Traffic Court

A traffic citation has been issued for you to appear before the Monroe County District Court. If you fail to pay or otherwise dispose of your case prior to the court date and fail to appear on your court date, a warrant may be issued for your arrest, your driver’s license may be suspended by the Department of Public Safety, the fine may be increased, and any bond posted may be forfeited. The Court date on your copy of the ticket is A TRIAL DATE; if you desire to plead NOT GUILTY and want a TRIAL, you must appear in court on your court date.

Tickets listed in the chart below may be paid by entering a guilty plea without a required court appearance, provided you have not been convicted of two or more traffic offenses in the preceding 12 months. If you wish to avoid a court appearance and enter a plea of guilty, sign the Defendant’s plea of guilty on the back of your copy of the ticket and attach your money order or cashier’s check for the amount of fine and costs indicated and mail it to:

District Clerk
65 North Alabama Ave. Room 220
Monroeville, AL 36460

NO PERSONAL CHECKS. Personal checks will be returned causing a delay and late charges being assessed. Your signed plea of guilty and money order must reach the Clerk’s office before your court date. If it does not, a warrant may be issued for your arrest and your driver’s license may be suspended by the Department of Public Safety, all without further notice to you.

For questions or payment please contact the Alabama Traffic Service Center at traffic.alacourt.gov or by calling toll free (866) 954-9399. Cases may be paid with a credit or debit card by calling (877) 252-7294.

HELPFUL INFORMATION:
To avoid further court appearances, Defendant should bring to court all relevant documents at the first court appearance. For example, if the Defendant did not have insurance at the time the ticket was written, but has obtained insurance, proof of the new insurance may result in a lower fine. Also, if the Defendant had insurance coverage on another vehicle and the vehicle driven at the time of citation was newly purchased, the Defendant may bring proof of insurance on the other vehicle, proof of purchase of the newly purchased vehicle described in the ticket and a statement from the insurance provider that the newly purchased vehicle was covered at the time of citation, although the Defendant had not received the insurance card.

Tickets which may be paid without a court appearance.

Offenses Fines and Costs
Speeding (less than 25 mph over limit) * $200.00
Speeding (more than 25 mph over limit) * $220.00
Driving on the wrong side of the road * $210.00
Failure to yield right of way * $200.00
Following too closely * $200.00
Improper backing * $200.00
Improper passing * $200.00
Improper signal * $200.00
No Medical Card $200.00
Running Red Light or Stop Sign * $200.00
Stopping on highway * $210.00
No Binders/Flags $200.00
Failure to dim headlights $190.00
Failure to use safety belt $31.00
Failure to use child restraint $205.00
Improper brakes $205.00
Improper lights $205.00
Improper muffler $190.00
Improper tag/No tag $205.00
Switched Tag $280.00
Improper tires $205.00
Improper tire (Commercial) $230.00
Overweight truck $280.00

NOTE: FINE AND COURT COSTS MAY BE GREATER IF NOT PAID BEFORE THE COURT DATE.

Please note that traffic violations not listed in the chart above cannot be paid without court appearance.

Defensive Driving School Options

If you have been charged with an offense indicated with an asterisk (*) in the chart above, you may be eligible to have your case dismissed upon completion of a Defensive Driving course and payment of court costs. This will allow you to avoid a court appearance and will prevent the accrual of points assessed against your Alabama Driver’s License as a result of this offense. To qualify for Driving School , you must:

  1. Be charged with an offense eligible for Driving School
  2. Have no previous citation for a moving violation and have never been arrested for DUI, and
  3. Be approved for Driving School by District Judge through OTR website.

If you are approved for Defensive Driving your case may be dismissed upon payment of court costs after your completion of driving school. If you are NOT eligible for driving school, you may still avoid a court appearance by following the instructions on the previous page.

Monroe County accepts IDRIVE and in-person driving school that is taught by Larry Hines 251-564-7246