Infractions

Any person requested or signaled to stop by a law enforcement officer for a traffic violation has a duty to stop, identify himself/herself and provide their current address. Failure to comply with these duties is a misdemeanor.

A response to an infraction must be within thirty (30) days from the date issued. Any response must be postmarked by midnight of the day it is due at the court. There are several options when an infraction is received:

In addition, the option to mitigate, contest and defer an infraction is available through the mail. Infractions contested by mail cannot be appealed.

Examples of infractions: Speeding violations, Expired Tags, Fail to Stop and No Liability Insurance.

Deferred Findings**

The deferred findings program allows you to keep your infraction(s) off your record and get it dismissed. If you qualify for the deferred findings program, you will be required to pay a $150.00 non-refundable administrative fee. The court will set your ticket aside for one year. So long as you pay the administrative fee and do not get any other traffic infractions during the one-year deferral period, your ticket will be dismissed after one year. If you commit another traffic infraction within the one year deferral period, your original fine will become due.

You may not receive more than one deferred finding every 7 years for a moving violation or more than one deferred finding every 7 years for a non-moving violation. You are eligible for the deferred findings program if: you are not a CDL holder, you were not driving a commercial vehicle at the time of the infraction, you were not cited for Negligent Driving Second Degree-Vulnerable User, and you have not received a deferred finding within the past seven years.

The court may require the following additional information to consider you for the deferred findings program:

  • If you have an out-of-state license, you must provide a copy of your driver’s license.
  • If you were cited for Driving Without Proof of Insurance, Failure to Initially Register Vehicle, or Failure to Renew Registration, you must provide proof that your vehicle is now insured or is now properly registered.
  • If you were cited for Negligent Driving in the Second Degree, the court may require proof that you have completed any Washington certified Safe Driving level one course.