What happens if you refuse to sign a traffic ticket in California?

Answer 1

The traffic ticket signature is your confirmation that you received the notice from the officer. Depending on the exact circumstances, the officer can arrest you and have you transported to the jail ... and you still get to pay the ticket too. In some states and provinces the officer can simply note that you were asked to sign the ticket but declined to do so, but in California vehicle code section 40302b requires that you sign the agreement to appear in court, or be taken into custody.

If your attitude is really bad, the officer will probably handcuff you and have you transported to jail. If you are just confused by the whole process the officer will just lecture you on the necessity of signing the agreement to appear and may call for a sergeant to back him up rather than doing all the paperwork.

Getting taken in could be pretty costly - having your vehicle towed and stored, etc.

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The above sounds like the answer a cop would give. If you actually read CVC 40302b, it states that persons "under arrest" must sign. As shown below.

There is a HUGE difference between being arrested and being detained or "stopped" for a traffic INFRACTION, which is nota MISDEMEANOR.

The next time a cop in CA tells you that you have to sign a ticket, ask him if you are under arrest, then break out this handly little bit of info provided.

BTW, if they do cuff you up, you still have the right to have your car towed to a location of your choosing by any private tow company, such as AAA. There was a backlash a few years back in CA by civil rights activists claiming that it was unreasonable for police to tow the vehicles of illegal immigrants that didn't have drivers licenses and/or insurance. So now the police allow them to call a friend or family member to pick up the vehicle.

It's an upside-down kind of world friend. Best of luck to you.

V C Section 40302 Mandatory AppearanceMandatory Appearance

40302. Whenever any person is arrested for any violation of this code, not declared to be a felony, the arrestedperson shall be taken without unnecessary delay before a magistrate within the county in which the offense charged is alleged to have been committed and who has jurisdiction of the offense and is nearest or most accessible with reference to the place where the arrest is made in any of the following cases:

(a) When the person arrested fails to present his driver's license or other satisfactory evidence of his identity for examination.

(b) When the person arrested refuses to give his written promise to appear in court.

(c) When the person arrested demands an immediate appearance before a magistrate.

(d) When the person arrested is charged with violating Section 23152. Amended Ch. 53, Stats. 1982. Effective February 18, 1982.

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The first poster was correct. The second post is incorrect. The second poster does not understand what an "arrest" is under the law. Like many things, the common vernacular and the legal realities are not the same, and simple terms can actually be complicated legal principles.

Basically, an "arrest" has occurred anytime you have been lawfully stopped by an officer and are not free to go. Do not refuse to sign a ticket. DO SIGN YOUR TICKET. You are not admitting to guilt. You are merely promising to appear (in person or by representative - typically your attorney can appear for you) or pay the ticket or otherwise challenge it as permitted by law (read the ticket carefully).

California Penal Code Secs. 15 & 16 define infractions and fineable offenses as crimes. You can be arrested for crimes. Your signature on that ticket is your ticket to not being arrested, because you have been released on your own recognize, subject to your promise to appear. If you fail to appear, a bench warrant can be issued for your arrest, which underscores that infractions are indeed arrestable offenses. Even though infractions carry no jail time, you still must either appear and challenge the citation, or pay it. Your signature is the guarantee that you will do one or the other at a later time. If you refuse to sign, then VC 40302 comes into play - you are taken to a judge posthaste to challenge it or pay it right now. But if it's a weekend, or night time, you may not see that judge for a while.

Above all else, be polite and calm when dealing with officers. The time to challenge the ticket, if you wish to do so, is later in court, NOT on the roadside when you are getting the ticket.

Source: California Attorney.