Take a look at the December 2014 issue of Huntersville Magazine featuring Adkins Law PLLC. Adkins Law PLLC is located in Huntersville, North Carolina and primarily serves Mecklenburg County and the Lake Norman area. If you need to speak with a divorce attorney, traffic attorney, or estate planning attorney, contact Adkins Law PLLC. Did you receive a citation to appear in Mecklenburg County Courtroom 1130? Courtroom 1130, also referred to as first appearance court, is an administrative criminal court that handles misdemeanor and traffic cases. There are no trials held in this courtroom. Instead, this is where many cases are handled before they are required to go to district court. To handle the high volume of misdemeanor and traffic cases in Mecklenburg County, the state attempts to do the following in courtroom 1130: 1. Reduce traffic tickets at the discretion of an assistant district attorney 2. Accept pleas of guilty 3. Set trial dates when the defendant pleads not guilty 4. Advises defendants of their rights to a court appoint attorney 5. Provides defendants with options for enrollment in diversion programs such as defensive driving school, drug education school, deferred prosecution, worthless check program, and the dispute settlement program. If you have received a citation and are required to appear in courtroom 1130, it is highly advisable that you seek the assistance of a criminal defense attorney. If you would like to schedule a free consultation with a criminal defense attorney, please contact Adkins Law. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville and primarily serves Mecklenburg County and the greater Charlotte area. This is a common question: Do I have to come to court? In most cases, if you are represented by an attorney, you may waive your court appearance for your traffic ticket. Instead, your attorney appears on your behalf, handles your matter, and you never have to appear. Not having to miss work or school is a huge reason to hire a traffic lawyer to handle your traffic ticket. Not only may this save you money, more importantly, it saves you time. I’ve included the statute below, which authorizes waiver of appearance. § 15A-1011. Pleas in district and superior courts; waiver of appearance. (a) A defendant may plead not guilty, guilty, or no contest "(nolo contendere)." A plea may be received only from the defendant himself in open court except when:
(b) A defendant may plead no contest only with the consent of the prosecutor and the presiding judge. (c) Upon entry of a plea of guilty or no contest or after conviction on a plea of not guilty, the defendant may request permission to enter a plea of guilty or no contest as to other crimes with which he is charged in the same or another prosecutorial district as defined in G.S. 7A-60. A defendant may not enter any plea to crimes charged in another prosecutorial district as defined in G.S. 7A-60 unless the district attorney of that district consents in writing to the entry of such plea. The prosecutor or his representative may appear in person or by filing an affidavit as to the nature of the evidence gathered as to these other crimes. Entry of a plea under this subsection constitutes a waiver of venue. A superior court is granted jurisdiction to accept the plea, upon an appropriate indictment or information, even though the case may otherwise be within the exclusive original jurisdiction of the district court. A district court may accept pleas under this section only in cases within the original jurisdiction of the district court and in cases within the concurrent jurisdiction of the district and superior courts pursuant to G.S. 7A-272(c). (d) A defendant may execute a written waiver of appearance and plead not guilty and designate legal counsel to appear in his behalf in the following circumstances:
(e) In the event the judge shall permit the procedure set forth in the foregoing subsection (d), the State may offer evidence and the defendant may offer evidence, with right of cross-examination of witnesses, and the other procedures, including the right of the prosecutor to dismiss the charges, shall be the same as in any other criminal case, except for the absence of defendant. If you need legal advice regarding a traffic citation and would like to speak with a traffic lawyer at a law firm in Huntersville NC, please contact Adkins Law for a free traffic consultation. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville and primarily serves Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, and the Lake Norman area.
