Please consider this a courtesy reminder to those who may have unresolved traffic citations with the city of Rusk. If you do not respond in a timely manner, it may result in the following actions being taken against you.
● Issuance of Warrant and Wanted Status Reported to Appropriate State and Local Agencies with Warrant Fee and other fees totaling up to $80.00 being added.
● Arrest and Detainment – An arrest can be made at your home, while driving, or at your place of business. If arrested while driving, YOU will be responsible for charges assessed for the towing and storage of your vehicle.
● Collection Fee equal to 30% of the unpaid balance being added to the total owed
● A hold being placed on your Driver’s License renewal, with additional fees added.
You may contact the court at (903) 683-2213 for specific information concerning your case. If you are financially unable to pay the fine, there are alternative methods of disposition, i.e. a payment plan or community service. You may also request indigency. As always, you may request a trial- either a jury trial or a bench trial (a trial by the judge, without a jury).
Please note that no one connected with the court receives any part of your fine. All fine money is deposited directly with the city, with that portion assessed by the State being transferred to the appropriate state agency in accordance with state law on a routine basis.
To help facilitate the disposition of your case, you may resolve your citation by mail or online without the need to appear in person before the judge. You may plead either “Guilty,” wherein you admit that you violated the law and have no lawful defense/excuse for committing the act, or “No Contest,” wherein you are not admitting Guilt, nor are you admitting Innocence. You are simply not “contesting” the State’s allegations. A plea of “Not Guilty” means you are either denying Guilt, or that you have a lawful defense, and the State must prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. You may hire an attorney to represent you; however, the Court is not required to provide you an attorney.
Some citations may be able to be dismissed by the Court via mail, without appearing before the Court. However, there may be an administrative fee assessed in lieu of the fine. Examples include Failure to Maintain Proper Insurance, Expired or No Driver’s License, Failure to Change Address and/or Defective Equipment. Should you wish, you might qualify for Deferred Adjudication (more commonly referred to as Probation). This is an informal probation with the city for a specified time, usually 90 days. You may also qualify for a dismissal of your charges via a Driver’s Safety Course. A reduced administrative fee of $144.00 would be assessed ($169 if in a school zone). The class may be through an in-person class, at-home video, or through an internet access. It must, however, be a Texas approved course. A list of approved courses may be found at www.tdlr.texas.gov. Please contact the court prior to taking the course, to obtain permission. In addition to the administrative fee, the fee for the course normally will be around $25 to $35 and would be paid directly to the class provider. You would be allowed 3 months to take the class AND forward the certificate of completion to the court. You may contact the court to determine whether you qualify for any of the above described dismissal options. NOTE: Holders of a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) do NOT qualify for Driver’s Safety Course or Deferred Adjudication.
An additional method allowed for disposition of your case would be via a Payment Plan. The time frame allowed will depend upon the fine assessed on your citation. Normally it would be for 3 months. By State law, there will be a $15.00 payment reimbursement fee assessed for any plan in excess of 30 days. You must request this option and sign an agreement setting forth the details of the plan in order to qualify. Failure to make the payments according to the written payment plan in full may result in the citation being referred to a collection agency (with an additional fee equal to 30% of your total accrued balance being added), a hold being place upon your license (with an additional administrative fee of $30 being added) and/or a warrant being issued for your arrest (with an additional $50 warrant fee being added).
Should you wish to dispose of your case via payment, you may use any of the following options:
● Pay in person at the municipal court located within city hall at the corner of E. 5th Street and South Main Street, 108 E. 5th Street, Rusk, Texas.
● Pay by mail at Rusk Municipal Court, 108 E. 5th Street, Rusk, Texas 75785. Please note the citation number on your check. (Payment may be made by check, cashier’s check or money order. DO NOT SEND CASH THROUGH THE MAIL! The Court will NOT be responsible for lost cash.)
(Please note: There is a $30.00 administrative fee for any returned check and a criminal complaint may also be filed, should your check be returned unpaid for any reason.)
Pay by Credit Card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover) over the internet. You should go to the Rusk city website (www.rusktx.org), select “How do I …”, then select “Pay a court bill or fine online”, and follow the directions set forth therein. Payment may be made at any time, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A small convenience fee for this service will be charged directly to your credit card. Your payment will post immediately.
You may also call the court at (903) 683-2213 during normal business hours and pay over the telephone.
Pretrial dates are scheduled on a monthly basis should you wish to discuss your case with the city attorney. A Notice of Hearing will be sent to your last known address of record advising of the date and time for the hearing.
Please note that the Judge CANNOT discuss the merits of a pending judicial proceeding prior to trial. (Canon 3(5), Code of Judicial Conduct). This means that the judge shall not discuss the facts of your case prior to trial.
