Fairfax County Traffic Attorney / Lawyer Recommendation

Any other lawyers in town. I want the best of the best.

 

Yea, I am sure that will be a great defense to driving 50mph over the limit-" But, your honor the officer did not have a front plate, can you dismiss the citation?"-the judge will laugh in his face if he mentions it....

 

Lol, I don't want to get taken to jail. I ain't saying anything. If there was a way I could tell him Not Guilty but Guilty I would. It's going to be "Yes Your Honor, No Your Honor, I'm sorry" all throughout my session. Respectful, loyal and hopefully he sees that I've learned my lesson and would let me go.

 

Hope you stay out of jail.

Here are some pics of what it looks like inside:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/sheriff/jailhousing.htm

The sheriff's website says you can only get one visitor per week while in the Adult Detention Center.
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/sheriff/adc-visiting.htm

Some interesting info in the FAQs for the jail:

The visit is for a maximum of 20 minutes. Visits are only on Sat and Sun.

How do I leave an inmate money and in what form? Only money orders and cashier’s checks are accepted (no personal checks or cash). Note that inmates are charged $1 per day of incarceration to offset the cost of their housing. This money is deducted from any deposits made.

What type of property can I leave for an inmate? One suit or set of clothing for appearances in Circuit and Federal Courts only. No other items can be left for the inmate. The inmate may purchase all other items such as socks, underwear, hygiene items, snacks, over the counter medications, and stationery from the inmate commissary twice per week. If a holiday occurs during the week, commissary is available once per week.

Can inmates purchase tobacco products from the commissary? No. The Adult Detention Center is a smoke-free facility.

 

Hell, the Richmond City jail does not even have air conditioning. Another guy died down there yesterday. Over 2000 inmates and 102 degrees.

 

Virginia Sucks! Oh...wait, I think I've said that in the past.

 

That made me have a cold sweat looking at those pictures

 

I feel for you man, honestly...
I do however find it kind of ironic considering some of your post in the past regarding the police.

 

i think it is ridiculous that one would have to do jail time like that for a speeding ticket...

 

the po-po gonna get him in the poo-poo.

 

They bring the boys who speed to jail for a few days just to entertain the real inmates, and give then someone to snuggle with.

 

I have to agree. Put a painful fine for it, that will hurt more. If I have to pay a few thousand dollars like DUI cases, or if I have to do community service that will teach me a harder lesson. Instead of going to jail, wasting people's tax money (Food, Clothing, Accommodation, Sherif Patrol etc...)

Ish gonna hurt. Gotta practice not dropping the soap. I wouldn't even take a shower!

Lol, Mean very meannn.

 

wow, what a story... really sucks sorry to hear that. Virginia really sucks. A while back I read an article about a green card holder who got deported for speeding in virginia since after 911, misdemeanors are grounds for deportation. I initiated my citizenship application that very same day, so at least now if I ever drive in virginia, I don't have to worry about that issue, just jail.

 

Any lawyers who specialize in immigration can feel free to correct me, but in my experience representing numerous non-citizens at both the state and federal level in criminal trials, ICE will enitiate deportation proceedings to those who receive a sentence of more than 90 days. For an example: if you were convicted of reckless driving and receive 90 days with 80 suspended for doing 110 mph, no problem. If, however, the judge imposed 180 days and suspended 170, ICE would come calling. Same net jail, but more than 90 days suspended. That is why it is very important to have a lawyer that is not only a crack criminal lawyer, but is up to date on the immigration laws. The laws are changing everyday. Legal residency does not protect you from these rules. I have seen ICE pick up non-citizen individuals (not my clients) who have been in the country for 25 years legally, yet the lawyers did not insist on a 90 day suspended sentences for something trivial.
One guy had been in the country since he was 2 years old, did not speak Spanish, yet was being deported back to his place of birth in Central America for stealing a lottery ticket after he received no active jail, only a 6 month suspended sentence. A simple solution to help this guy would have been to explain the situation to the Judge or prosecutor and agree on a 3 month suspended sentence.

 

Karma, it's a *****... (Maybe a little less pissin' and moanin' about how awful police are would have served you well, young Jedi.)

But...

Well, I think the laws in Virginia are draconian, if as you guys say, there is jail time involved for this violation.

Geez, I know guys up here who have 2 DWI convictions and have had less harsh treatment from the local DJ.

