Former Prosecutor
of 20 Years on
Your Side
of 20 Years on
Your Side
Speeding Tickets
Getting a speeding ticket in Taney, Stone, or Christian County can feel like a quick mistake that will sort itself out. In Missouri, it rarely works that way. A conviction can add points to your license, raise your insurance, threaten your commercial driving privilege, and put you closer to a suspension. Scrivner Law Firm is led by Dayrell L. Scrivner, a former county prosecutor with more than two decades in the courtroom. That experience on both sides of the aisle is the difference between simply paying a fine and building a targeted defense that protects your license and your record.
We represent drivers in Branson, Forsyth, Hollister, Merriam Woods, Rockaway Beach, Reeds Spring, Nixa, Ozark, Sparta, and the surrounding communities. Whether your ticket came from the Highway Patrol on US-65, a deputy on MO-76, or a city officer in a local municipal division, we know the procedures, the prosecutors, and the options that can keep points off your record and keep you on the road.
Missouri Speeding Law in Plain English
How Missouri Defines Speeding
Missouri sets uniform maximum speed limits by statute, and it authorizes cities and counties to post lower limits where safety requires it. The posted speed is presumed to be the legal limit. A violation of the speed statute is generally a class C misdemeanor, and it becomes a class B misdemeanor when the speed is 20 miles per hour or more over the limit.
Five Over or Less is Different
If your alleged speed is five miles per hour or less above the posted limit, Missouri treats that as an infraction rather than a misdemeanor, and the Department of Revenue does not assess points for that specific offense. This small detail can matter a lot when we evaluate the best outcome for your case.
Work Zones, Travel Safe Zones, and School Zones
Speeding in special zones can carry enhanced consequences. In highway work zones, exceeding the limit by 15 or more can trigger the offense of endangering a highway worker, which adds four points and allows a fine up to 1,000 dollars even when no one is injured. If there is injury or death to a worker, the offense becomes aggravated endangerment, with up to 5,000 or 10,000 dollars in fines, 12 points, and immediate license action.
Travel safe zones are also designated by statute. Courts may order double fines for moving violations committed in properly posted travel safe zones that are created to protect emergency responders or address crash patterns.
School zone speeds are set by local governments and the Missouri Department of Transportation’s guidance for state roads. On state highways, MoDOT generally uses a school speed that is 10 mph below the posted limit and not below 25 mph, and cities may adopt their own school zone limits by ordinance with proper signage. The bottom line is that the posted sign controls, and the state will expect you to follow it during active school-zone periods.
Points and the Risk of a Suspension
Missouri uses a statewide point system. Most speeding convictions more than 5 mph over add points to your record. A conviction under state law is typically 3 points, while convictions under county or municipal ordinances are typically 2 points. These points accumulate and trigger suspensions and revocations on a rolling clock.
If you reach 8 points in 18 months, the Department of Revenue must suspend your privilege. The first suspension is 30 days, the second is 60, and the third is 90 days. If you accumulate 12 points in 12 months, 18 in 24 months, or 24 in 36 months, the Department revokes your license for one year.
Missouri law also allows point reductions for sustained safe driving over time, and in many courts a driver-improvement course can be accepted in lieu of assessing points for certain violations. CDL holders cannot use that classroom option to avoid points, which makes strategic case handling even more critical for commercial drivers.
What a Speeding Conviction Really Costs
A single ticket often costs much more than the fine amount. Points can increase your insurance premiums for years. A municipal speeding conviction that seems minor might be the one that pushes you to 8 points. For CDL holders, violations are also tracked for federal disqualification purposes, and Missouri’s point schedule for CDL offenses is layered on top of your base driving privilege. Even one municipal speeding ticket can ripple into an employment problem.
If you live out of state and were ticketed while visiting Branson or Table Rock Lake, the Driver License Compact means Missouri will report many convictions to your home state. You could face consequences at home for a Missouri conviction unless your case is handled correctly.
