Officer Response and Investigating "Making the Report"

Traffic Accident Reporting

Citations (Tickets)

Upon arriving, an officer may do the following:

• Make sure the scene is safe.

• Request fire rescue if medical attention is necessary.

• Obtain a brief synopsis of the incident and a description of suspect(s) and vehicle(s).

• Relay information to dispatch to notify other police units.

• Take a detailed report from the victim.

• Question witnesses.

• Collect physical evidence.

• Give the victim a report number for the incident.

• Attempt to conclude the investigation with action most applicable to the situation. Note: Not all police responses result in a report being written. Clarify with the responding officer if a report is being written and obtain the report number for later reference

Conducting the follow-up investigation:

• After the responding officer completes a preliminary investigation and submits the report, a supervisor will review the case to determine if it will be assigned for follow up investigation.

• If there are leads, an attempt may be made to contact the victim to make sure nothing has been overlooked.

• If there are no suspects, leads, or additional information the case will be closed. Not all cases are assigned for follow up information. A case may be reopened later if new information is obtained

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Florida State Statutes requires that any person involved in a vehicle accident on a public street must:

• Ascertain if there are any injuries.

• Exchange/leave name, address, telephone number, driver's license number, vehicle license number, and insurance information.
  Failure to comply could result in the criminal charge of leaving the scene of an accident.

A traffic accident report must be made if:

• The crash resulted in bodily injury to or death of any person.

• Or damage to any vehicle or other property in an apparent amount of at least $ 500 dollars.
  If these criteria do not apply, then citizens may exchange required information without notifying law enforcement.

The officer will require from each driver:

• A valid driver's license.

• A vehicle registration card.

• Proof of insurance.
  Completed accident investigation reports will be available from the Miami Shores Police Department Records Unit after fourteen days

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Police officers are charged with the responsibility of enforcing State and local laws. This responsibility may result in citizens being detained and issued citations for failure to comply with a State or local law. The citation issued will contain, at a minimum, the following information:

• Day, date, and time.

• Personal information.

• Law violated.

• Location, jurisdiction.

• Officer's signature.

• Cited citizen's signature.

• Appearance date and time.
  Information on the bottom of the citation describes how the person cited is to answer to the charge. Officers will provide an envelope/mailer that outlines the available procedures available to satisfy the citation.

A courtesy notice may or may not be mailed by the court to provide further information. If a courtesy note is not received, the person who was cited is still required to appear/contact the court as promised when the original citation was signed.

You must either pay the traffic fine or declare that you are not guilty and have a court date set. Your case will then be heard by a judge/hearing officer who will listen to testimony and determine the final outcome. Judges do not like to postpone or continue set court dates without very good reasons. If you are unable to appear in court on the scheduled date, contact the Court in person, ten days prior to the scheduled court date, and ask for a new court date. Failure to appear will result in a suspension of your license and an arrest warrant may be issued.

If you receive a citation for Florida Statute 316.610 due to faulty equipment, this is considered a "fix-it" ticket. This may be dismissed by the court if you show the court proof the violation has been corrected. Once the fault is repaired, a police officer must view the equipment and verify the equipment is functional by signing off on the ticket. The ticket must then be brought/mailed to the court of issuance. Most courts and police agencies charge an administrative fee for this service.

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