We’ve all been there at one time or another: puttering along behind a slowpoke in the fast lane with no conceivable way to get past. It’s bad enough when you’re the victim of such a driver, but have you ever considered that this driver might be you? If so and you’re committing this atrocity in the left lane in Nevada, you’d best get over to the right or step on the gas unless you want a ticket.

You may think that speeding is a far worse violation, and in many ways, you’d be right. However, it’s not the driving misstep most likely to cause road rage. That honor goes to those who insist on crawling along in the passing lane, and it’s the reason for Nevada’s new traffic law barring the practice. As of July 1, 2017, if you must drive under the speed limit, you’d better get your vehicle out of the left lane.

How Driving Under the Limit Causes Trouble

According to Nevada traffic officials, putting the brakes on lethargic drivers will smooth the flow of traffic, and drivers who are able to move at a steady pace are more likely to maintain their emotional equilibrium. Furthermore, cracking down on these turtles-on-wheels is likely to have other benefits. For one thing, it lowers the chance that impatient drivers will foolishly attempt to pass these dawdlers on the right. In addition, if someone should run up too quickly on the plodder, a possible need to hit the brakes could lead to a chain of rear-end collisions.

Under the current guidelines, a first offense for driving under the limit in the left lane in Nevada could net you a fine of $50. A second offense will cost you $100, and a third will amount to $250. You could also receive two points on your driver’s license. That’s because the law considers these to be moving violations, and as a result, your car insurance rates could go up in much the same way as they might for driving too fast.

Who in Nevada Would Drive Too Slowly?

Despite its dangers, driving under the limit is something anyone might do at one time or another. However, it is more likely to happen if the driver is:

• Distracted. No motor vehicle operator should ever text, surf, read, eat, put on makeup or engage in any other activity that involves taking the eyes off the road. However, people continue to do these things in greater numbers than ever before, and on these occasions, their driving speed often falls in lockstep with the commensurate inability to process what other vehicles are doing all around them.
• Unfamiliar with the neighborhood. Someone who is looking for a certain street or address will almost invariably slow down until he finds it.
• Young and uncertain. While experienced teenage drivers tend to speed, those who have only recently received their licenses are more likely to ease off on the gas due to nervousness or intimidation.
• Old and ailing. Such physical problems as poor vision, stiff joints and impaired reaction times will nearly always cause the driver who suffers from these conditions to travel at speeds of excessive slowness.

If you’ve received a ticket for driving too slowly in the left lane in Nevada, you might be tempted to simply pay the fine and be done with it. However, that’s the same as pleading guilty, and it’s not the smartest thing you could do. Why not let the Vegas Ticket Wizard handle it for you instead? We will work to either negotiate a reduction in the charge or get it dismissed entirely. Don’t let a ticket for driving under the limit ruin your driving record. Give Vegas Ticket Wizard a call today.

You want to score points when you’re playing sports, but racking them up on your license is another matter entirely. Nevada calls them demerit points, and their stated purpose is to keep you on your best driving behavior. Accumulate enough of them in some way, and they might also keep you off the road.

Accruing Demerit Points on Your License in Nevada

Not all states play by the point system, and those that do have their own methods for assigning them. In the state of Nevada, you will receive:

• Eight points on your license for driving recklessly.
• Six points on your license for driving carelessly or failing to render aid and impart information at an accident scene.
• Four points on your license for tailgating, failing to yield, neglecting to stop, disobeying a traffic signal or passing a school bus whose lights are flashing.
• Two points on your license for inappropriate speed, driving too slowly or failing to dim the high beams.

Although Nevada law does not treat a first offense for texting or using a hand-held cellphone as a moving violation, anyone convicted of doing either on a subsequent occasion can say hello to four additional demerit points. Furthermore, offenders will be subject to fines that range from $50 to $250 depending on the number of prior convictions for the same offense within seven years. These fines will double for violations occurring in work zones.

