Zero Point Offense for Overtaking a School Bus: How Did We Do It?

Mrs. Weikfield, a 56-year-old Pennsylvania resident, received a letter for a traffic citation. To her surprise, it was a charge for overtaking a school bus. She was about to face a fine and a license suspension, along with points on her license.

The next thing we know is that we get a call from her about this issue. She explained to us what happened on the day of the incident, and requested us to help her in this situation. And our expert Pittsburgh criminal lawyers at the Logue Law Group fought till the end, and reduced her charges to a zero-point offense.

So, how did we manage to reduce charges for our client? This blog discusses that in detail!

School Bus Stopping Laws in Pennsylvania and Penalties for Violation

Let’s take a quick look at the school bus stopping laws before we get to the main subject.

So, school bus safety is considered to be a high-priority thing in Pennsylvania. And therefore, the stopping laws are strict here. For instance-

• If you see a stationary school bus, which has those red signals flashing and an activated stop arm, you are required to stop your vehicle.
• If you are waiting at an intersection, and you see a school bus stop with red flashing lights and an activated stop arm, you are required to stop, whether you are on the same street or across the street.
• While stopping, you must keep a 10-foot distance from the school bus.
• You can only move your vehicle when the stop arm is withdrawn, and the red lights stop flashing.
• You must not move until all the children off-boarding the bus reach a safe place.

Violating these laws is considered to be a serious offense in Pennsylvania and carries significant penalties, like-

• A $250 fine, which comes with an extra $35 surcharge.
• 5 points to your license.
• A 60-day license suspension.

This can be a huge inconvenience as it can have a devastating impact on your daily life. That’s exactly why you need a Pittsburgh criminal lawyer to protect your driving record.

How Did We Manage to Reduce Charges to a Zero-Point Offense?

Mrs. Weikfied was a hard-working professional with a clean driving record. She made an honest mistake that day, as she had to rush to the hospital for a medical emergency with her sister. So, she accepted the citation and called our expert Pittsburgh criminal lawyer right away.

As we overtook her case, we got down to the details. And since she had a valid reason for her violation, it became the greatest defense plan for us! We checked the bus camera footage, analyzed the location and time of the incident. Once that was done, our Pittsburgh criminal lawyer spoke with the prosecution, explaining our client’s situation. We also highlighted our client’s excellent driving record and showed that this was a single, isolated incident. And since our client violated the law because of a medical emergency, we argued that a conviction was too harsh and asked for a reduced charge to a zero-point offense.

Thankfully, the prosecutor, upon investigating our case in detail, agreed to our request. The original charge was dismissed, and was replaced with a minor violation. Not just that, but it also made our client avoid the license suspension. She paid a minimal fine and moved on with a clean slate.

And that’s how our experienced Pittsburgh criminal lawyers reduced charges for Mrs. Weikfield. If you or a friend of yours has been facing similar situations, don’t hesitate to call us at 844.PITT.DUI and book a free consultation!