Am I Doomed?

What caused the reckless carge? Was it speeding, or a charge on its own? I've gotten rid of them in various ways. Also quite common in CO to be issued a reckless for an accident if single vehicle.

I'm not giving legal advice but personally, time has usually been my best advocate for getting cases dropped. I've had the prosecution loose paper time and again, had the Leo fail to make appearances, even had the wrong officer appear on one.

You may want to ask your attorney about a change of court because they can't serve the case, or pleading it down to getit off their back log. You were issued the citation prior to having a cdl if I read correctly. May give you some room.

It was speeding 70 in 45 but I just brought electric car the day before and when I stomped on the gas to avert an car that came right in front of me that thing shot like a rocket. Not making excuses but wrong place at wrong time with no time to react. I'm hoping settlement happens on 10th of Jan for 15 less for speeding but it might be too late for my job offer since it's already showing in background check but might be able to save my cdl. I also have an offer from may trucking that orientation is all the way out for April 2024. My lawyer wants to give it time too but with it showing in my background I also need a speedy settlement. Does anyone know if companies hire without background check? Is that lawful? I'm assuming intrastate companies should be able to do that.

I'm no lawyer but can't yours push the right to a speedy trial? Unless their backlog negates that clause...can anyone weigh in on that?

I think the speedy trial thing applies mainly in criminal matters, primarily if someone is in jail for an alleged crime.

It is a misdamenor reckless driving charge in CA so is criminal but I'm not in custody. 45 days from filing the charge the prosecution has before the speedy trial kicks in but they already made me wait 5 months to file the charge. They filed on Dec 1st so if no trial by 15 should invoke that but that's assuming my lawyer hasn't waived that right yet which I believe he hasn't.

First and foremost in your description of the situation you are most certainly making an excuse as well as not taking the responsibility for your actions.

You say you had no time to react!! Then you say you stomped on the accelerator. That is reaction as well as the impression you performed some type of steering manauver. Another reaction.

Braking may have been a better option. I don’t know since I wasn’t there.

Ca never issued a reckless charge with only a speed violation unless it was over 100 mph. State precedent was a minimum of 2 moving violations and actions showing to be reckless.

I have a feeling, maybe I’m wrong but there is probably more to the full story.

Also at your arraignment is the time and place to waive time for a speedy trial. Apparently you waived time through your attorney.

Any trucking company understands things happen. What they look for is simple. Does the applicant accept responsibility and what did they learn from it. This is a very heavy liablious industry and owners want to feel confident they are putting responsible people behind the wheel. They may one day be required to defend the decision in court.

Wishing you the best.

First and foremost in your description of the situation you are most certainly making an excuse as well as not taking the responsibility for your actions.

You say you had no time to react!! Then you say you stomped on the accelerator. That is reaction as well as the impression you performed some type of steering manauver. Another reaction.

Braking may have been a better option. I don’t know since I wasn’t there.

Ca never issued a reckless charge with only a speed violation unless it was over 100 mph. State precedent was a minimum of 2 moving violations and actions showing to be reckless.

I have a feeling, maybe I’m wrong but there is probably more to the full story.

Also at your arraignment is the time and place to waive time for a speedy trial. Apparently you waived time through your attorney.

Any trucking company understands things happen. What they look for is simple. Does the applicant accept responsibility and what did they learn from it. This is a very heavy liablious industry and owners want to feel confident they are putting responsible people behind the wheel. They may one day be required to defend the decision in court.

Wishing you the best.

I got time to react but I didn't have time to weigh all my options it was new a car and I'm not neo from the matrix that can slow my surroundings and make best decisions. I'm not taking responsibility because I'm not guilty of reckless driving which is purposely disregarding others safety. There's more to the event but I sparred everyone the tiny details like my visability etc. That only strengthen my case.

You want solid advice and opinions, yet you leave out pertinent details of this self-created problem.

Wishing you the best +1.

I suggest you go read cvc 23103. It specifically states “willful or wanton disregard for safety of others or property”. It is also not a specific intent statue.

Having a new car and you didn’t intend to do it is not a defense.

I’m not an attorney by any means but hopefully your retained one can this this reduced, but in any manner it will cause you problems in this industry for 1-3 years most likely.

I suggest you go read cvc 23103. It specifically states “willful or wanton disregard for safety of others or property”. It is also not a specific intent statue.

Having a new car and you didn’t intend to do it is not a defense.

I’m not an attorney by any means but hopefully your retained one can this this reduced, but in any manner it will cause you problems in this industry for 1-3 years most likely.

I had to do a defensive maneuver to avoid a crash which I did and avoided injury to property and person is defense. If it reduced to say speeding ticket will I still have problem breaking into trucking for 1-3 years? Thanks for the support.

Perry, the short answer is yes. Even if if is reduced to speeding, 14 mph or less, it will have a negative impact for you until it drops off your record. Usually that takes 3 years, or so I’m told.

Most companies don’t concern themselves with any extenuating circumstances about traffic violations. So it doesn’t usually matter what your excuse is. If it’s on your record it’s black and white. They see it on your record and can reject your application at their discretion. Right now, even some drivers with very clean records are not guaranteed a new job because of a driver glut in the industry.

Every situation is different depending on the company and it’s policies. So maybe you keep trying or maybe you wait.

The problem for us who read these threads on this forum is that we don’t usually find out what eventually happens in cases like yours. People ask for help and advice but the answer isn’t to their liking so they disappear instead of letting us know what happens in the end. Maybe you will be different, which would be refreshing.

Good luck with your job search.

Perry, PJ has called you out for making excuses. First the reaction thing ("I stomped on the gas to avert an car that came right in front of me"). Most often when a driver sees a car doing something unexpected in front of them they "hit the brakes". Speeding up is almost never the thing to do, especially if the thing is going on in front of you. Later you rationalize saying "I got time to react but I didn't have time to weigh all my options. A good driver is always keeping options in mind, from the moment they pull onto a road till they are safely parked for the day.

Lastly, you "sparred (spared) everyone the tiny details like my visability". Visibility is not a tiny detail for driving. So was this at night or in the fog? You couldn't see them clearly or they couldn't see you? Did they come from behind another car?

What I read here is a driver that will rationalize anything and try to keep any blame away from themselves. One thing I tell my CDL students is they must always ask themselves "Who is holding the steering wheel?" because the Trooper will assume that the steering wheel holder has something to do with any accident. And in the inevitable Safety meeting the driver had better tell the company safety officer they learned from the event and will be a better driver.

So good luck with your court date, and learn something new from both the incident and this forum thread.

YES!!! You will still have a problem with any ticket. Right now with the dtate of trucking...you would have a problem with a failure to yield to a duck crossing sign.

How serious this is... my friend who has been driving for 10 years just got clocked doing 72 in a 55 in CA. They ticketed him with 67. He just got fired. Another friend owns his truck and drives for Landstar... he wad fired for 70 in the 55.

Neither company waited for the court battle. It was instant termination. You asked if they have to do a background check... yes they do. 30 days prior to hire date.

"It was a new car" sucks as an excuse. What are u going to do in a new semi truck??? Kill someone then blame the truck?

You did 25mph over the speed limit. Even 10 mph over is an issue. You are downplaying this from a profressional drivers perspective.