Demerit Points for Speeding in Nevada

The demerit points assigned for speeding in Nevada will differ in accordance with the number of miles per hour driving over the speed limit. You can expect to receive additional points for every 10 miles per hour driving over the limit, as follows:

• One point on your license for exceeding the limit by 1 to 10 miles per hour.
• Two points on your license for every 11 to 20 mph over.
• Three points on your license for every 21 to 30 mph over.
• Four points on your license for every 31 to 40 mph over.
• Five points on your license for exceeding the limit by 41 mph or more.

If you live in the state of Nevada and need to drive, here are some additional things you should know.

1. Once your demerit points add up to three or more, the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles will notify you by mail. Pay attention to this notification. If you should score 12 or more points in the space of a year, the department will issue a six-month license suspension.

2. You will get one chance at redemption. Before suspending your license, the DMV will warn you by certified mail. You will then have the chance to defend yourself before the DMV’s Office of Administrative Hearings.

3. Although traffic convictions will remain on your permanent driving record, the DMV will delete demerit points for each conviction when a total of 12 months have elapsed from the date on which you received it.

4. Moving violations will almost always add points to your license. Convictions for drunk driving, failure to come to a complete stop, turning illegally, speeding and causing an accident will certainly do the trick. The number of points involved will rise or fall in accordance with the severity of the violation.

5. If you drive under the influence or commit traffic violations that result in death or serious injury, you will not receive demerit points. You will instead be subject to an immediate license suspension or revocation.

Nevada’s Traffic Safety School

Once your demerit point total has exceeded three but remains less than 12, you may be able to subtract some by attending and completing a course in traffic safety sanctioned by the Nevada DMV. Unfortunately, if a court of law has required you to take this course as part of a plea bargain, the removal of points will not happen. In either case, while the points may disappear, your convictions will not. They will remain as part of your driving record.

Keeping the Lid on Demerit Points

If you want to avoid demerits for traffic infractions in Nevada, you’ll have to mount a successful defense against every point-worthy ticket you get. That’s when it pays to have a knowledgeable traffic ticket attorney from Vegas Ticket Wizard in your corner. Don’t let an inadequate defense push you that much closer to the loss of your license. Call Vegas Ticket Wizard today at 702-202-0500 to increase your chance of success.

If you haven’t heard of the Move Over Law, you’re not alone and it could cause you to get a traffic ticket. Studies show that many people remain unaware of a ruling that’s currently in effect in one form or other in each of the 50 states. In fact, as of 2013, only 29 percent of Americans knew of its existence.

Although the specifics may vary from state to state, Move Over’s bottom line remains the same. When approaching an emergency vehicle with flashing lights parked beside or on a roadway, a motorist must do one of two things:

When circumstances permit, he should move into the closest available lane that is not immediately adjacent to the vehicle in question. If, on the other hand, he has no safe way of making the lane change, he must reduce his speed to one that is below the stated limit insofar as existing road, weather, traffic and pedestrian conditions allow.

In every one of the 50 states, the driver who chooses to speed on by these parked-by-the-roadside emergency vehicles is one who is breaking the law.

What Is the Reason for the Move Over Law?

When forced to stop by the side of a multi-lane highway, first responders and utility workers are putting themselves in danger. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has stated that the 390 workers killed in this manner in 2005 accounted for a full 7 percent of fatal job-related injuries nationwide. In the year 2013, 46 members of law enforcement lost their lives when struck at the roadside by passing vehicles.

The first version of this law came into effect in South Carolina through the efforts of James D. Garcia, a paramedic who nearly lost his life when a passing motorist mowed him down as he worked at a roadside crash site. As similar accidents continued to occur in the various states, emergency responders across the country joined together to take the fight for action nationwide. Today, not a state in the union is without some sort of “move over” law.

The Move Over Law in Nevada

Unless directed otherwise by a peace officer, any Nevada driver who encounters a sanctioned emergency vehicle or tow truck at the side of the road with its flashers on must:

• Slow down to a reasonable speed that is below the posted limit.
• Proceed cautiously.
• Be ready to stop if necessary.
• Move to a lane that is not immediately adjacent to the emergency vehicle unless weather, traffic or road conditions would make the move too dangerous.