Your Options After a Ticket
Some cases should be tried. Many others are resolved by negotiation that protects your license. As a former prosecutor, Dayrell Scrivner knows how charging authorities evaluate traffic cases and what they need to see to agree to an amendment.
Missouri courts and prosecutors often permit amendments to non-moving violations that carry no points, such as defective equipment, when the facts and your record warrant it. Our firm’s traffic practice is built around finding and presenting the reasons that make that outcome appropriate in your case.
Missouri law also allows certain drivers to complete an approved driver-improvement program instead of taking points for eligible violations, subject to limits. That option is not available to CDL holders and cannot be used repeatedly in short intervals, so it must be deployed with care. We will advise whether it helps or hurts your long-term point position.
What To Do Now
Do not pay the ticket online without talking to a lawyer. Payment is a conviction that adds points. Gather anything that helps tell your story, including dash cam clips, passenger statements, repair invoices, or photographs of signs and sight lines. Call our office quickly so we can preserve options and deadlines, especially if your court date is near or you received a work zone or school zone citation.
Special Considerations
Commercial Drivers and CDL Holders
For CDL holders and those driving CMVs, state points interact with federal disqualification rules. Even a municipal speeding conviction can produce consequences that threaten your livelihood. Because CDL drivers cannot use the driver-improvement course to avoid point assessment, proactive negotiation or trial is often the only way to protect a clean record. We prioritize amendments that keep the violation from becoming a point-assessable moving offense and work to avoid CDL-specific triggers.
Out-of-State Drivers
If you were ticketed while visiting Branson or Silver Dollar City, your home state will likely learn about a Missouri conviction through the Driver License Compact, which Missouri has enacted by statute. We handle these cases routinely, often without requiring you to return for a hearing, and we structure outcomes with your home-state rules in mind.
Why Scrivner Law Firm
Dayrell Scrivner has stood in the prosecutor’s shoes and understands how traffic cases are screened. He knows what foundational proof is required to admit radar or pacing evidence, how to spot gaps in the State’s case, and how to present the kind of mitigation that legitimately justifies an amendment. Clients come to us because they want a result that protects their license, their job, and their insurance record, not just a quick fine and a surprise suspension later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you get my speeding ticket amended to a non-moving violation so I do not get points?
In many courts, yes, when your record, the facts, and the local policies permit it. This is a central part of our traffic practice for non-CDL drivers. CDL holders have less flexibility and often need a different strategy.
What if my ticket is only five over?
Five over or less is an infraction with no points. That can be useful, but you should still consider the long-term picture, especially if you are close to a suspension threshold or have multiple tickets in a short span.
How many points will this add?
Most speeding convictions more than 5 mph over are 3 points under state law and 2 under county or municipal ordinances. That difference matters, and we plan accordingly.
When do suspensions and revocations kick in?
Eight points in 18 months triggers a suspension. Twelve in 12, 18 in 24, or 24 in 36 triggers a one-year revocation. After reinstatement, the Department reduces your total points, and sustained safe driving lowers them further over time.
I live out of state. Will my home state find out?
Usually yes. Missouri participates in the Driver License Compact, which allows states to share traffic convictions. We handle out-of-state matters with the goal of avoiding reportable moving violations whenever possible.
Fight Your Speeding Ticket with Scrivner Law Firm
We do not treat speeding cases like a form to be filled out. We start with a forensic review. What device was used. Where and when was it tested. What did the dash camera capture. What did traffic look like. How was the speed limit posted. What is the prosecutor’s policy in that court. Then we match the facts to the law, from the work-zone statutes and point rules to the radar case law, and press for the outcome that protects your license with the fewest long-term consequences.
If you were cited anywhere in Taney, Stone, or Christian County, call us today. We can often appear for you, negotiate to keep points off your record, or contest the evidence when a trial makes sense. You do not have to go it alone.