Note to self, do not cross into Virginia in a car. Fly over, drive around or take a train.

Did I read somewhere that the fines are lower for out of state drivers??

So, drive a rental car with South Dakota plates and you'll probably get ignored?

DM

 

I hope you meant legal residency and not legal citizenship. Although I have never seen illegal citizenship.....

 

Yea, you got it, typing fast trying to get out on the boat this morning

 

Is it better to spend a short jail sentence all in one stretch or to do multiple weekends?
For example, if you got a 20 day sentence, is a single stretch of just under 3 weeks better than 7 weekends?

I assume one of the downsides to doing weekends is going through the jail admittance procedures every Friday.
Don't they do a strip search with a cavity check whenever someone is being processed for admittance?
If they do that every weekend, that has got to get old.

When do the 3-day weekend times start and stop? Is it 5 pm Friday through 10 pm Sunday or something similar?

I hope to never have to personally experience any of these issues.

 

one thing positive about it, you can build street cred and make new friends you never would have widening your network

 

You usually only serve half time for misdemeanors, however, it is up to the specific jail. Law allows for the local jails to credit day for a day, so a 20 day sentence would only mean a 10 day stay. The reasoning behind that has to do with money and the amount given by the state to the local facilities for housing inmates not transfered to DOC. Felons, on the other hand, serve about 85-90% of the time imposed and, as of 1995, parole has been abolished in Virginia. As to the weekend question, it really depends on the facility, some jails keep all the weekend jokers together in a seperate area to keep them safe from some of the more seedy population, and let then report late Friday afternoons or evening with release being Sunday morning. Most jails are going to search you very well, so bend over and cough. As a side note, I have heard of people smuggling in cell phones that way. Can you imagine making a call and wondering what that funny smell is?

 

Better to do weekends, if you can.

First, you get credit for 3 days, but you really only serve 2.5. It's rounded up. So, on a 30 day sentence, you'd only spend about 25 days in.

Second, it doesn't interfere with your working life. It won't inconvenience your employer, so you won't be at risk of losing your job for lost work.

Third, you're mostly in with the non-violent offenders in the Fairfax ADC (Adult Detention Center) aka the Fairfax Hilton. Mostly, the inmates are at the end of their sentence and coming up on release, so they have little interest in causing trouble for themselves. They've been transferred out of the harder jails, and they just want to get out. Mostly, they're in on non-violent, drug offenses. You're also in with other vehicular (DWI, DUI and High Rate of Speed) offenders. This is a relatively low-stress, low-risk environment. You don't normally get a cell or a cellmate, rather they'll provide cots/mattresses as it's usually over-filled on the weekends. They have outside work details (cleaning up parks and road sides), so you can actually get out for most of the day. If you go in for a stretch of 30 days, they will transfer you to a place like Lorton, where the conditions are not as favorable. Hardcore offenders. Higher risk. No work releases.

They do not do a strip or cavity search. They do not fingerprint you. The normal intake procedure is a pat down. The processing-in begins around 5pm on Friday, and releases are at 12am on Sunday.

CW

EDIT: For clarification to Fou's post, and to be hyper clear, if you're sentenced to 180 days, with 150 suspended, it's a net 30 day sentence. However, you'll only be required to actually be in detention for 15 days. It's a for-every-day-in-you-get-credit-for-2 kind of deal. So, in this instance, you'd serve 5 3-day weekends. Thus, you'd only be in for 12.5 days.

 

As per Cornerswell response, each jail is different. Down here in the Richmond area you would get searched but only serve half time. Have your lawyer find out the rules at YOUR pokey.

EDIT: yea, what he said, except for mandatory time. If you, say, got a second offense DUI or blew above a .15 bac, the mandatory time for misdemeanors does not credit day for a day. TALK to your lawyer, he will explain all this stuff.

 

John Graham 703.591.7670
He also sat in as a judge.

 

Sorry for your bad luck. I think you said he 'paced' you at 110. Your attorney will know that the law should produce a document stating that his speedometer has been calibrated. Now, typical 5-O running around frequently can't produce this. Trouble is this undercpver car is primarily from the traffic division and likely has his cert. Worth a try to get you under the 90 mph point. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

I went and got my DMV Record. I have 3+ points and one ticket for "Disobey Traffic Sign". It also has me taking Driver's Improvement Voluntarily. What do you guys think about that?