Walk It Through: The School Run
A car seat, belts in the back, a stopped bus, and a school zone.
A parent loads a preschooler and a fourth grader into the car.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One family's morning. Booster seats past six, pickups' open beds, a bus on a divided highway and the school zone ticket that is not reckless are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- CitationThe written notice issued to a driver halted for a misdemeanor traffic violation who is not taken before a magistrate.
- InfractionA civil public offense, not a crime, punishable only by a penalty not exceeding $300, with no jail.
- MisdemeanorAny crime that is not a felony. Unless a section sets another punishment, it carries up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
- Reckless drivingDriving carelessly and heedlessly or without due caution in a way that endangers people or property, passing where a line marks a sight restriction, or going more than twenty over in an active school or work zone. It is a misdemeanor.
- MinorA person under eighteen years of age. A minor who has been married may enter contracts and sue on them.
- Secondary actionEnforcement that may happen only after a driver is detained for a suspected violation of some other law. The seat belt rule is enforced only this way.
- Violation pointA point assessed for each moving traffic violation, one for a less serious violation and up to four for a more serious one. Twelve or more in any twelve consecutive months allows a suspension.
- Child safety restraintA restraint meeting the federal standard, in which a child six years of age or younger rides in a vehicle built with seat belts.