Vehicle Code § 40508 a VC – Failure to Appear in Court on a Traffic Citation

Vehicle Code § 40508a VC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to fail to appear in court for a traffic citation. A violation of the law is a misdemeanor. This is true even if the original traffic violation was only for an infraction.

The section is often cited as 40508a VC or 40508a CVC as abbreviations for the California Vehicle Code.

Section 40508 states that

(a) A person willfully violating their written promise to appear or a lawfully granted continuance of their promise to appear in court or before a person authorized to receive a deposit of bail is guilty of a misdemeanor regardless of the disposition of the charge upon which the person was originally arrested.

(b) A person willfully failing to pay bail in installments as agreed to under Section 40510.5 or a lawfully imposed fine for a violation of a provision of this code or a local ordinance adopted pursuant to this code within the time authorized by the court and without lawful excuse having been presented to the court on or before the date the bail or fine is due is guilty of a misdemeanor regardless of the full payment of the bail or fine after that time.

(c) A person willfully failing to comply with a condition of a court order for a violation of this code, other than for failure to appear or failure to pay a fine, is guilty of a misdemeanor, regardless of their subsequent compliance with the order.

Examples

• ignoring a court date for driving on a bike lane, illegal per Vehicle Code 21209 VC.
• failing to make a court date for a violation of California’s basic speeding law.
• not showing up in court for the offense of crossing a divided highway, per Vehicle Code 21651a VC.

Excuses

Judges have wide discretion in accepting or rejecting excuses for failing to appear in court. Several excuses that may convince the court include showing that:

1. the defendant did not willfully fail to appear.
2. the accused never signed an agreement to appear in court.
3. an emergency prevented the defendant from making the court appearance.

Penalties

A violation of this statute is a misdemeanor. This is opposed to a felony charge or an infraction.

The offense is punishable by:

• custody in county jail for up to six months, and/or
• a maximum fine of $1,000.

A judge can award misdemeanor (or summary) probation in lieu of jail time.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will explain the following in this article:

• 1. When is ” failure to appear in court” a crime?
• 2. Are there valid excuses?
• 3. Are there fines and jail time?
• 4. Can the record be expunged?
• 5. Could I face other charges?

Vehicle Code 40508 VC makes it a crime for a person to fail to appear in court for a traffic citation.

1. When is ” failure to appear in court” a crime?

A prosecutor must prove the following to convict a defendant under 40508a VC:

1. the defendant received a traffic citation,
2. in connection with it, the defendant signed a written promise to appear in court, and
3. the defendant willfully failed to appear in court.¹

Someone commits an act “willfully” when he/she does it willingly or on purpose. It is not required that the person intended to:

• break the law,
• hurt someone else, or
• gain any advantage.²

Note that a prosecutor does not have to show that the accused was guilty of the underlying ticket. A person violates this law just by breaking a promise to:

• appear in court,
• appear to pay bail,
• pay bail in installments,
• pay a fine within the time authorized, or
• comply with any condition of the court.³

2. Are there valid excuses?

An accused can use a few excuses to avoid getting penalized under this statute.

Three common excuses are:

1. the defendant did not fail to appear on purpose.
2. the accused never signed an agreement to appear in court.
3. an emergency prevented the defendant from making the court appearance.

No willful failure

Recall that an accused is only guilty under this statute if he/she “willfully” failed to appear in court. This term means that a defendant missed a court date on purpose.

It is a defense, therefore, for an accused to say that a failure to appear was not done willingly. Perhaps, for example, a defendant missed a court date on accident.

No signed agreement

Also recall that a defendant is guilty only if he/she failed to appear after signing a promise to show up in court. This means it is always a defense for an accused to show that he did not sign any agreement.

Emergency

A defendant can always say that he failed to make a court appearance because of an emergency.

Some examples of an emergency that may excuse someone from not making a court date are:

• a car accident,
• a serious health issue, or
• a death of an immediate family member.

Note that if an emergency does arise, the defendant should:

1. inform his/her defense attorney of the situation, and/or
2. have a close friend or family member appear in court on his/her behalf.

A violation of this law can result in a fine and/or jail time

3. Are there fines and jail time?

A violation of Vehicle Code 40508a is a misdemeanor.

The crime is punishable by:

• custody in county jail (as opposed to state prison) for up to six months, and/or
• a maximum fine of $1,000.⁴

A violation of the law can also lead to the possible loss of a person’s driving privileges for up to 30 days.

4. Can the record be expunged?

A person can get an expungement if convicted of failure to appear.

A convicted party gets awarded an expungement if he successfully completes:

• probation, or
• his jail term (whichever is applicable).

Note that an expungement removes many of the hardships associated with a conviction.

5. Could I face other charges?

Three crimes are related to the failure to appear in court for a traffic citation. These are:

1. failure to appear – PC 1320/1320.5
2. violating a written promise to appear – PC 853.7, and

Failure to appear – PC 1320/1320.5

Penal Code 1320 PC makes it a crime for people to fail to appear in court when:

1. they have been released from custody on their own recognizance, and
2. they are required to appear in court via a court order.

Penal Code 1320.5 PC makes it a crime for people to fail to appear in court when:

1. they have been released from custody on bail, and
2. they are required to appear in court via a court order.

Violating a written promise to appear – PC 853.7

Penal Code 853.7 PC says it is a crime for a person to violate his written promise to appear in court willfully.

A defendant often signs a written agreement to appear when:

1. released from custody, and
2. the release is on his or her own recognizance.

Note that VC 40508a applies to court dates for traffic citations. This statute applies to any criminal proceeding.

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