Is driving without a license a felony in Alexandria Virginia?
Under Virginia Code of law, driving without a license is different from driving while an individual is suspended in Virginia. Driving without a license means that either it was not made or the license has expired. Driving without a license is considered as a Class 2 Misdemeanor that requires a heavy fine and prison time although if it is a first time conviction, the penalties may be mild.
If an individual gets a valid license made before appearing in court, his case will be acknowledged that may result in dismissing his charge. Many people fail to get a license in Virginian Alexandria because they fail to fulfill the requirements that are required for attaining a license in Alexandria. When a judge recognizes that a person is getting convicted for driving without a license in Virginia he will sentence him to send a certain time period in prison. If an individual has incomplete documents, he may be investigated by the immigration agencies that may result in deportation.
Keeping all these things in mind, the individual should be hiring a lawyer as soon as possible so that he can get to know how he will be solving his case and what he will be doing in case of a conviction. Lawyers help in developing a defense case for the convicted individual.
1- Potential Penalties
When an individual is found driving without having a valid license or any license at all, he is convicted as per Class 2 misdemeanor. One of the most common reasons people are convicted is because they do not get their license updated if it is expired or lapsed.
Individuals are required to make a license made within 60 days when they move to Virginia. Failing to do so will result in a conviction. Another reason for the conviction could be that the individuals had incomplete documents for the requirements of getting a license that results in a failure to obtain one. When they still drive without a license, they are at a very high chance of being convicted.
The penalties that are related to this conviction depend if the individual has any prior convictions for the same reason of the most recent one and secondly, the reasons of why he does not have a valid license. If the individual was convicted for the very first time and if the individual forgot to renew his license, the case may be dissolved by the judge if he gets his license made before appearing in court.
However, if an individual has any prior convictions, or he cannot get a license due to whatever reason, he will have to hire a lawyer as soon as possible so he can get to know about all the options he has for defending his case.
2- Implication that might be long term
There are long and short term consequences related to the convictions of driving without a license in Virginia. In certain cases, people go to jail for a notably long period of time. Although this conviction and mildly harsh policies in Virginia can be taken care of, people often feel that they are trapped in Virginia because no one can get a license in Virginia unless they are legally residing in the state.