TRAFFIC OFFENSE CLASS C

This entry is a catch-all courthouse label rather than a single statute: Texas court records and jail rosters use "Traffic Offense Class C" for fine-only moving and vehicle-equipment violations charged under the Texas Transportation Code or a municipal traffic ordinance. Class C misdemeanors are the lowest grade of criminal charge in Texas and are filed in municipal courts or justice of the peace courts. Common examples include speeding, disregarding a stop sign or traffic signal, failing to maintain financial responsibility (liability insurance), driving with an expired registration, driving without a valid license, and defective-equipment violations. Most such offenses are regulatory violations for which the State generally need only prove that the person committed the prohibited act on a public roadway, without proving a culpable mental state. The specific statute violated, and therefore the precise elements, depends on the underlying citation in the individual case.

Ranges are the statutory maximums for the level; enhancements, prior convictions and plea agreements change what is actually imposed.

Across 912 Texas bail settings for this charge (11 counties, Apr 2022 – Jun 2025), the median cash or surety bond was $800 (middle half: $466 – $2,450). 15% of defendants were released on a personal bond, and bail was denied in 130 cases. When this was the only charge at booking (62 records), the median was $500 and 40% got a personal bond.

Showing the 5 counties with the most records; use the selector for any county with at least 30. Per-charge bond settings on original magistrations, from Texas OCA bail reporting under SB 6. Bail is set case by case — these are statistics, not a prediction.

• ASSAULT CLASS C § classc
• LIQUOR VIOLATION CLASS C § classc
• HEALTH AND SAFETY VIOL CLASS C § classc
• FAMILY OFFENSES CLASS C § classc