What To Do With A Traffic Ticket? Part 2

In our Part 1 we covered what you need to know after you a get a traffic ticket. In this part we shall be covering the procedure and severity of Part III infractions or Summons to appear in court. These are the traffic tickets or offence notices that do not have a set fine written on them and only identify a date that you have to go to court.

For traffic ticket charges such as driving without insurance that carries a minimum fine of $5000 in Ontario or other charges such as driving with a suspended drivers licence, speeding in excess of 49 kilometers over the speed limit, or any other charge for which there is no set fine or the police officer chooses to issue a summon, you need to appear in court to set a court date to fight your traffic ticket.

To really get to know how to fight a traffic ticket /Summon you need to what Summons are; Summon is type of a notice for traffic related offences that do not give you the 3 options of plead guilty, plead guilty with explanation or plead not guilty. After Summon to appear is issued, the issuing officer need to prepare a document referred as court information and file it with the court clerk. Then, on the day you appear in court, the Justice of the Peace will confirm the information on that form and you simply identify yourself. Although it is your option to enter a guilty plea, but it is not advisable and rarely practiced.

On the day you appear in court to set a date for your trial, you can also ask for your disclosure. If it is ready the prosecutor will you a copy of it and if not, then you have request it so after, so you can get it before your trail date to prepare for your trial.

A disclosure for traffic tickets issued is a document that has the notes of the police officer and any other information that will be used against you in court to prove you have committed that offence. Keep in mind that for fighting a traffic ticket in Toronto, Ontario you do not have to tell the prosecutor why you di what you they allege that you have done, but rather the onus is on the crown to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you have committed that offence. They can only do that with only relying on the information on the discourse and the police officer’s independent recollection which is always subject to being challenged.

Summons issued for traffic tickets are to be taken very seriously. If you do not attend court on the date mentioned on the summon, or send someone on your behalf to court on that date, a warrant for your arrest may be issued and you could be facing more charges than just a traffic ticket. Although it has been a common practice in courts in GTA to set a trial date in absence of the defendant, you still need to be present and do not take any chances by not showing up. The sentences for some of these offences can include fines in excess of $10,000 or imprisonment for up to 30 days or both.

Now, you know better about what to do with a traffic ticket issues by way of Summon to appear.