St. Paul Reckless Driving Attorney

Providing Our Clients with Experienced and Compassionate Reckless Driving Representation

Reckless driver charges can be confusing and frightening if you’ve never dealt with them. You believe you are generally a very safe driver, and you would never drink alcohol before driving or text or talk on the phone when you should be paying attention to the road. But regardless of how diligent you usually may be, you have now found yourself facing a very real and probably very worrying charge that has your mind spinning about the possible negative impacts awaiting you. Will you lose your driver’s license? Will you serve time in jail? Will it remain on your record?

A charge of this type is considerably more serious than a standard traffic violation. In addition to negatively affecting your driving record and being required to pay fines, you may also serve time in jail.

While that may sound intimidating, there is some good news. An experienced attorney who has worked on reckless driver charges before can help you get the most favorable outcome from this challenging, complicated situation. A skilled and compassionate St. Paul reckless driving lawyer can guarantee that you don’t have to face court alone.

What Are the Possible Punishments for a Reckless Driver Charge?

It’s a normal reaction to wonder about the potential outcome of a charge like this. These motor vehicle charges are more serious than other traffic violations but not as extreme as DUI. If this is a first offense, it generally comes with a fine and potential jail time. Other factors can affect the final result of the conviction, such as whether a potential other driver was affected negatively and whether there was an accident with injuries or death involved.

That only applies to a first offense, however. If this is a second conviction, the fines and potential jail time can increase, along with the additional potential loss of driving privileges and revoking your driver’s license. In addition to those court issues, these charges can impact your coverage from increased insurance rates and higher insurance premiums.

What to Do After a Reckless Driving Charge in Minnesota

This point cannot be stressed strongly enough: after traffic violations as serious as reckless driving, you should speak to one of the Minnesota traffic ticket lawyers who have experience handling these cases. It is highly inadvisable to attempt to handle a situation this complicated, with the very real possibility of severe punishment, on your own. Your specific circumstances are different than anyone else’s, which means you need to build a strong and particular defense against the charges to prevent losing your driver’s license and avoid serving any time.

The goal of starting as soon as possible with your attorney is to establish as many details about the charge as possible to hopefully get them dismissed or lowered to a lesser traffic violation. For instance, reckless driving laws are often written so broadly that you may not have been consciously disregarding any traffic laws when you were charged. If the charge did not result in an accident or another person who may be responsible was also involved, these factors need to be considered. It’s worth the time to schedule a confidential consultation with an accident and reckless driving attorney. An attorney can potentially get your serious traffic violation pleaded down to a lower traffic ticket-level infraction, which would help you keep your driving record in good shape.

How Long Does Reckless Driving Stay on Your Record in Minnesota?

This is an essential factor to remember, and it has longer-lasting impacts than many people consider. A charge from a single night’s behavior can remain on your record for five years. That means in addition to the fines, possible jail time, and the potential loss of a license, it can also have a profound personal and financial impact on you.

It could impact you personally because a single mistake could become part of public awareness, damaging relationships with family and friends. The financial impact could come in the form of lost work opportunities due to the blemish on your record.

You always have the opportunity to have your record expunged or to wait out the five years until it is no longer a part of your record. However, a wise course of action is to establish a relationship with an attorney right away and work to prevent a conviction in the first place.

What is the Difference Between Reckless and Careless Driving in Minnesota?

Many people get these two types of charges mixed up, but they are different charges. It’s vital to know the difference between them because while they are different charges that can yield different results, they are similar in the behavior that leads to the charge. For instance, careless and reckless driving are both misdemeanor charges, but careless driving is the lesser of the two. That is because careless driving is a charge that doesn’t require you to have intentional disregard for the risk that the driving may cause others. Careless driving is more about not paying attention.

Reckless driving, on the other hand, has an element of awareness of engagement that elevates it beyond mere carelessness. In order to be considered a reckless driver, the court must find that you were aware of the potential risk you were creating and continued the behavior in spite of that awareness. Because of the more extreme state of mind required to be found reckless, this charge is the greater of the two and comes with a more severe potential outcome.

Can I Represent Myself in My Case?

Like many states, Minnesota does allow its citizens to represent themselves in many types of court proceedings, and this type of charge is no exception. If that is something you wish to do, you would be required to obtain and fill out what is called a Petition to Proceed Pro Se Counsel. Pro se is a Latin term that means “advocating on your own behalf,” and filling out that form means that you would be your own lawyer.

However, it is not recommended to represent yourself in a court case, especially one with consequences as potentially serious and life-affecting as this one. The system of the law is complicated in Minnesota, and what seems like simple errors or omissions that you didn’t know or wouldn’t understand can have a significant impact on the outcome. In addition to the complexity of the law, a defendant’s lack of experience following courtroom procedures or negotiating with prosecutors could get them a less-than-desirable result. Your freedom, future, and finances are all potentially on the line in a case like this, and it’s too much of a risk for you to take on your own.

That’s why a team like Adams Law Firm, PLLC, is an excellent solution for you. Having a solid defense strategy that you build, along with an experienced and knowledgeable attorney team, will give you the best chance at the positive result you want. We’ve helped many other Minnesota residents in the same situation you’re dealing with, and if you call 651-240-9282, we get to work helping you, too.