In Nevada, any person found guilty of violating the Move Over Law will have committed a misdemeanor for which the penalties normally include four points on the driver’s license and a fine of as much as $395. These punishments are at the low end of the scale. If the misdemeanor results in the death or injury of a trooper or officer, they will escalate accordingly.

Other problems can also ensue. Your insurer may raise your insurance rates. The state could revoke your license. At the very worst, if you fail to respond to your traffic ticket, the law could put out a warrant for your arrest.

Defenses Against Your Move Over Law Violation

If you’ve been a victim of the Move Over Law, you’re surely wondering what your next step should be. Some people feel that the ruling serves as a cash cow and that many police officers use it as a means of entrapment. Although you may firmly believe that you have been caught in this manner, you might have trouble proving that in a court of law. On the other hand, you can always:

• Argue that you had no way to change lanes safely although you did reduce your speed considerably.
• Maintain that the parked emergency vehicle failed to flash its warning lights.
• Plead “no contest” and ask the judge to withhold adjudication.

Regardless of what you decide, don’t feel that you have to handle this alone. The professionals at Vegas Ticket Wizard will leave no stone unturned in their effort to resolve your traffic violation. We will even appear in court in your place. Don’t let a Move Over Law violation smear your driving record. Call Vegas Ticket Wizard today at 702-202-0500 and let us deal with this issue for you.

Given the phenomenal number of tourists that flock to Las Vegas each year, it’s safe to assume that more than a few will run afoul of the traffic police. If you’ve received a traffic ticket within the Las Vegas city limits, your vacation can go downhill in a hurry. Despite what you may think or hope, your visitor status will not win you any sympathy with officials in Las Vegas Justice Court.

Whatever the infraction for which you received your ticket, it’s important to resolve the matter as quickly as possible. There’s always the chance that your home state will penalize you for it, and if you choose to just put it out of your mind and leave town, don’t be surprised in the not-too-distant future when an arrest warrant suddenly lands on your doorstep.

How Nevada Punishes Traffic Tickets

Your Las Vegas traffic ticket could cost you in several ways. In addition to saddling offenders with what commonly amount to three-figure fines, Nevada has devised a system of assigning demerit points as penalties for various moving violations. For example, speeding between 1 and 10 mph over the limit will earn you one demerit point. You will get four for running a red light or stop sign and as many as eight for reckless driving. Depending on the laws in effect in your home locality, demerit points received for a traffic violation received in Ls Vegas could also transfer to your out-of-state license.

Your Legal Options

There are three ways in which to handle your traffic citation. You can:

• Plead guilty and pay the fine.
• Plead no contest and pay the fine.
• Plead not guilty and prepare to fight the ticket.

While you may feel tempted to just cough up the money and be done with it, that may not be the wisest course of action. For one thing, it serves as a tacit admission of culpability. Your insurance rates will likely rise, and if your traffic ticket has resulted from an accident with another vehicle, the act of pleading guilty could set you up for a civil lawsuit in which the claimant’s lawyer will surely use your plea as proof of negligence.

Pleading Not Guilty

If you believe that you were in the right, you can and should attempt to exonerate yourself by entering a plea of not guilty. After you have done this, the court will set a date for your trial. On the downside, it will also expect you to return to Las Vegas for a personal appearance, and for many vacationers, this will not be easy. You’ll also need to prepare how to present your case, because the ticketing officer will present theirs.

Fortunately, it is possible to challenge your ticket from the comfort of your home. A local traffic ticket attorney with experience in contesting traffic violations can appear in court on your behalf and often get the charges against you either reduced or dropped entirely.

How Vegas Ticket Wizard Can Help

If you are an out-of-state resident who has picked up a speeding ticket, or other moving violation in Las Vegas, a ruined vacation is about to be the least of your problems. Why not do yourself a favor and let the experts at Vegas Ticket Wizard deal with it for you? Once you’ve decided to go this route, you’ll have done away with the need to return and argue your case in person. Better yet, because you’ve acquired expert legal representation, the Las Vegas courts will be more likely to reduce your traffic citation to a less-serious parking or non-moving violation.

