The issuance of your Notice of Infraction is a determination that you have committed the infraction. You have requested a contested hearing because you do not believe you have committed this infraction. Research may be conducted on the Washington State Courts website: www.courts.wa.gov. Review IRLJ-Infraction Rules for Courts of Limited Jurisdiction.
As a defendant you are entitled to the following:
The right to bring a lawyer at your own expense
The right to present evidence and examine witnesses in court.
The right to request a witness list from the prosecutor. You must do so at least fourteen (14) days before the hearing and the list should be given to you at least seven (7) days before the hearing.
The right to subpoena witnesses, including the officer who issued the Notice. If you wish to subpoena a witness, you must apply to the court in person at least five (5) days prior to your hearing.
The contested hearing will be heard before the court without a jury. The state must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that you did commit the infraction. After consideration of the evidence, the court will determine whether you did commit the infraction.
If the court determines that you did commit the infraction, you may be required to pay a monetary penalty.
You may appeal the court’s decision that you did commit the infraction.
Failure to appear will result in a determination that you did commit the infraction.
Failure to respond, failure to appear at any hearing, OR failure to pay, will automatically increase the monetary penalty. After 30 days, the citation will go to a collection agency.