Mississippi Traffic Fines

An Introduction to Mississippi Traffic Fines The State government of Mississippi takes traffic violations very seriously, and has been known to punish traffic violations with very severe Mississippi traffic fines. Everyone charged with a Mississippi traffic violation will have to consider whether to plead guilt to a traffic violation and therefore agree to pay the associated Mississippi traffic fine, or whether to fight it and potentially pay even more in court costs and lawyer fees. Some important elements to knowing whether or not to plead guilty is understanding what the Mississippi traffic fine is that you will be facing and understanding better the traffic court system. Here are a few tips to help you along the way. A Brief Sampling of Mississippi Traffic Fines Unfortunately, there is simply no such thing as essentially Mississippi traffic fines, the reason being that each local district and county has their own traffic laws and their own Mississippi traffic fines associated with those laws. You’ll absolutely need to check with your own local court to see what the traffic fine is that you might have to pay. However, you might also be able to get an idea of what the Mississippi traffic fine will be based on the fees given out by Jackson, Mississippi’s largest city. Here are a few of Jackson’s Mississippi traffic fees: • Driving 10 miles per hour above the posted speed limit: $168.50 • Driving 20 miles per hour above the posted speed limit: $238.50 • Ignoring stop signs, traffic lights, and railroad crossing: $183.50 • Improper passing as well as improper turning, including failure to signal: $158.50 Please not that these are some of the heftiest traffic fees inflected throughout the entirety of the United States of America, and your county may not be any more lenient. The curious may also want to know that no publicly-available formula dictates how much the Mississippi traffic fine will be for each particular speed over the limit. The number is set arbitrarily per speed. Accepting Mississippi Traffic Fines Depending on the charge filed against you and the county in which it is filed, you will have anywhere from ten days to thirty days to respond to your ticket. If you plead not guilty, a trial date will be set and you will appear in court on a specific date. If you plead guilty, then you should be able to pay simply through the mail, with your Mississippi traffic fee mailed to you for your convenience. Starting in 2006, the State of Mississippi began offering traffic school courses. The advantage of this is that, if you enroll, you can have your record cleaned of previous violations. Beware, though, that traffic school has a price, which means enrolling may in effect be a second Mississippi traffic fine. On the plus side, traffic school as well as defensive driving courses may lower your monthly insurance payments by a great deal over time.