Legal Question in Traffic Law in Florida

The 21st of this month my husband and I purchased a 4 door car in the Tampa, FL

area. We were on vacation visiting family. We departed the next day on our way back to our home in AL. We were pulling onto the interstate in the town of Monticello, FL when a state trooper pulled me over. My husband was in our car and he pulled in behind the trooper. After a little fumbling to locate the title and bill of sale, I passed it on to the officer along with my license. He then wrote me a ticket for an expired license (my fault), and for driving without a tag. I pulled back on the interstate and met my in laws (we were all traveling together) and husband at a service station off the next exit. I showed my husband the tickets and he said I should not have received one for the tag because we were in the "grace period" for purchasing a car. He then started to look for the dated bill of sale showing the date of purchase and we realized it wasn't returned to me by the officer. What do we do now? I have 30 days according to the ticket to dispute this or pay the fine, but I don't have the proof that I was not in the wrong (on that particular citation). I also am having an incredibly hard time getting ahold of anyone at the Florida Highway Patrols office. Thank you in advance.


Asked on 6/23/14, 7:50 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Craig Epifanio Craig Epifanio, P.A.

You should get an attorney that handles tickets there (probably one from Tallahassee) to go to court for you and fight it. The officer may have the bill of sale with him in court or your attorney could subpoena him to bring it (although that can get a little complicated for traffic court). Further, even if he doesn't have it, he should testify about it. Explain the whole situation to your attorney. Your only other option is to come back to court and fight the Monticello ticket yourself (which I don't advise).

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Answered on 6/23/14, 8:05 am
Don Waggoner Don Waggoner Law, P.A.

You will ahev to get hold of the trooper to get your documents back. Also, in Florida, a temporary tag, usually a paper tag, is required on newly purchased cars when no tag was transferred. The tag should be displayed either in the rear window so that it is plainly visible, or it should be displayed in the license plate frame. Your dealer should have given you the tag. In any case, contact a ticket lawyer in the area where you were ticketed and they should be able to help you out.

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Answered on 6/23/14, 8:41 am


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