Michigan Traffic Tickets: Civil Infractions, Points, and Court

This reference explains how Michigan handles traffic tickets: what a civil infraction is, how it differs from a criminal traffic charge, the choices a driver has after a citation, how informal and formal hearings work, and how fines and points are set. It covers the statewide framework in the Michigan Vehicle Code. Individual district and municipal courts add their own fine schedules and local filing details on top of that framework.

What counts as a traffic offense in Michigan

Michigan sorts traffic offenses into two groups. Most everyday moving violations, such as speeding, disobeying a signal, or an improper lane change, are civil infractions. A smaller group of serious offenses, including operating while intoxicated, reckless driving, and driving on a suspended license, are crimes handled through the criminal process.

A civil infraction is a civil action, not a criminal charge. Under MCL 257.741, the case begins when an officer issues and serves a citation, and the district court or a municipal court hears it. The state is the plaintiff for a violation of the Vehicle Code, and a city or township is the plaintiff for a violation of a local ordinance that matches the state law.

Because it is civil, a traffic infraction is decided by a lower standard of proof than a crime. At a hearing, the court decides whether the driver is responsible “by a preponderance of the evidence” under MCL 257.746, meaning more likely than not, rather than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard used in criminal cases. A civil infraction also cannot be treated as a lesser version of a crime, a point the Legislature spelled out in MCL 257.907.

Key terms in a Michigan traffic case

A few words appear throughout the process and mean something specific in Michigan traffic law.

• Citation. The ticket itself. It states the alleged violation, the court, and the date to respond.
• Civil infraction. A non-criminal traffic violation resolved as a civil case in district court.
• Determination. The court’s finding that a driver either is or is not responsible for the infraction. A “determination of responsibility” is the civil-side equivalent of a conviction.
• District court magistrate. A judicial officer who can hear informal traffic cases when the district judge authorizes it, as set out in MCL 257.746.
• Points. Numbers the Secretary of State records against a driver’s license for each responsible determination, set by a statutory schedule.

These terms carry through the spoke articles listed at the end, which assume a reader already knows this vocabulary.

Three ways to respond to a citation

A driver who receives a Michigan citation appears by, or contacts the court by, the date printed on the ticket. MCL 257.745 gives three ways to respond.

The first is to admit responsibility. A driver can do this in person, by mail, or through a representative, and then pays the fine and costs the court orders. The second is to admit responsibility “with explanation.” Here the driver accepts responsibility but offers context the court may consider when it sets the fine; the admission still counts, but the explanation can reduce the amount. The third is to deny responsibility, which sends the case to a hearing.

Many Michigan district courts let a driver who wants to admit responsibility pay the ticket online through the state’s Michigan Courts ePAY system. Paying that way resolves the case as an admission, with the same points and record consequences as admitting in person.

Informal and formal hearings

Denying responsibility leads to one of two hearing types, and the difference shapes how the case is run.

An informal hearing is the default. Under MCL 257.746, a district judge or an authorized magistrate hears it in a relaxed setting, without the formal rules of evidence and without a jury. Neither side may bring an attorney: the driver appears without a lawyer, and the police agency, not a prosecutor, presents the citation. The judge or magistrate decides by a preponderance of the evidence and, on a finding of responsibility, orders the fine and costs allowed by the fine statute.

A formal hearing is available on request. Under MCL 257.747, only a judge conducts it, the driver may be represented by a retained attorney, and a prosecuting attorney or the city attorney appears for the government. There is no jury and no appointed counsel at public expense, because the case is civil. The proof standard is the same preponderance test used at an informal hearing.

A driver who loses at an informal hearing can appeal. The appeal is decided anew rather than reviewed for error: an appeal from a district judge goes to a different judge in the district as a formal hearing, an appeal from a magistrate goes to a district judge, and an appeal from a municipal judge is a trial de novo in circuit court, all under MCL 257.746.

Fines, costs, and the justice system assessment

The money a Michigan traffic infraction costs comes from three parts, and the Vehicle Code caps each one.

The civil fine for a typical infraction is capped at $100 under MCL 257.907, though specific offenses in that section carry their own higher amounts, and a civil infraction committed in a commercial motor vehicle can reach $250. On top of the fine, the court taxes costs, which are also capped at $100 by the same statute. Finally, every civil infraction determination carries a $40 justice system assessment, except for parking tickets and cases where the total fine and costs are $10 or less.

Local courts publish their own schedules within these limits. MCL 257.907 lets each district and municipal court set a posted schedule of fines and costs for common infractions, which is why the total for the same violation can differ between counties. The court can also allow payment over time or in installments rather than requiring the full amount at once.

Points and your driving record

Separate from the money, a responsible determination adds points to a driver’s record kept by the Secretary of State. MCL 257.320a sets the point value for each offense. Speeding runs from 1 point for 1 to 5 miles per hour over the limit, to 2 points for 6 to 10 over, 3 points for 11 to 15 over, and 4 points for more than 15 over. Disobeying a traffic signal or stop sign and improper passing are 3 points each, careless driving is 3 points, and reckless driving is 6 points. Points are not entered for bond forfeitures, overweight loads, or defective-equipment tickets.

Points can trigger action against a license. Under MCL 257.320a, the Secretary of State may call a driver in for an interview once 9 points accumulate. Accumulating 12 or more points within a two-year period is one of the grounds for a driver assessment reexamination, which the Michigan Department of State describes on its driver assessment page and which can lead to restrictions, suspension, or revocation of driving privileges.

When a traffic offense is a crime, not a civil infraction

Some driving offenses fall outside the civil infraction system entirely. Operating while intoxicated, reckless driving, fleeing or eluding an officer, driving on a suspended or revoked license, and leaving the scene of an injury crash are misdemeanors or felonies. They are prosecuted as criminal cases, which means an arraignment, the right to a court-appointed attorney if the driver cannot afford one, and the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard that does not apply to infractions.

These offenses also carry the heaviest license consequences. Several of them, including reckless driving and a felony that results from operating a vehicle, are assigned 6 points under MCL 257.320a, the top of the point schedule. Because the process, the penalties, and a driver’s rights differ so sharply from a civil infraction, the criminal traffic charges are covered in their own articles rather than here.

Specific procedures and topics