Fleeing from a Police Officer

Fleeing from a police officer means that an individual does not pull over when the police officer sounds his siren or turns his lights on for an extended period of time. This is a very serious moving violation and comes with heavy fines and penalties. In some cases, this can be considered a felony and jail time is more than likely. Individuals charged with this violation should consider hiring an attorney to represent them in court.

Fines and Penalties

For just an individual's first offense of fleeing from a police officer, he or she could be given a fine of $1000, and sentenced to one year in jail, as well as up to three years of probation. If the individual has more than one offense, he or she could be given much more serious penalties, including having their driver's license suspended indefinitely. Depending upon the situation, fines and penalties could be harsher still – for instance, if accidents occurred or individuals were injured during the time the fleeing violation was occurring.

Traffic Points and Impact on Driving Record

The demerit points given for fleeing from a police officer are very serious – and can be up to 24. This comes with other consequences depending upon the state, because a certain number of points gathered in a short time or all at once can result in the individual's driver's license being suspended. This is very likely to happen with a fleeing from a police officer charge. This also results in seriously increasing car insurance premiums, as well. In some areas, it can be impossible to find a job with a driving record containing this charge and this number of points.

Hiring an Attorney

Individuals accused of fleeing from a police officer should seriously consider hiring an attorney to represent them in a court of law. Regardless of the circumstances present, an attorney can help the individual prove his or her case to the court, and in some cases can get lesser fines and less serious charges. In some situations, attorneys can get these charges dropped, if serious circumstances prevented the individual from stopping for the police officer. With this kind of serious violation, it is a wise idea to have an attorney to represent you.