Madera County Traffic Cases

Madera County Superior Court handles all traffic violations for the county. The main courthouse operates in downtown Madera. You can resolve most traffic matters without visiting the court in person. Online and phone services let you pay fines, request traffic school, or schedule hearings. The court staff can answer questions and help you understand your options. Allow four to eight weeks for the court to process your citation after it is issued. This gives the officer time to submit the ticket and gives staff time to enter it into the computer system in Madera County California.

How to Contact Madera Court

The courthouse address is 200 South G Street in Madera. Zip code is 93637. Main phone is five five nine four one six six seven zero zero. Office hours run from eight in the morning until four in the afternoon. The court closes for lunch from noon to one. Plan your visit around those hours if you need to go in person.

Email questions to the traffic division at traffic@madera.courts.ca.gov. Staff usually respond within two business days. Include your citation number in your email so they can look up your case. Do not send payment information by email. Use the secure online portal or mail for payments in Madera County.

Online services are available at the court website. You can search your case and make payments any time of day. The court uses a secure portal that accepts credit cards and electronic checks. A small fee applies to online transactions. Most people find this more convenient than driving to the courthouse during business hours in California.

Search Cases Online

Madera County provides case lookup through its public portal. Visit madera.courts.ca.gov and look for the online services link. You need your citation number to search. The system shows your charges, due date, and total amount owed. It also tells you if you qualify for traffic school.

Processing time varies. Most citations appear online within four to six weeks. If you try to search sooner, the case may not be in the system yet. The officer has thirty days to file the ticket with the court. Then staff must enter it. If more than eight weeks have passed and your case still does not show up, call the court to check the status in Madera County California.

The online portal lets you pay your fine and set up payment plans. You can also request traffic school through the system. Follow the prompts and enter your information. Keep your confirmation number after you complete any transaction. This serves as proof if questions arise later about your payment or request.

For records requests, contact the court clerk office. Certified copies cost forty dollars plus fifty cents per page. Regular copies are fifty cents per page. Record searches that take more than ten minutes cost fifteen dollars. Allow up to fifteen business days for the court to process your records request and mail you the documents in California.

Traffic Fine Amounts

Madera County follows the statewide fine schedule. Base amounts are set by the Judicial Council. Many fees then get added on top. Court operations fees, state penalty assessments, and county charges all pile up. A basic speeding ticket often totals two to four hundred dollars.

Traffic school costs extra if you choose that option. The court admin fee is fifty two dollars. You also pay the full bail amount on your ticket. Then you pay the traffic school provider. Most online schools charge between twenty and sixty dollars. Your total cost could reach five hundred dollars or more depending on how fast you were going in Madera County.

Proof of correction applies to fix it tickets. You pay twenty five dollars per violation if you show you fixed the problem. Common corrections include showing proof of insurance, valid registration, or repaired equipment. Take your proof to the court or mail it with the fee. The court dismisses the citation once they verify you corrected the issue.

If you cannot pay the full amount, ask about a payment plan. Contact the court before your deadline. They will review your income and set monthly payments. There is usually a small setup fee. Make your payments on time each month. Late payments can result in penalties and license suspension in California.

Traffic School Options

Most one point traffic violations can use traffic school in Madera County. Check your courtesy notice to see if you qualify. You must request traffic school before your appearance deadline. After that date passes, you lose the option. The eighteen month rule limits how often you can attend. If you went to traffic school for another ticket in the past eighteen months, you cannot use it again.

Certain violations never qualify for traffic school. Speeding more than twenty five miles per hour over the limit does not qualify. Alcohol or drug offenses, reckless driving, and commercial vehicle citations also cannot use traffic school. If you had a collision at the time of your violation, that usually disqualifies you as well. The court makes the final decision on eligibility in California.

Once approved, select a school from the DMV approved list. Visit the California DMV website to see licensed schools. Most people choose online courses. You have sixty days from approval to finish the class. The school submits your completion certificate directly to the court. The court then reports it to DMV as a confidential conviction. Insurance companies cannot see confidential convictions on your record.

But DMV still tracks it internally. If you get another ticket within eighteen months and try to use traffic school again, they will deny it. The eighteen month period runs from the violation date of your first ticket to the violation date of your second ticket. It does not matter when you completed the school or when the court closed the case in Madera County.

Adjacent California Counties

If your citation was issued outside Madera County, you need to contact that county court. Each county operates its own traffic division. Check these nearby counties:

Fresno County | Mariposa County | Merced County | Mono County