Washington Traffic Ticket Lawyer

A Washington traffic ticket can feel like a small hassle, but it can cost you more than the fine. Tickets go on your driving record, can raise what you pay for insurance, and too many in a short time can cost you your license. I’m Kris Carrasco, a traffic ticket lawyer in Vancouver, WA, and I help drivers in Clark County and across Southwest Washington decide how to handle a ticket.

What a Traffic Infraction Is

Most tickets for speeding, running a red light, following too closely, or using a phone while driving are called traffic infractions. In Washington, an infraction is not a crime, and you can’t be sent to jail for one (RCW 46.63.060(2)(b)). The penalty is a fine, but the ticket also goes on your driving record.

The ticket itself is the officer’s finding that you committed the infraction. If you don’t do anything about it, that finding becomes final.

Traffic Tickets for CDL Drivers

If you have a commercial driver’s license (CDL), a Washington traffic ticket can put your job at risk. Washington law treats some tickets as “serious traffic violations” for CDL holders (RCW 46.25.010), including:

Speeding 15 mph or more over the limit
Reckless driving
Texting or holding a phone while driving
A traffic violation connected to a crash where someone died
Driving a commercial vehicle without a CDL or the right endorsement

If you get a second serious violation within three years while driving a commercial vehicle, you can be disqualified from driving one for at least 60 days. A third means at least 120 days. Earlier violations count toward that total even if you got them in your personal car (RCW 46.25.090). A reckless driving conviction after a prior serious violation brings the same disqualification, no matter what you were driving. Railroad crossing violations and driving in violation of an out of service order bring their own disqualifications.

For a CDL holder, just paying the ticket counts the same as a conviction (RCW 46.25.010). If you drive for a living, call me before you respond to any ticket.

Your Options After a Washington Traffic Ticket

You have 30 days from the date of the ticket to respond (RCW 46.63.070). In general, you can:

Pay the ticket. This means you accept it, and it goes on your driving record.
Accept the ticket and ask for a payment plan. If you can’t pay the full fine right now, you can accept the ticket, say that you can’t pay it in full, and set up a payment plan (RCW 46.63.060, 46.63.190). The ticket still goes on your record.
Ask for a mitigation hearing. You accept the ticket but explain the circumstances to a judge, who may lower the fine. The ticket still goes on your record.
Ask for a contested hearing. You deny the ticket, and the state has to prove you committed it. You can ask for the officer who wrote the ticket to be there.

Paying a ticket often feels like the easiest choice, but it isn’t always the cheapest one over time. The right choice depends on your driving record, your job, and how many other tickets you’ve had lately.

A Lawyer Can Often Go to Court for You

Washington law lets you have a lawyer in a traffic ticket case (RCW 46.63.080). In many cases, your lawyer can go to the hearing for you, so you don’t have to take time off work or drive back to the courthouse.

What Happens If You Ignore a Ticket

If you don’t respond to a ticket or you miss your hearing, the court will enter the fine against you and notify the Department of Licensing (RCW 46.63.070). For a moving violation, the Department of Licensing will then suspend your license until the case is resolved (RCW 46.20.289).

Driving while your license is suspended for that reason is a crime: driving while license suspended in the third degree (RCW 46.20.342). For a parking ticket, the state can refuse to renew your vehicle registration until the ticket is taken care of (RCW 46.63.060). A ticket you ignore can turn into a much bigger problem.

How Traffic Tickets Affect Your License

Moving violations add up. The Department of Licensing will suspend your license for 60 days if you have three or more moving violations within one year, or four or more within two years (RCW 46.20.2892). Several tickets from the same traffic stop count as one.

After the suspension, you’re on probation for one year. Another moving violation during that year means another suspension of 30 days. The Department of Licensing sends a warning letter when you get close to the limit.

You have to finish a safe driving course before your license is reinstated. Since April 1, 2026, if you finish the course early, the Department of Licensing will end the suspension early or stop it before it starts. You can only use this once every five years, and it doesn’t apply to a suspension for a new ticket during probation. I explain how it works in How to Avoid a Washington License Suspension for Too Many Tickets.

Traffic Tickets and Your Insurance

Insurance companies can get a copy of the last three years of your driving record, and that record includes tickets you were found to have committed (RCW 46.52.130). That’s why a ticket with a small fine can still cost you money for years. Fighting a Washington traffic ticket may help keep it off the record your insurance company sees.

Traffic Tickets vs. Criminal Traffic Charges

Some driving offenses are crimes, not infractions (RCW 46.63.020). These include:

Reckless driving, which can bring up to 364 days in jail, a fine of up to $5,000, and a license suspension (RCW 46.61.500)
Negligent driving in the first degree, a misdemeanor (RCW 46.61.5249). Negligent driving in the second degree, on the other hand, is only an infraction.
Driving while license suspended (RCW 46.20.342)
DUI

A criminal traffic charge means a court date you can’t skip, possible jail time, and a criminal record. If you were cited for one of these, call a lawyer right away. If you have an old conviction, you may be able to clear it later by vacating the conviction.

Talk to a Vancouver Traffic Ticket Lawyer

If you got a ticket in Washington, call me at (360) 975-4673 before your 30 days run out, or use my contact form. I’ll look at your ticket and your driving record and help you decide how to respond.

Feb 28, 2024

by GC on Kris Carrasco Attorney at Law

Out of State Restraining Order

I was in a horrible situation where the mother of my son had me arrested on false claims so she could kidnap our son and move to Washington from California. She filed a restraining order when she got to Washington, listing our son as a protected party and claimed I had been abusive to her and him, writing a statement filled with lies and stories going back many years. She went so far as to have her family members, whom had never left Washington submit statements as well. The whole thing was disturbing and as a result I wasn't able to see my son for months. Kris didn't get dragged into arguing the meritless claims she made but instead focused on the actual law. Washington did not have jurisdiction over me and as a result a restraining order was not legal. A temp judge granted the restraining order and Kris made the judge explain on the stand multiple times how Washington had jurisdiction. She could not. He filed a motion for reconsideration shortly after outlining case law and making it clear that the temp judge had made a mistake. A commissioner reviewed and granted the motion for reconsideration. As a result, I was able to be reunited with my son, 102 days later. Kris is an amazing lawyer and I can't thank him enough for what he did for me and my son. Don't hesitate to hire him.