BAIL REDUCTIONS

Court Clerks cannot reduce bails or dismiss cases.

Requests for bail reductions must be made in person before a judicial officer during a Traffic Arraignment calendar (Court Schedule) at the branch office indicated toward the bottom of the citation.

Because of the volume of letters requesting bail reduction or dismissal, our judicial officers simply cannot read them. It would be unfair for some to be read and not others. Typically, bails are not reduced; however, if you enter a guilty or no contest plea before a judicial officer he/she will give you an opportunity before sentencing to explain the circumstances of the citation. This may or may not result in a reduction.

COURTESY BAIL NOTICE NOT RECEIVED

AND CASE HAS GONE FAILURE TO APPEAR

AND/OR TURNED OVER TO COLLECTIONS

At the bottom of the citation where you signed your name, there is a statement that reads something like �Without admitting guilt, I promise to appear at the time and place designated below.� The signature obligates you to either appear in court or to conclude the various options such as trial, traffic school, or proof of correction by the due date written on the citation or the continuance date granted by a Court Clerk or Judicial Officer.

California courts are under no obligation to send bail notices; however, most courts, including ours, send two courtesy bail notices to the address written on the citation. The first notice indicates the original bail amount, without proof of correction(s), if applicable. If the court receives no response from the first bail notice, or if the continuance date lapses, the computer system generates a second bail notice that warns the case is getting ready to go into Failure to Appear, which will increase the bail by $169.00 if action is not taken.

If the case has been turned over to collections see Failure to Appear, FTA and Collections link.

FIX-IT VIOLATIONS AND HOW TO PROVIDE

PROOF OF CORRECTION TO THE COURT

On the reverse side of the citation a space has been provided for the official sign-off of correctable violations. The court accepts NO REPAIR BILLS. After you have corrected the violation(s), take the cited vehicle and the citation to a peace officer (the DMV if you have a registration violation) for inspection. The peace officer/DMV will check to make sure the violation(s) have been corrected and then sign off the citation. Make sure the officer/DMV personnel indicates

o the violation(s) cleared

o the officer's name and badge number (legible)

o if out-of-state officer is signing off, we need the name of his agency and location.

After having the citation signed off, you must send it to the court for a reduction of bail. Before you send in the signed off citation, you will need to determine how much bail must also be remitted.

If there are no moving violations on the citation, most likely the bail will be the state-mandated fee of $25.00 per correctable violation for �fix-it� type citations. However, there are some violations that appear to be fix-its that are standards: meaning, there is a regular bail due. Often the citing officer will tell you that "he's just writing you a fix-it citation that will cost you no money", however that may not be correct. The citing officers are not aware of the bail schedule developed by Judicial Council of California and used by all California Courts. Also, some violations that were fix-its in the past may have been upgraded to standard violations, and vice versa.

If you have any questions regarding the bail due on the citation, please contact our office for assistance. Please remember, in order to clear the case it is up to you to send in either a properly signed off citation or the total bail due without proof of correction. The officer signing off the citation does not send it in to the court, nor does his sign-off automatically clear the citation. You must get the signed off citation to the court and pay all applicable fees.

REGISTRATION: If the officer cited you for "California Registration Required" the citation must be cleared by either the California DMV or a California Highway Patrol Officer. Please do not send in an out-of-state registration, as it will be returned to you for California registration. If, however, the officer has only written "registration required" or "registration expired", and you live out of state, a clerk can clear the case with a copy of the new registration. The $25.00 fee is also due with registration violations.

If you fail to submit all required documents and monies to our office within the continuance date, the case will be considered Failure to Appear (FTA). If the case goes FTA, an additional $169.00 will be added to the original amount due and the account will be turned over to Access Capital Services, Inc., who will add a $300.00 civil assessment pursuant to Penal Code 1214.1.

INSURANCE VIOLATIONS - 16028a VC: If you were cited under this code and send proof that the vehicle was insured prior to citation date, $25.00 is due; if the insurance was purchased after the citation date, $394.00 is due; if no proof of insurance is provided, $784.00 is due.