Did you get a traffic ticket in Mecklenburg County? Traffic tickets, especially moving violations such as speeding tickets, can be very expensive. The true cost of your traffic ticket is much more than your fine. Not only will you be assessed court costs, which are way more expensive that the fine itself, but your insurance rates will typically increase. If you get a speeding ticket in Mecklenburg County, you can expect to have points assessed against your insurance. These points are different than the points that are assessed against your driver’s license. Depending on your driving record, a traffic lawyer in Mecklenburg County may be able to have your speeding ticket reduced to a non-moving violation. A non-moving violation, such as improper equipment, prevents your insurance rates from increasing because no points are assessed against your insurance. Although the court costs and fines associated with an improper equipment violation are currently $263.00 in Mecklenburg County, preventing your insurance rates from increasing will save you hundreds of dollars or more over the long term. Plus, this keeps points off your insurance in the case of future traffic violations. If you got a traffic ticket in Mecklenburg County, contact Adkins Law PLLC for a free traffic consultation with a traffic lawyer. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville and primarily serves Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, Charlotte, and Mecklenburg County. Did you get a traffic ticket in Cornelius NC? With the road construction going on recently around I-77, it isn’t hard to do. The construction has caused severe traffic problems and delays in the area. In order to avoid the traffic problems, many people have made illegal turns, u-turns, red light, and stop sign violations. As a matter of fact, the Cornelius Police have been targeting the construction area near I-77 to issue traffic tickets. It’s quite easy to get frustrated waiting in traffic and make an unlawful, or what is perceived as unlawful, movement in order to escape the traffic. Should you hire a traffic lawyer to handle your traffic ticket in Cornelius NC? Traffic lawyers in Cornelius NC may assist you in a number of ways. First, many traffic tickets are moving violations, which lead to license and insurance points. Additional points on your license and insurance will cause your insurance rates to increase. This costs money. Instead of paying off a traffic ticket or attempting to handle the ticket yourself, consider hiring a traffic lawyer in Cornelius NC. A traffic lawyer can save you money by attempting to get your moving violation turned into a non-moving violation. Hiring a traffic ticket in Cornelius NC will also, often times, prevent you from having to go to court in Charlotte NC. Having to attend court means spending the better part of a day in Charlotte away from work. This can be frustrating and confusing. Thus, if you get a traffic ticket or traffic citation in Cornelius NC, consider hiring a traffic lawyer. Not only will your traffic lawyer attempt to get you a better deal, they will often save you an abundance of money in the long-term. If you are in need of a traffic lawyer in Cornelius NC, Huntersville NC, Davidson NC, or the Lake Norman area, contact Adkins Law PLLC. Adkins Law is located in Huntersville NC and serves the Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, and Charlotte area. Although the practice focuses on representation in Mecklenburg County, Adkins Law PLLC also represents individuals in Iredell County, Gaston County, Cabarrus County, and Rowan County. Please contact Adkins Law if you require assistance in handling a traffic citation or if you would like to speak directly to a traffic ticket lawyer. So you got a speeding ticket in Huntersville, NC? You really should consider hiring a traffic lawyer to handle the matter for you. A lawyer is able to go to court on your behalf and attempt to negotiate a deal for you. In most situations, you never have to come to court. Instead, your attorney may be able to handle the entire matter for you without you ever having to come to court. Depending on your driving history and the severity of your speeding ticket, a lawyer may be able to negotiate a deal where you plead guilty to a non-moving violation such as improper equipment. This benefits you because a non-moving violation will not assess points to your driver’s license or insurance. Over the long-term, this will save you a lot of money. The cost of hiring an attorney often isn’t cheap. Of course, traffic tickets aren’t cheap. The true, long-term cost of an average ticket in Mecklenburg County is somewhere around $1600. Instead of simply paying the citation off or negotiating what you may think is a good deal, consider speaking with a traffic attorney first. If a traffic lawyer is often able to negotiate a plea where you are only responsible for a non-moving violation, this will save you an abundance of money in the long run. Adkins Law PLLC is located in Huntersville, NC and primarily serves Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, Denver, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, Iredell County, Cabarrus County, Gaston County, and the Lake Norman area. Contact Adkins Law to speak directly to a DWI lawyer / DUI lawyer in the Huntersville, NC area. The real cost of a traffic ticket in Huntersville, NC is much more than the $30 or so fine. The true cost, over the course of the next three years, is going to be more like $1600. Your $30 traffic ticket for speeding also requires you to pay for court costs, which are usually $188. Additionally, if convicted for a moving violation, you'll be assessed points against your driving record and insurance points. These points will cause your insurance rates to increase dramatically over the next three years. Thus, with the additional court costs and insurance expenses, your traffic ticket will really cost you closer to $1600 than the nominal fine. Why are you telling me this? Primarily because a traffic attorney may be able to negotiate a better deal for you and avoid having points assessed against your license. Hiring an experienced traffic lawyer in Huntersville, NC for a traffic ticket will ensure that someone is trying to get you a better deal. Simply paying the fine and court costs will earn you a conviction on your driving record and an increase in insurance rates (for moving violations). A traffic lawyer may be able to negotiate your ticket to a non-moving violation such as improper equipment or at least get you a reduction in speed. Paying a traffic ticket attorney to do this for you may potentially save you a lot of money. Additionally, if your traffic ticket lawyer is able to have the ticket voluntarily dismissed, you won't be responsible for the fine and court costs. Instead, all you will pay is your attorney fees. Adkins Law PLLC is located in Huntersville, North Carolina and serves Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, Denver, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, Iredell County, Gaston County, Cabarrus County, and the Lake Norman area. Contact Adkins Law to schedule a free consultation with a traffic lawyer, traffic attorney, speeding ticket lawyer, traffic ticket lawyer in Huntersville, NC. |
Archives
January 2022
|