Reckless Driving by Vehicle not Under Control
To prove a reckless driving case by vehicle not under control case, the officer must present evidence against the defendant that shows the defendant’s vehicle was not under the defendant’s control or that his brakes were not working properly, and that it was due to the fault of the defendant. These are both very difficult to prove without an admission from the defendant, or without the officer having witnessed the incident firsthand. An experienced Virginia reckless driving attorney can help to defeat the officer’s allegation by demonstrating either that the driver’s loss of control was not the driver’s fault or that the driver had no warning that there would be a malfunction.
What is Reckless Driving by Vehicle Not Under Control
Virginia code section 46.2-853 makes it reckless driving to drive with faulty brakes or vehicle not properly under your control. If your brake lights fail and cause an accident or you swerve to avoid something in the road and then lose control of your car, you may be charged with a reckless. One common way I’ve seen this charge is when a driver’s brake lights aren’t working and it causes a collision with another driver who didn’t realize the first driver was slowing down. Another common way is when someone is driving and there is an obstruction or object in the road that they swerve to avoid hitting. It also occurs in rainy or snowy weather when a driver does not adjust their speed accordingly, and then loses control of their vehicle.
Legal Excuses for Failing to Maintain Control Of a Vehicle
When you get in contact with an experienced reckless driving lawyer in Virginia, they will tell you that there are various reasons why someone could lose control of their vehicle through no fault of their own. For example, there was an object in the road that unexpectedly caused the driver to swerve in order to avoid hitting it. Or there was another driver on the road that did something illegal to cause an otherwise careful driver to react in a manner that resulted in a loss of control. A legal excuse for faulty brakes would be if the driver had no warning that the vehicle was faulty, therefore, he was not negligent.
Mechanic Error
Generally, mechanics will inform drivers that their vehicles should be brought in for repairs or if there’s something wrong with the brakes. It’s not very likely that a mechanic would find an issue with a vehicle and then disregard it or not mention it to the owner. But if the defendant can prove that this is the case, there’s a strong likelihood that this defense will hold up in court.
Faulty Brakes
Faulty brakes means that your vehicle can pose a hazard to other drivers on the highway because of the unreliability of the brakes functioning properly when necessary. Or it can mean that something was wrong with the brakes that posed a hazard to other drivers on the highway, such as the brake lights not working properly. If you have properly cared for your vehicle and have taken it in for routine maintenance and all the required safety inspections, there’s no reason that you shouldn’t know if something is wrong with your vehicle’s brake system. Working brakes are required in order to pass the requisite safety inspection. If someone were to be informed by the safety inspector that their brakes were not working adequately and then they chose to ignore this warning, they could eventually be charged with reckless driving due to this negligence.
How this Charge is Different from Reckless Driving by Speed
What makes a failure to maintain control of a vehicle charge different from a reckless by speed charge is that there may not have been anything wrong with the driver’s actual driving of the vehicle at the time that the offense occurred. This particular offense is one where drivers are found guilty of typically due to negligence on the driver’s part that occurs even before he drives the vehicle.
Impact of This Charge on a CDL License
This charge can affect the commercial driver’s license because a conviction would be considered a serious violation since it is a type of reckless driving. If someone carrying a commercial driver’s license receives too many convictions that are amount to a series violations within a certain time frame, this can consult in disqualification of the commercial driver’s license. If someone is driving a commercial vehicle for a living and relies on the commercial driver’s license in order to make end meets, then this is a massive consideration for these drivers because a conviction could result in a loss of their job.
Important Pre-Trial Steps an Attorney Will Take
A Virginia reckless driving attorney can help you gather evidence to show that you were routinely having your vehicle inspected and that any required repairs you were aware of were taking care of in a timely manner. An attorney can explain to you what is required to be proven by the officer in court in order for you to be convicted. And can explain what type of evidence can refute the officer’s testimony. The attorney can later present the evidence in an effective manner to refute the officer’s allegations that the driver’s behavior amounted to reckless driving in Virginia.