FAILURE TO APPEAR (FTA) AND COLLECTIONS

If you fail to submit all required monies and documents to the court by the continuance date granted by either the judge or the court clerk, the case will be considered �FTA� with an additional $169.00 added to the original bail. Once the case goes FTA and you still have not taken care of the case it will be turned over to Access Capital Services, Inc. for collections with an additional $300.00 civil assessment added to the bail.

If the case has been turned over to Access Capital Services, Inc., you must contact them to determine the total due. They may be contacted at 1-800-755-0556. You may make partial payments to Access Capital Services, Inc. in any amount; however, if your driver�s license has been held at the DMV as a result of the case in question, the hold will not be lifted until you have paid Access Capital Services, Inc. in full with verified funds such as a cashier�s check, money order, or credit card.

PLEADING NOT GUILTY - TRIAL OPTIONS

Option 1: TRIAL BY DECLARATION

Trials by Declaration are provided pursuant to California Vehicle Code section 40902(a) through (d) for individuals who would like to contest their traffic citations but because of distance or other reasons elect to not appear in court for their trial.

A defendant may elect to have a trial by written declaration upon certain types of alleged infractions involving violations of the Vehicle Code or any local ordinance adopted pursuant to the Vehicle Code.

When defendants elect a trial by declaration, they must include a sworn declaration and other relevant evidence along with the full bail amount. The trial will not proceed unless the Court receives both the sworn declaration and full bail amount.

Upon the election of a trial by declaration a notice shall be sent to the arresting agency who will be given an opportunity to provide the Court a sworn declara�tion of the arresting officer and other appropriate evidence.

After all materials have been received (including the full bail amount) from the defendant and the issuing agency, the entire file will be submitted to the judge who will make a decision based upon the evidence in the file. A written decision will be sent to you at the address you provide to the court.

The bail must be posted and sent to the court along with the required forms before the Trial by Declaration can proceed. If the bail is received without the required forms the bail will be applied to the case, the case will be closed and you will not receive a trial by declaration.

If you would like to have this type of trial please contact the Court. Once you receive the forms, fill them out completely, and return them to the Court along with the full bail by the date indicated on the citation.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

If you fail to submit all required documents and monies to our office by the due date, the case will be considered Failure to Appear (FTA). If the case goes FTA, an additional $169.00 will be added to the original amount due and the account will be turned over to Access Capital Services, Inc. who will add an additional civil assessment of $300.00 pursuant to Penal Code 1214.1.

Option 2: COURT TRIALS

You may elect to have the case decided by a judicial officer in court at which both you and the citing officer present the respective cases. The court location of the trial is indicated near the bottom of the citation (Yreka, Weed, Dorris, Happy Camp).

It is our court�s policy that full bail be deposited into the court�s trust account before a case is set for trial.

If you would like to set the case for court trial without appearing on the arraignment date, you may print the required forms by clicking here. When you have completed the forms, send them to the appropriate court location along with the full bail by the due date shown at the bottom of the citation.

When the court receives the completed forms along with the full bail, the clerk will set the case for trial and notify you of the trial date at the address you provide on the forms.

If the court receives the bail without the required forms to set the case for trial, the bail will be forfeited, the case closed with a conviction, and that information sent to the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Important Notice:

If you fail to submit all required documents or monies to the court office by the due date, a $169.00 Failure to Appear (FTA) will be added to the charges, and the case will be turned over to Access Capital Services, Inc. with the addition of the $300.00 Civil Assessment pursuant to Penal Code 1214.1.

TRAFFIC SCHOOL

If you are eligible for traffic violator school (TVS) and decide not to attend, your automobile insurance may be adversely affected.

CALIFORNIA LICENSED DRIVERS: PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH CAREFULLY: DMV will block one traffic school dismissal on violations received prior to �7-1-11� and block one traffic school confidential conviction on violations received �7-1-11� and after from the insurance company�s access every 18 months from violation date to violation date.� Pursuant to Rule 4.104 of the California Rules of Court as of 7-1-11, and Vehicle Code 42005(c) and (d), as of 9-20-05, any person with a class A, B or commercial class C driver�s license as well as any person cited while driving a commercial vehicle is prohibited from completing traffic school. �Effective 1-1-13, violations issued 1-1-13, any person who holds a Class A, B or commercial Class C driver's license may attend traffic violators school for an offense while operating a non-commercial vehicle.

