If you received a traffic ticket and wish to fight it in court, you’ll need a variety of documents to support your arguments. NC traffic attorneys frequently recommend obtaining a certified copy of your driving record, as the court may not accept a non-certified driving record if you need to introduce your record into evidence in your case.
Before going to traffic court to dispute a citation, understanding how NC driving records work can help you build a case strategy. Contact the team at Kreger Brodish today to discuss your case and get support from an experienced NC traffic attorney serving Greensboro, Raleigh, and Durham.
Do You Legally Need Your Driving Record in NC Traffic Court?
Although you aren’t required to bring your driving record when going to NC traffic court, having a copy on hand can help you argue specific aspects of your case. For example, you may face enhanced penalties for a conviction due to prior offenses.
Having access to your driving record will enable you to demonstrate to the court that you do not have any predicate offenses that may increase penalties. Even though the court can request a copy of your driving record, having your own may prove vital if you discover discrepancies between your copy and the court’s copy. However, because the court may not acknowledge the accuracy of a non-certified copy of your driver record, you may need to bring a certified copy instead.
Understanding Your North Carolina Driving Record
A North Carolina driving record will include the following:
- The first part of the report will indicate whether you have obtained a certified or non-certified copy of your report. You will have an easier time presenting a certified copy of a driving record as evidence in court.The next part will list your basic information, including your name, address, date of birth, height, hair/eye color, sex, race, license number, and the total number of points on your driving record.
- The next part will state the current status of your driver’s license (i.e., active, expired, suspended, or cancelled).
- The next part provides specific details about your license, such as the date of issuance, the expiration date, and any restrictions applicable to your license (i.e., corrective lens requirement).
- The next part of the document contains the details of your driving record, listing any violations you have incurred or any reported accidents you have had.
- Each violation entry will list the date of the charge, the date of disposition of the charge, the nature of the disposition (e.g., dismissed, conviction, reduced charge), the type of violation, and the points imposed. Entries about accidents may indicate whether a crash resulted in personal injuries or whether the driver received points for the accident. Each entry will also list case file numbers for the violation or accident.
- Finally, when you obtain a certified copy of your driving record, the last portion will contain the signature of the North Carolina Commissioner of Motor Vehicles certifying the accuracy and veracity of the document.
Why Bringing Your Certified Driving Record Can Be Beneficial
Some of the advantages of bringing a certified copy of your driving record to traffic court in North Carolina include the following:
- Arguing for More Lenient Penalties Due to Your Lack of Prior Offenses – When your driving record contains no previous offenses, you might have a stronger argument with the court to reduce the penalties for a first offense.
- Avoiding Sentencing Enhancements for Prior Offenses – When the law allows for or requires enhanced penalties for repeat offenses, having a copy of your record can help you raise a factual dispute as to whether your record contains the predicate offenses for an enhanced sentence.
- Avoiding License Suspensions – Accumulating enough points on your driving record can result in a suspension of your driving privileges. Presenting your record in traffic court can help demonstrate to the court that a conviction does not exceed the threshold for suspension.
- Challenging Allegations of a Traffic Violation – Having a copy of your driving record that shows your clean history free of infractions may help you secure a dismissal of a citation, especially in cases where the issuing officer fails to appear in court to testify about the infraction.
How to Obtain Your Certified North Carolina Driving Recor
In North Carolina, you can request a copy of your certified driving record online, by mail, or in person at the Vehicle Registration offices in Raleigh or Huntersville. For online requests, you must have a valid North Carolina driver’s license or ID card. You will need to provide your first and last name, date of birth, driver’s license number, and Social Security number, TIN, or U.S. visa number.
North Carolina charges an $18 fee to request certified copies of driving records. Requesting a record online will also incur a $3 per transaction fee plus a 1.85 percent fee for paying by credit or debit card. Mail-in requests or in person requests do not incur transaction fees, but requesters must pay the $18 by check or money order.
What If You Don’t Have Your Record?
If you go to traffic court without a copy of your driving record, the court can obtain a copy of your record if needed to resolve an issue in your case. However, the copy obtained by the court may contain inaccurate information.
Without a certified copy of your record that you have confirmed as accurate, you may have a more challenging time arguing to the court that it has inaccurate information if the copy of your driving record that it obtains includes erroneous information.
Key Takeaways for NC Traffic Court
Although a driving record may not play a role in proving guilt or innocence for an alleged traffic violation, your driving record may play a role in the traffic court’s sentencing determination. As a result, you can best protect your interests and put yourself in the best position to obtain a favorable outcome in a traffic court hearing by obtaining a certified copy of your driving record and bringing it with you to court.
Contact Our NC Traffic Attorneys to Learn More
Contact Kreger Brodish today for a confidential consultation with a traffic attorney in Durham, NC. We’ll help you learn more about the differences between certified and non-certified driving records, as well as discuss the role that these records may play when fighting a traffic violation in North Carolina.
