Traffic

Read your notice

If you are cited for a traffic violation, the court will mail you a “courtesy” notice at the address listed on the citation. Most questions will be answered with information provided by the courtesy notice.

Please allow approximately 5-6 weeks from the date you received your citation for the court to process your citation and mail a courtesy notice. You must pay or appear on the court date shown on your courtesy notice or contact the Traffic Division for a court appointment before the court date on your citation. Your courtesy notice will indicate if your appearance in court is required.  Note: You are still required to respond to your citation whether or not you receive a courtesy notice.

The courtesy notice will show the fine amount due for your citation. If you choose to pay the citation, the violation is deemed paid and the resulting conviction will be placed upon your driving record. You may pay your citation online or you can mail your check or money order along with your courtesy notice to the court address located on the notice before your appearance date. If you cannot pay your fine in full, there are payment options to help avoid the inconvenience and time associated with coming to the courthouse. 

If you do not receive your courtesy notice or do not understand your options, you may come in person to the courthouse or inquire by phone or mail prior to your court date.

Traffic Tickets

To pay your citation (bail forfeiture), pay online:

Pay Now

You will need your case number and amount due to begin the online payment process. If you are contesting your citation, be sure to select that option when making the payment. If you do not indicate that you want a trial or trial by declaration, the payment will be accepted as a bail forfeiture and reported to DMV accordingly.

Or you may pay your citation by mailing your personal check or money order to the Court. DO NOT SEND CASH.

Traffic School

Enroll in Traffic School

Search for Traffic Schools in your area.

If you elect to attend traffic school you must pay the total fine amount plus a State/Court Administrative fee before your court date or extended due date. If you do not timely elect to attend traffic school, you will be unable to request traffic school at a later date. Traffic school election can be done by mail, in person, or by using the online or phone payment option. However, if there are any correctable or “fix-it” violations on your citation, traffic school election can only be done by mail or in person. You will need to mail or bring the proof of correction with the fee(s) to the Court and request to attend traffic school.

It is your responsibility to:

1. Elect to attend Traffic School and post Traffic School Bail on or before your appearance date or extended due date. Traffic School elections made untimely or without payment of full Traffic School Bail or an approved Traffic School installment plan will not be accepted by the Court.
2. Select a school and enroll. The traffic school will charge you a separate enrollment fee. If you were charged with multiple violations, contact the court for the amount due.
3. Complete a DMV-approved traffic school within 90 days. Upon completion, your violation will be reported to DMV as a confidential conviction.

The Court will be able to retrieve an electronic completion certificate from the School/DMV five (5) business days after you have successfully completed Traffic School.

Requirements for traffic school eligibility:

• You must have a valid driver’s license.
• You have not attended or elected to attend traffic school in the past 18 months (this is determined from violation date to violation date)
• You have no outstanding Failure to Appear or Failure to Pay.
• The citation involves a moving infraction and does not involve any drug or alcohol violations.
• You were not speeding more than 25 mph over the posted limit.

Note: Commercial Drivers are not eligible for Traffic School if cited while driving a commercial vehicle. Holders of commercial driver licenses cited while operating a personal or non-commercial vehicle may be eligible to attend traffic school. DMV will not mask the conviction from view on a person’s driving record; however, no points will be assessed.

Check The Status of Your Traffic School Certificate

If you completed Traffic School and want to see if the Court has received your Certificate of Completion click here: http://www.courtcertservice.com

Correctible Violations

Your fine may be reduced upon receipt of proof of valid correction on many equipment, registration, and license violations. Proof of correction of correctable (fix-it) violations must be verified and signed off by a law enforcement officer on the back of the citation. An exception to this rule: if cited for no proof of insurance, a law enforcement officer cannot sign off the back of the citation. Proof of insurance (valid at the time the citation was issued) must be presented to the court. The effective and expiration dates must be indicated. There will be a $25.00 transaction fee, per correction, due to the court when proof of correction is submitted. If you have a correctable or “fix-it” violation, you will need to mail or bring the proof of correction with the fee(s) to the Court by your court date.

Failure to Appear or Pay

You were asked to sign your citation at the time you received it. By signing the citation you made a “promise to appear” in court on the date indicated at the bottom of your citation. If you violate your written promise to appear at court; this is called a “failure to appear” (FTA) and you can be found guilty of a misdemeanor. If you fail to appear or pay your citation on or before the scheduled date, your case may be referred for collection and the court can issue a warrant for your arrest. 

Parking Citations

If you received a parking citation in Sierra County contact the Treasure / Tax Collector at (530) 289-3286 or for more information on how to pay the citation online go to the Sierra County Central Collections page.