There are certain types of traffic violations and the most common is the misdemeanor and felony traffic violations. Some states classify offenses based on the gravity and the punishment involved in the charges.
Misdemeanor Traffic Violation
A traffic violation with misdemeanor charges is minor offense that can involve driving without license or insurance, DUI and DWI misdemeanor, hit and run misdemeanor, or reckless driving. The most popular and often committed charge is DUI misdemeanor. There are a lot of factors that can define a DUI as a misdemeanor offense and by knowing this; it can help people to understand the meaning of a DUI offense. Although this is considered as a minor crime compared to DUI charge with felony, some state still look at it as a serious offense. Although some states have varying qualifications and criteria related to the alcohol content present in the blood of the offender, there are some common considerations that delineate the illegality of the alcohol concentration in the blood resulting to impairment and inability to operate a vehicle. For most states, the common definition of DUI is having an alcohol concentration of at least 0.8 for people 21 years old and above. Other states impose a strict legislation about minor DUI offenders and some applies the per se system in which an offender can still be charged with DUI even if there is no evident proof of impairment other than the chemical analysis of the alcohol content found in the blood. This serves as the framework of the DUI misdemeanor offense but can still be contested in the court with the help of a good DUI attorney.
Felony Traffic Violation
Felony traffic violations include serious offenses like hit and run felony, vehicular homicide, repeat DUI and DWI felony, and other grave traffic offenses that can be considered as felony due to the severity of the offense. The most common felony traffic offense is the hit and run felony. Hit and run felony is an offense committed while crashing or in collision with another vehicle, a property, or a person and then leaving the scene of the crime intentionally. This is more likely described as fleeing the crime after commission. Vehicular homicide is considered to be the most serious of felony traffic violation since it involves death in the charges. Charges for this particular driving offense may vary from state to state but most have the same class penalty even if the offender has no intention of killing somebody while driving a vehicle. Courts from all states consider vehicular homicide as felony but may differ on the way a sentence is ruled depending on the legislation of a particular state. Vehicular homicide can also be classified as first degree and second degree vehicular homicide with first degree being the most serious of this category. It becomes a first degree vehicular homicide because of the intention present in the commission of the crime. The intent is determined when the offender failed to stop his vehicle or run away from the scene of the crime which eventually resulted to the death of the victim.
