By requesting a mitigation by mail hearing, you are admitting the infraction(s) for which you were cited and asking the court to reduce the fine. When you request mitigation by mail, you will have an opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding the violation to a Judge or Court Commissioner, as well as send any documents or photos you wish them to review. You are not required to submit a written explanation. The court will consider your explanation, if any, as well as your driving record, and the report filed by the officer in determining whether to reduce the fine. You cannot appeal the court’s decision from a mitigation hearing. Even if the court reduces your fine, it will still appear on your driving record. Failing to pay the fine by the deadline given by the court, or arranging a payment plan, may result in your license being suspended. 

If you were cited for driving without insurance and you provide proof of valid insurance covering the date you were cited, the court will dismiss the count with a $25 administrative fee. If you did not have valid insurance when you were cited but show proof that you obtained insurance after your citation, the court will reduce your fine. 

Please note, the following infractions may not be mitigated: Speeding in a School Zone, Speeding in a Construction Zone, Failure to Initially Register Vehicle, Failure to Yield to Emergency Vehicle, and Passing a School Bus with Red Light Flashing. 

You may be eligible for deferred findings, which could keep the infraction off your driving record. You can request deferred findings by mail/email or in person. See the following page for more information about deferred findings. 

If you are not admitting that you committed the infraction(s), please contact the court to arrange a contested hearing instead.

At your hearing, a judicial officer will determine whether the City or State has proven you committed your infraction(s) by a “preponderance of the evidence” (more likely than not). To make this determination, the judicial officer will consider the narrative report that was written by the officer who cited you. You may present evidence on your own behalf and call your own witnesses. You do not have a right to a jury. 

The officer who cited you, and any other witnesses listed in the officer’s report, will not be present unless you serve a subpoena on the officer/witnesses to appear. You may contact the Clark County District Court for a subpoena form. Any witness must be served at least 7 days prior to your hearing date and a copy of your subpoena request AND proof of service of the subpoena must be filed with the court and prosecutors’ offices. 

You may request Discovery of the citing officer’s narrative report and of the prosecutor’s list of witnesses. A discovery request must be served on the City/County Prosecutor’s Office at least 14 days before your hearing and a copy must be filed with the District Court. 

You have the right to appeal the court’s decision if the court finds your infraction committed. A notice of appeal must be filed with the District Court within 30 days of the court’s decision. 

If the court finds your infraction to be committed, a record of the court’s decision will be furnished to the Department of Licensing and you will be responsible for paying the full ticket amount

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 and the infraction will be found committed.

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.