NON-CALIFORNIA LICENSED DRIVERS: Because our court does not have the ability to log into any other state�s DMV system, and because attending traffic school usually costs you more than the bail rather than less, we urge you to contact your state�s DMV to determine whether or not attending traffic school on a California citation will give you the results you are seeking--usually that the insurance company not have access to the record, and that DMV not assess the driving record a point.

STANDARD POLICY FOR ALL DRIVERS:

Eligibility: You cannot attend traffic school unless you have been approved by the court clerk or a judicial officer. The eligibility is determined as follows: You have a valid driver's license; you have not attended traffic school for a citation issued within the past 18 months of the present citation (violation date to violation date); you have not failed to appear under Vehicle Code section 40508(a), unless the failure-to-appear charge has been adjudicated and all fees and fines paid; you are charged only with infractions that do not have a point count of more than one point under Vehicle Code section 12810; you were not cited for any charge involving alcohol or drug use or possession; you were not charged with exceeding a speed limit by more than 25 miles per hour.

Not Eligible: If you are not eligible to attend traffic school, the clerk cannot grant you permission to attend, and if you are not eligible and you send in the bail and non-refundable fee, the bail and fee will be forfeited, the case closed, and the conviction sent to the DMV.

Pay the TVS Fee: If you meet these requirements and wish to attend traffic school, you are required to pay the bail plus the non-refundable traffic school fee of $49.00 pursuant to Vehicle Code 42007.1, and an additional DMV Fee of $3.00 pursuant to Vehicle Code 11208 for monitoring traffic violator�s school (TVS), for a total of $52.00, prior to the clerk sending you a traffic school permission letter.� If you were also cited for fix-it violations on the citation and you are eligible for the $25.00 proof of correction fee on those violations, please send the signed off citation and $25.00 per correctable violation fee with the request for TVS and required TVS bail and fee. Please note that no partial payments or community service in lieu of bail are permitted in conjunction with a traffic school dismissal or confidential conviction.

Request Permission: : �Send the court the bail amount indicated in the Traffic School Option plus the TVS fee stated above with one check. If you do not have a courtesy bail notice but have contacted the court to determine the amount of the bail, you may send us a note to request traffic school and include the bail and TVS fee with one check. You may also pay your bail and fee in person between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 pm at any court office. When the court receives the request and full amount due, the clerk will continue the case 60 days and send a permission letter with further instructions.

Types Of Schools Available: Please note, traffic schools are private businesses and charge an enrollment fee.

If you live out of the state of California and would like to attend a classroom program rather than an internet program you may call National Traffic Safety Institute: (425)369-9000 King County7 Washington; 1-800-776-6874; NTSInw1@aol.com.

Classroom program, Internet and home-study courses: A list of California DMV approved classroom, internet �and home study courses can be found on DMV's website Click here.

The Court will be notified when you have successfully completed the classroom, internet or home-study course. It is your responsibility to contact the Court to ensure that the Court receives the notification by the due date.

If the Court does not receive the notification of completion by the due date, the bail and traffic school fee will be forfeited, the violation reported to DMV as a conviction with points assessed on the driving record, and the insurance may be adversely affected.

TRANSFER OF CITATIONS TO OTHER COURTS

Only juvenile cases (under the age of 18) are transferred to the county of their residency if that county accepts transfers. Adult cases are not transferred.

The court understands that many defendants live far from the court and that it is extremely difficult for them to appear in court to plead their cases. For that reason, most cases (infractions) can be resolved through the mail and many options are available as outlined below:

Sending the bail and/or proof of correction on fix-it items to close the case.

For Calif. license drivers, attending traffic school to keep the violation from adding points to the DMV record and masking the violation from the insurance company (see Traffic School )

Trial by Declaration Click here for more information

Entering a not guilty plea and setting a Court Trial date through the mail. Click here for more information