Lost Traffic Ticket in Oregon

Begin your OR traffic ticket search with the presiding traffic court handling the case. Be prepared to provide basic information such as your name and driver's license and license plate number, and make sure to gather important details specific to your citation.

Locate OR Traffic Court

Your presiding traffic court is the court that handles traffic tickets in the jurisdiction where you received the citation, and this is the court that can provide information specific to your ticket.

Depending on where you received the violation, you might deal with a municipal or justice court or you might deal with a circuit court.

If YOU KNOW which court is handling your ticket—great! You can go ahead and contact a clerk.

If YOU DON'T KNOW, you'll need to narrow down the possibilities. Consider contacting the circuit court in your county and, if you don't have luck, spreading out to neighboring counties. Even if your ticket isn't handled by a circuit court or the circuit court you contact, a clerk might be able to help you find the appropriate municipal, justice, or circuit court if you describe the area or the type of officer who pulled you over.

Find OR Lost Traffic Ticket Details

To avoid additional penalties—including extra fines and even license suspension—you must respond to your OR traffic ticket by the deadline; to do that, you must have the following information specific to your citation. These details not only will help you respond on time, but also determine how you want to plead to your traffic violation.

First, ask the clerk whether you're required to appear in court. Some violations carry a mandatory court appearance. If you have to appear, get the court's address and your hearing's date and time.

Then, find out:

• Your specific OR traffic ticket details, including:
  • The exact traffic violation(s), and if it is non-criminal or criminal. (This could help you determine whether you need a traffic ticket attorney.)
  • Your citation number.
  • The date, time, and location you were ticketed.
  • The name of the police officer who pulled you over, as well as the law enforcement agency for which he or she works.
• Details about your traffic ticket fine, including:
  • The base traffic ticket fine.
  • Any court fees or surcharges associated with your ticket or situation.
  • The deadline by which you must pay.
  • The payment options and methods your court accepts.
• The overall deadline by which you must respond, meaning by what date you must plead "guilty" or "not guilty."

Respond to OR Traffic Ticket

As mentioned above, the above details will help you respond to your OK traffic ticket on time. By "respond," we mean either plead "guilty" and pay or plead "not guilty" and challenge your violation in court.

Refer to our sections on Paying Traffic Tickets and Fighting Traffic Tickets for details on each of these processes.