As part of an effort to make the Saratoga Lawyer Blog more useful and informative, this post will be the first in a series that illustrates the important work traffic lawyers do with real word illustrations from my cases and experience. Too often, people rely on lawyers who do not specialize in traffic with the misguided belief that any lawyer can handle a traffic case. Too often I get the call to straighten out the legal mess resulting from the mishandling of a simple traffic case.
I recently took a case referred to me by an attorney who is a friend and an estate planner. The client is the son of a client of my friend's law firm. The son is being charged with Aggravated Unlicensed Operation 3rd degree or AUO 3rd. This is a very common offense in New York State and it is a misdemeanor, like a real crime. If you are caught driving on a suspended license, you get the AUO 3rd. Most cops allow the defendant to drive home. Sometimes, people are actually arrested and have to post bail. I had a client who did seven days in county jail for this offense. So it is a serious charge, and it happens to all kinds of people; lawyers, doctors, teachers, etc.
People generally find themselves facing an AUO3rd because they did not know their license was suspended. The typical case is that the driver failed to appear for a previous traffic ticket and the issuing court suspends their license. In the meantime, the driver moves but does not notify the DMV of their address change, (which happens to also be a V&T violation), so they never get actual notice of the suspension. Lack of knowledge is generally not a legal defense.
I can generally get an AUO 3rd dismissed or reduced by showing the prosecutor that my client has addressed the underlying suspension issue. In the case at bar, I offered to take care of the matter for the client in the court that suspended him, but he said he wanted to use the lawyer who he initially hired for that case. I though it was very odd that my client was hiring the lawyer who caused his current problem, but I did not protest. I later learned that the lawyer was my client's relative who happens not to be traffic lawyer.
One thing I have learned is to never, ever, trust that a client really knows what is going on with his or her case. In the case at bar, as soon as I was retained, I called the court that issued the AUO 3rd and learned there was a warrant out for my client's arrest because he missed his court appearance. Had my client been pulled over, or for some reason interacted with law enforcement, he would have gone to jail. A decidedly unsavory experience for a naive college senior.
It is important to hire an experienced traffic ticket lawyer for more reasons than simply "getting a deal". A good traffic lawyer must be diligent in following up on his or her cases because of the AUO 3rd. Many Courts are very quick to suspend the driver that is ignoring his or her obligations to the Court resulting in big problems for the client down the road.
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