Is a traffic citation in Spanish valid if I only speak English?
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Is a traffic citation in Spanish valid if I only speak English?
I received a citation in Canton, Ga for failure to make
a complete stop at a stop sign. The citation I
received is in Spanish only. Also, the officer did not
completely write my DL number on the form. Is this a
valid citation?
Asked on February 26, 2018 under General Practice, Florida
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
It is not automatically invalid, because these are errors that the authorities could lawfully correct by having the police issue you a corrected (e.g. in English) citation and rescheduling the court date for the future, after you receive the corrected citation.
However, there is a reasonable chance that if you discuss this with the prosecutor the day of trial, that he/she will either agree to dismiss or offer you a very minor (e.g. no point) offense to plea to, to avoid the trouble and time of having this reissused, a new court date set, etc.
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