Don’t let a Las Vegas traffic conviction cause you difficulty down the road. Call Vegas Ticket Wizard at 702-202-0500 or just submit your ticket online and we’ll handle your traffic ticket.

If you’ve received a traffic ticket in Las Vegas, chances are good that it was for speeding. That is the most common reason for their issuance, but was the accusation really true in your case? If so, how did law enforcement make that determination?

Speed Determination by Pacing

This commonly used method of speed detection takes place when an officer clocks your vehicle’s speed with his own speedometer. Doing it right entails following you at a consistent distance for a long enough time to make a reasonable estimate. An accurate reading can be hard to obtain when:

• The pace took place under inadequate lighting conditions.
• The road on which the pace occurred contained a number of curves, hills, stop signs or traffic lights.
• The officer failed to maintain an equal and consistent distance between your car and his.

If poor conditions, an interrupted view or an insufficient duration of pace interfered with the officer’s reading, you might have grounds for contesting the ticket.

Speed Determination by Aircraft

When using aircraft to detect a vehicle’s speed, law enforcement will normally employ one of two techniques, each of which involves the use of premeasured highway markings. In the first method, the pilot figures your speed by determining how long it takes your vehicle to travel from one marker to the other. In the second, the pilot calculates his own speed and then uses his aircraft to pace your vehicle. This practice is far less accurate.

If the pilot should determine that you have been speeding, he will radio a patrol car on the ground for an independent verification. If all goes as planned, both determinations should agree.

Your chances of successfully fighting an aircraft-detected speeding ticket will rise if either the pilot or the ground patrol fails to appear in court. It will also help if you can prove that:

• The pilot failed to clock you correctly.
• Insufficient distance between the markers impeded an accurate timing.
• Heavy traffic made it difficult to isolate your car.
• The pacing aircraft failed to maintain a consistent rate.
• The pilot could not clearly discern the crucial reference points.
• The officer on the ground mistook your vehicle for the one the pilot intended to point out.

With an aircraft-detected speeding ticket, any of these factors could assist you in mounting a successful challenge.

Speed Determination by VASCAR

Although it may sound intimidating, VASCAR technology consists of nothing more than an electronic connection between a computer and a stopwatch along with two premeasured points on the ground.

When an officer sees your car pass the first location, he pushes the button on his electronic stop watch. When you pass the second point, he pushes it again. The attached computer then determines your rate of speed by dividing the distance you travelled by the time it took to cover it.

An officer can use the VASCAR method:

• While in back of you.
• While in front of you.
• While standing still.
• While driving in the opposite direction.

VASCAR technology can be difficult to implement. It depends on split-second stopwatch deployment, and this can be hard to accomplish if either of the goal posts is some distance away. The task multiplies in complexity when the patrol car is on the move, and over distances of fewer than 500 feet, errors in reaction time are all the more likely to occur.

Speed Determination by Radar

This tried-and-true technology determines the speed of a moving object by targeting it with radio waves. Unless the object is standing still, these waves will take longer to bounce back from it than they did to reach it. The exact discrepancy will indicate its speed.

Radar units are normally precise and easy to operate. All the same, there are several ways in which radar can fail. This frequently happens when an officer attempts to clock a group of vehicles based on the speed of the leader. Other common sources of inaccurate radar readings include:

• Heavy traffic.
• Inclement weather.
• Inaccurate calibration.
• False estimates of ground speed when read from a moving vehicle.

Speed Determination by Laser

Although this newcomer to the traffic officer’s stash resembles a radar gun, it uses laser beams, not radio waves, to measures a vehicle’s speed. Although this technology should return a more accurate reading, the narrower width and invisible nature of the laser beam can make it harder to aim correctly. In addition, it utilizes three beams in all, making it easy for one of them to hit the wrong vehicle. Unless both are traveling at the same speed, the laser detector may then return an inaccurate result.

Challenging Your Ticket

Each detection method has its flaws, and not everyone who receives a speeding ticket deserves it. In your own case, a careful consideration of the ways in which skewed readings occur can help you fight that ticket in court. Contact Vegas Ticket Wizard today at 702-202-0500 to fight your traffic ticket!