Your rights in the event of a traffic violation
Before we start the topic of traffic violations, first of all, it is necessary to briefly explain the concept of violation (misdemeanor). The law states that a misdemeanor is an illegal act that is defined as a misdemeanor by law or another regulation of the competent authority and for which a misdemeanor sanction is prescribed. Therefore, it is an illegal act that is prohibited by certain regulations, and which carries with it certain consequences in the form of punishment.
As for traffic violations, every driver has at least once been stopped by the traffic police - either for a routine control, speeding or some other violation. At such times, it is important to know your rights and obligations to avoid inconvenience, unnecessary fines or even loss of your driving license.
What to do if you receive a misdemeanor warrant? Is it necessary and desirable to sign a misdemeanor order? How can you challenge the sentence if you believe you are not guilty? Do you need professional legal assistance? In this text, you will find out all the key information about your rights in the event of a traffic violation and how you can protect yourself.
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Stop by the police - misdemeanor warrant
The most common situation that occurs in practice is that police officers, after noticing that a violation has been committed in traffic, stop the person who committed the violation, and based on the violation itself, issue a warrant to the driver. It should be noted here that the document given to the driver is colloquially called a fine, but it is actually about misdemeanor warrant which also contains a punishment.
Namely, a misdemeanor warrant is issued in situations where the offense is only provided for by law or other regulations fixed-amount fine. This means that police officers have the right to hand you a misdemeanor warrant only for those misdemeanors for which a fixed penalty is provided.
This means that if a fine of 5,000 dinars is prescribed for a misdemeanor, and you commit that misdemeanor, the police officer will hand you a misdemeanor warrant. On the other hand, if you commit a misdemeanor for which the penalty is prescribed in a certain range, for example from 20,000 to 60,000 dinars, in that situation you will not receive a misdemeanor order, but you will have to go to the misdemeanor court, which, after the misdemeanor procedure, will determine, if it finds you guilty, the amount of the misdemeanor fine.
The misdemeanor order contains all the necessary data, such as the name of the authorized person who issued it, the date of issuance and the date of delivery, personal data of the offender, a factual description of the action, the legal qualification of the offense as well as the imposed fine and instructions on how to pay the fine, as well as other prescribed data.
In addition to the above, there is also a misdemeanor warrant place for a signature. If you decide not to sign the misdemeanor order, it will not affect the existence of the misdemeanor penalty, because the police officers will definitely hand you the misdemeanor order, which as such produces legal consequences.
What is of particular importance with respect to the misdemeanor order are the warnings which are also found on the misdemeanor warrant, based on which you can exercise various rights regarding the committed misdemeanor, the most important of which are the following:
- If the offender accepts responsibility for the offense for which he received a misdemeanor order, he has the right to within 8 days from the day of receipt of the misdemeanor order, pay half of the imposed fineThis means that if you commit a misdemeanor and receive a misdemeanor order with a fine of 10,000 dinars, you can pay the fine within 8 days, but in the amount of 5,000 dinars;
- If you miss the stated deadline of 8 days, you have the right to accept responsibility for the offense by voluntarily paying the amount of the fine in full, but under the condition that no enforcement proceedings have been initiated against you by the time the fine is paid;
- If you do not want to accept responsibility for a misdemeanor, you have, within 8 days, the right to submit a request for judicial decision about your offense, and that in the way you will sign misdemeanor order submitted to the competent misdemeanor court, in person or by mail. If the misdemeanor order is not signed, the court will reject such request by decision.
Court proceedings in the case of a traffic violation
It was previously said in what situations it can happen that, as a result of a misdemeanor, misdemeanor proceedings are conducted before the court. Therefore, it can be a situation in which a serious traffic violation has been committed, for which a penalty is prescribed that is not fixed, but only a legal range is prescribed, and the court is the one that makes the final decision after the procedure has been carried out.
The second situation is when you do not want to accept responsibility for the violation for which a violation order has been issued, but approach the court in the aforementioned manner to discuss the violation.
What rights are available to you and how to successfully conduct a misdemeanor proceeding? Therefore, if the competent authority determines that you have committed a violation, it will submit it to the court the request for initiation of misdemeanor proceedings, which contains all the necessary elements for the court to act according to the same, especially the elements related to the facts related to the committed offense and the perpetrator. If the request is in order, the court will make a decision on initiation of misdemeanor proceedings.
If misdemeanor proceedings are initiated, the court will refer written invitation to the person who committed the misdemeanor - the defendant, in order for the defendant to come to court for the presentation of evidence in the misdemeanor proceedings. It is important to say that the defendant has the right to hire a defense attorney - misdemeanor lawyer, who will represent his interests during the procedure.
Insight into documentation
A right that is extremely important for the successful conduct of misdemeanor proceedings is the right to inspection of all the documentation on the basis of which the misdemeanor procedure was initiatedTherefore, in order to improve your chances of success in court and present your defense yourself or with the professional help of a defense attorney, you need to gain insight into all the documentation on the basis of which the misdemeanor procedure was initiated.
