About Verde Valley Justice Court
The Verde Valley is located in Yavapai County of central Arizona. This area of the state was first documented in 1583, when the Spanish explorer Antonio de Espejo led an expedition into it. The Verde River is responsible for providing clean drinking water to over 2 million Phoenix-area residents, and is one of the state’s last free-flowing river systems. Several small towns are located within the Verde Valley, such as Camp Verde, which hosts the Predator Zip Line; the town of Cottonwood, where the Verde Valley Justice Court is; and Sedona, which is famous for its red rocks.
Verde Valley was also the setting for the 1977 movie Kingdom of the Spiders, starring William Shatner. Today, it offers visitors the chance to partake in a variety of recreational activities, including whitewater rafting and horseback riding. Since 80% of the land is made up of National Forest, it offers a great change of scenery and pace from the desert landscape that the state of Arizona is known for.
Common Offenses in Verde Valley
Criminal or Excessive Speeding
Citations for criminal speeding or excessive speeding are the most common violations we see out of the Seligman Justice Court. Most violations occur on the I-40, as this stretch of roadway is usually light in terms of traffic and is straight and wide-open. In Arizona, any speed over 85 miles per hour can be charged as an excessive speeding violation, and it is very easy to travel at these speeds on this road.
Reckless Driving
Reckless driving is another very common violation charged out of the Seligman Justice Court. Whether this charge is cited on a person’s ticket depends a lot upon the officer who issues the citation. Some officers will only charge this violation in extreme circumstances and other officers will cite it as a matter of common practice. Generally, whether an officer in this jurisdiction issues a reckless driving charge will depend upon the speed, the mile post, whether there were other people in the vehicle, and any other violations observed during the driving.
Commercial Trucking or CDL Violations
Officers patrolling Seligman also tend to issue trucking violations to commercial drivers regularly. We normally see logbook violations as a result of routine traffic stops and inspections, but also see a large number of seat belt violations. In Arizona, it is a class 1 misdemeanor for a commercial driver to not be wearing their seatbelt. The officers in Seligman will sit on bridges and monitor traffic that passes below them on the I-40. If they see a commercial driver not wearing or improperly wearing a seat belt, they will radio another unit to stop the vehicle and issue a citation.
Verde Valley Justice Court Jurisdiction
The Verde Valley Justice Court Precinct of Yavapai County includes the towns of Camp Verde, Clarkdale, Cottonwood, Jerome, Oak Creek, Cornville, Red Rock, and Sedona. It covers a significant portion of the Interstate 17 in central Arizona. People travel through the I-17 to reach Flagstaff, Sedona, and most commonly, to visit the National Parks such as the Grand Canyon.
This portion of Arizona is patrolled by the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and there is a strong emphasis on enforcement of traffic violations in this area. On the map below, the major danger zones for enhanced traffic enforcement is detailed in red. If you received a ticket outside of this geographic region but were still cited into the Verde Valley Justice Court, there may be a problem with your jurisdiction. Although this is relatively uncommon, it can happen, and it means that your ticket was filed in the wrong jurisdiction.
About the Judge, William N. Lundy
Judge William N. Lundy was elected Justice of the Peace of the Verde Valley Justice Court in 2002 and has been on the bench ever since. In our subjective opinion, Judge Sarno is a very reasonable Judge and uses his discretion in situations that warrant action from the bench. His Pledge is: “I will respect the law and protect your rights, but rest assured I will not stop there. I promise to treat you with respect, and with professionalism, whether you are the victim, the accused, or before me on a civil matter.”
Verde Valley Justice Court sees a very high number of traffic violations, and Judge Lundy takes these violations seriously. This jurisdiction at times sees devastating accidents, resulting in injuries and deaths. It seems to us that Judge Lundy is using his position as a Judge to encourage and promote safe driving while not being overly punitive in his rulings.
Officers Patrolling Verde Valley
Officer D. Redig, Badge Number 06331
Officer Doug Redig is an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer who writes a very large number of traffic tickets out of this jurisdiction. If speeds approach 100 miles per hour or higher, he will generally cite an individual with both criminal / excessive speeding and reckless driving. This results in clients being charged with both a class 2 misdemeanor and a class 3 misdemeanor facing a total of 11 points. According to many of our clients, interactions with Officer Redig can be very stern and tense and cause a lot of anxiety.
In this citation, Officer Redig used a radar device to estimate this individual’s speed, and issued a citation for both charges, reckless driving and criminal speeding.
Officer Redig also uses a laser speed measurement device, having the proper certifications to do so. Again, in this citation he cited this individual for both reckless driving and criminal speeding.
Officer B. Krum, Badge Number 010134
Officer Krum is another Department of Public Safety Officer who writes tickets and does traffic patrol out of the Seligman Justice Court area. His style of writing tickets is less thorough than Officer Redig’s, who tends to be very precise. In the following citation, he only wrote this individual for criminal speeding and not reckless driving.
Verde Valley Justice Court Map & Parking
Hopefully you do not have to travel to Verde Valley for court. Hiring an attorney to represent you is generally the most cost effective way to avoid physically having to travel to this jurisdiction. The Court is located in the heart of Cottonwood, which is several hours away from any major cities.
Hiring a Verde Valley Defense Lawyer
Our office represents a very large number of people charged with offenses in Verde Valley. On a great majority of our cases, we are able to prevent our clients from having any criminal record and resolve their case without them ever having to return to Arizona. We provide representation on a flat fee basis, offer affordable payment plans and deliver a proper defense with a team dedicated to solving traffic related cases.
Contact us today for a free, no obligation case evaluation. Send us your citation and your information below and we will review your matter as soon as possible.
