Traffic Infractions in Virginia: Not a Crime, Still a Conviction

A traffic infraction in Virginia is a violation that is “neither a felony nor a misdemeanor” — those are the words of Va. Code § 46.2-100. It is punished by a fine and nothing else: no jail, no criminal record. Unless the offence’s own section names a figure, the ceiling is $250, and $51 in court costs is added on conviction.

What a traffic infraction is in Virginia

Two sections define the category between them. Va. Code § 46.2-100 says a traffic infraction is “a violation of law punishable as provided in § 46.2-113, which is neither a felony nor a misdemeanor.” Va. Code § 46.2-113 then supplies the punishment: unless otherwise stated, a violation of Title 46.2 is a traffic infraction “punishable by a fine of not more than that provided for a Class 4 misdemeanor under § 18.2-11” — which Va. Code § 18.2-11 fixes at $250.

So the default Virginia traffic ticket is a fine of up to $250 and nothing more. The important word is “unless”: a good many sections do state their own penalty, and those figures override the default. Improper driving is up to $500 under Va. Code § 46.2-869, a first handheld-phone offence is a flat $125 under Va. Code § 46.2-818.2, and failure to stay in a marked lane is a flat $100 under Va. Code § 46.2-804. Virginia traffic ticket costs, offence by offence works through the arithmetic.

Infraction, misdemeanor, felony: the three tiers

	Traffic infraction	Misdemeanor	Felony
Criminal?	No	Yes	Yes
Typical Virginia traffic example	Speeding, following too closely, running a stop sign	Reckless driving, driving while suspended, DUI	The most serious driving offences, such as those causing death or serious injury
Maximum fine	$250 by default (§ 46.2-113)	$250–$2,500 by class (§ 18.2-11)	Set by the offence’s own section
Jail	None	Up to 12 months	State prison
District court costs	$51	$61	—
Tried in district court	Yes	Yes	No — circuit court

The court costs come from Va. Code § 16.1-69.48:1: subsection D sets a fixed fee of $51 for a traffic infraction tried in district court and subsection B sets $61 for a misdemeanor. They are added to the fine, never included in it.

Where a traffic infraction is tried

In the general district court for the county or city where the offence happened. Va. Code § 16.1-123.1 gives each general district court exclusive original jurisdiction over “all other misdemeanors and traffic infractions arising in such county, including the towns in such county, or city.”

Va. Code § 19.2-258.1 sets the rules of that trial, and two of them surprise people. There is no jury in district court for a traffic infraction — the judge hears and determines the case. But the standard of proof is the criminal one: the defendant “shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.” A conviction can then be appealed to the circuit court within ten days under Va. Code § 16.1-132, where the defendant does have the right to a jury.

What happens if you simply do not show up

The classification decides this too, and it is the clearest illustration of why the distinction is worth knowing.

Miss an infraction hearing and Va. Code § 19.2-258.1 treats the absence as a waiver of the hearing: the judge may decide the charge without you and have you notified of the result afterwards. The same sentence expressly forbids a warrant under Va. Code § 46.2-938. You are convicted in your absence, and Va. Code § 16.1-69.48:1 taxes an extra $35 in costs unless you ask for a hearing and show good cause.

Miss a misdemeanor hearing and none of that protection applies. The non-appearance is an offence in its own right under Va. Code § 46.2-938, a warrant may be ordered, and the DMV must hold the licence until the court reports that the defendant has appeared. That is why reckless driving and driving while suspended behave so differently from an ordinary ticket — your three options after a Virginia traffic ticket sets out the misdemeanor route in full.

Local ordinances count too

A Virginia summons often cites a county or town code number instead of a state section. Va. Code § 46.2-1300 is the reason: local governing bodies may adopt traffic ordinances “not in conflict with the provisions of this title,” and the same section forbids a local penalty greater than the state penalty for a similar offence. A locally charged traffic infraction is tried in the same general district court and carries the same $51 fee.

None of this decides an individual case: whether a particular charge sticks depends on the evidence, and a Virginia traffic attorney can say what is realistic in the court named on your summons. For the wider picture of how these pieces fit together, see Virginia’s traffic laws and where they live in the Code and which offences an officer may stop you for.