Forced removal
It is also important to note that the law provides that if the duly summoned defendant does not respond to the summons and does not justify his absence, and that from all the circumstances it is obvious that the defendant avoids receiving calls, the court may order his bringing, if the factual situation could not be fully and correctly determined in any other way.
The trial due to the committed offense takes place in such a way that the evidence is presented, and the defendant and witnesses are heard, if there are any, as well as other evidence as necessary, such as investigation and expert testimony.
Judgment
Violation procedure ends with adoption of the Judgement,which can be convicting or exculpatory, or possibly decision which suspends the proceedings. If there is a verdict in which the defendant is considered guilty of a misdemeanor, the sentence must contain the features of the misdemeanor that was committed, the regulations that were applied, decision on sanctionas well as decision on the costs of misdemeanor proceedings.
Therefore, the court will determine the amount of the fine that the defendant is obliged to pay for the offense committed, as well as the term in which that amount must be paid. In addition to this monetary amount, the defendant will be required to bear the costs of court fees incurred as a result of conducting misdemeanor proceedings.
Agreement on recognition of violations
In addition to the above-mentioned way of making a decision on a committed misdemeanor, the law also foresees the possibility of concluding an agreement on the recognition of the misdemeanor. Namely, when misdemeanor proceedings are conducted at the request of an authorized body (for example, the police), that body can propose to the defendant or his lawyer a conclusion Agreement on recognition of violations, and likewise, the defendant and his lawyer can make the same proposal to the competent authority. In this case, the defendant and the competent authority can negotiate terms for admitting the offense.
It is important to point out that the recognition agreement can be concluded and submitted to the court until the first-instance decision is made, and that the agreement cannot be concluded in connection with the offense for which a misdemeanor warrant is issued.
The agreement must contain all legally prescribed elements, and the court decides on the agreement, which can reject, adopt or reject the agreement. If the court finds that the plea agreement should be accepted, the court will issue a verdict approving the plea agreement, declare the defendant responsible and sentence him, and decide on other issues stipulated in the plea agreement.
Obsolescence
Due to the huge number of violations, especially traffic violations, which are committed daily and in large numbers, the statute of limitations is particularly important, which has the function of protecting the person who committed the violation.
Namely, it is legally defined that misdemeanor proceedings cannot be initiated or conducted if one year has passed since the day when the offense was committed.
This means that if you commit an offense on 01.01.2025. year, competent authorities have the right to initiate misdemeanor proceedings no later than January 1, 2026. year, and if they do it after the specified date, it is a statute of limitations and you cannot be held responsible for the offense committed.
The statute of limitations exists to exclude legal uncertainty, because it would not be logical for a person who commits an offense to be in uncertainty for years after the offense has been committed as to whether or not proceedings will be initiated.
Obsolescence is stopped by every procedural action of the competent authority undertaken for the purpose of conducting misdemeanor proceedings. After each interruption, the time passed begins to run again.
What does the above mean? In our example, if the offense was committed on 01.01.2025. year, and you will receive a summons for the hearing on 05.05.2025. year, it is considered a procedural action, and thus the previous limitation period is interrupted, and it starts to run anew. Therefore, if after that day, in the following year, there is no procedural action by the competent authority, the statute of limitations will begin and you cannot be held liable. However, if the court takes a procedural action again, the statute of limitations is interrupted again and "reset".
Naturally, the question arises whether this institute is rendered meaningless, because the apparently one-year statute of limitations can be interrupted ad infinitum. The answer to this question is provided by the law on misdemeanors, which states:the initiation and management of misdemeanor proceedings expires in any case when twice as much time passes as much as is required by law for statute of limitations".
Therefore, this institute precisely protects against the above-mentioned situation, and is often called "absolute limitation period", and in our example it is a period of 2 years from the date of the offense. Therefore, if 2 years have passed since the day of the violation, and the procedure has not been legally concluded, regardless of whether the competent authority has taken any actions, the statute of limitations begins and one cannot be held responsible for the violation.
The mentioned time limits of 1 and 2 years are the most common within traffic violations, but it should be borne in mind that longer limitation periods can be prescribed for different violations.
Traffic violations are part of our everyday life, but sanctions should not be accepted unreservedly and without further review. Knowing your rights can be the line between an unfair punishment and a fair decision. Each situation is a story in itself - sometimes the punishment is justified, and on the other hand, sometimes it is not, but there is certainly always a way to fight for your interests.
Think of traffic and misdemeanor laws as a game of chess - it's not just about how you played the move, but also how well you understand the rules of the game. If you feel you have been unfairly punished or don't know what to do next, don't make blind moves. Consult with misdemeanor lawyer who can look at your case from the right angle and find the best solution.
Don't let ignorance become your most expensive offense. If you have dilemmas or need legal help, feel free to contact us - together we will find the best solution for your situation.
