Court Must Receive Criminal Traffic Ticket Within 4 Days

If you have received a citation for a criminal automobile law violation in Massachusetts such as operating after suspension, reckless driving, operating to endanger, leaving the scene of an accident, driving without a license, operating after revocation, or driving an uninsured motor vehicle, you only have 4 days to request a clerk-magistrate hearing.

If the “criminal complaint application” box on the front of the citation is checked, to get a hearing on the question of whether criminal charges will be issued against you, you must get the citation to the court with in 4 days of the violation date. If you are requesting a clerk-magistrate hearing, which is highly recommended, you should sign and date the back of the ticket and sent it to the court address appearing on the front. You cannot use the envelope which the officer may have given to you. The ticket must get to the court, and not the Registry of Motor Vehicles, within 4 days of issuance.

If you are interested in appealing the criminal citation to a clerk-magistrate, it is absolutely critical to get the ticket to the court within the 4 day period. The ticket will serve as your application for an appeal. If you do not file this within the required time period, you will generally give up your right to a hearing and your criminal motor vehicle law violation case will proceed to arraignment, the next step in the criminal court process.

If you have questions regarding this important legal issue, contact a Suspended License Lawyer for a free consultation.