Sign Summons or Go to Jail
by David A. Cardon, Esquire

Dear Mr. Cardon,
I was pulled over by a Virginia Beach police officer two weeks ago for failure to obey a highway sign. The police officer asked me to sign a summons but I refused, thinking I might be admitting guilt. The officer told me she would arrest me if I refused the sign the summons, which I did. Can the officer arrest me if I refuse to sign the summons?

Yes, she can arrest you. Your signature on the summons simply acknowledges your promise to either pay the fine and costs, or appear in court on the return date. It is not an admission that you are guilty for the alleged offense. If you refuse to sign the summons, the officer has no choice but to arrest you and bring you before the magistrate. The magistrate will issue a summons for you to appear in court on the return date and then have it served on you.

Minor traffic offenses: If you are pulled over and the only law you have violated is a minor traffic infraction for which the only punishment is a fine and no jail sentence, the officer will not arrest you unless you refuse to sign the summons.

Serious traffic offenses: If you are pulled over by the police for violating traffic or criminal laws that are punishable by a jail sentence, depending on the violation, the officer might have some discretion on whether or not to arrest you and take you to jail.

No police discretion: If you are pulled over for serious traffic or criminal offenses including, but not limited to, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, hit and run, any felony violation, and/or if you have any outstanding capias for you arrest, the officer has no choice but to arrest you at the scene and bring you before the magistrate. The magistrate then decides whether or not you should be allowed out of jail on bond, or remain in jail until your court date.

Police discretion: If you are pulled over for offenses including, but not limited to, reckless driving, driving on a suspended or revoked license, marijuana possession, and/or driving after being adjudicated an habitual offender (misdemeanor only), the officer can decide to either arrest you and take you to jail or allow you to leave with a summons to appear in court.
Factors that affect whether the officer will arrest you or give you a summons include the following:

1. Are you an out-of-state driver? If you are out-of-state, the officer might decide that there is a strong likelihood you will not appear in court on the return date.
2. Do you have valid identification? If you do not have identification, or if the officer discovers your ID is fake, the officer has no way of verifying your real identification. The officer might arrest you to further investigate your identification.

3. Have you failed to appear in court before or do you have prior suspended license convictions? If the officer discovers you have not appeared in court in the past when you were suppose to appear, or if you have a bad record including prior charges of driving on a suspended license, the officer might decide to arrest you rather than run the risk of you not showing in court.

4. Are you uncooperative or abusive with the police? If you are abusive toward the police officer by using foul language, you greatly increase your chances of being arrested. In addition, you run the risk of receiving additional criminal charges.

DISCLAIMER: David A. Cardon is an attorney at the Virginia Beach office of Cardon and Goodman, P.C. who concentrates his legal practice in traffic, criminal, and personal injury law. Mr. Cardon provides the materials contained above as a public service and on an informational basis only. These materials are not intended to be a comprehensive statement of Virginia law, and are not intended to convey legal advice. If you have a legal problem, you should consult with an attorney in your area who can investigate the particular circumstances of your situation. You can contact David Cardon, Esquire at (757) 306-9060 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .'; document.write(''); document.write(addy_text94670); document.write('<\/a>'); //-->\n This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.