work zone speeding convictions within an 18 month period will result in license suspension.

The only good news out of all this is if you happen to get ticketed for speeding in one of these two areas, a lawyer experienced in vehicle and traffic law can usually negotiate a reduction of some type, especially if the ticket did not involve a car accident and the driver has a clean record.  In my own experience in these Courts, I can say the Judges, Prosecutors and Court Clerks in the Albany City Court Traffic-Part, North Greenbush Town  Court, Colonie Town Court and the Halfmoon Town Court are among the best that I have ever had the chance to work with.