Uniform Traffic Ticket Defect — Missing Required Fields
South Carolina parking citations issued by law-enforcement officers must comply with the Uniform Traffic Ticket format prescribed by the SC Supreme Court (issued under SC Code §56-7-10). The ticket must contain: officer's name and badge/agency, defendant's name and address, vehicle description (year, make, model, plate, state), date/time of violation, location, specific code section or municipal ordinance violated, court name/address, and a court date. A ticket missing any of these elements is fatally defective and subject to dismissal on motion. Many Columbia, Charleston, and Greenville citations are pre-printed forms that are routinely incomplete.
Legal basis
SC Code §56-7-10 (uniform traffic ticket); SC Code §56-7-15 (form requirements); State v. Corey D., 339 S.C. 107 (S.C. 2000) (defective ticket = jurisdictional defect)
Sample appeal wording
TO: [Municipal Court / Clerk of Court] RE: Uniform Traffic Ticket No. [TICKET_NUMBER] Defendant: [NAME] Date of Violation: [DATE] Pursuant to S.C. Code §56-7-10 and §56-7-15, I hereby plead NOT GUILTY and move for dismissal of the above citation on the ground that it is fatally defective. The citation fails to contain the following required element(s): [LIST: e.g., specific code section, officer badge number, legible vehicle plate, court appearance date]. Under State v. Corey D., 339 S.C. 107 (2000), and progeny, a uniform traffic ticket missing a statutorily required field is jurisdictionally defective and the court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction to enter judgment. I respectfully request that the court dismiss this matter with prejudice and that any associated DMV hold be released. Respectfully, [NAME] [ADDRESS] [DATE] [SIGNATURE]
Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.
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- SC Code Title 56 Chapter 7
- SC Supreme Court Uniform Traffic Ticket Form
- State v. Corey D., 339 S.C. 107 (2000)
- scstatehouse.gov/code/t56c007.php