out of state college student

What is the name of your state? Texas & Michigan.

We live in Texas. We have a child attending college in Michigan. The child got a speeding ticket. 55 in a 45. Can he take defensive driving for that? Is defensive driving offered in all states instead of paying a ticket? The officer also asked for his registration. There is a sticker on the windshield. The officer asked for a paper registration. Texas does not have a paper registration. The officer wanted to make sure he had the right plates on the vehicle. So he also got a ticket for no registration. It is on the windhsield. The only thing that I can think the officer is refering to is the paper we get in the mail that says we need to get a new sticker. Is that it?

He also got a ticket for failure to do something. Yield or signal. Something like that.

The child does not have to change drivers license, registration, insurance or anything do they? They are a full time student. What do they do about that?

Is there someplace online that I can get traffic laws and such for Michigan. I have been searching all over the internet and can't seem to find what I need.

Very confused....

[racer72]

The child does not have to change drivers license, registration, insurance or anything do they?

The answer is yes to all the above. College students are not exempt from laws that require new residents to become licensed to drive or register vehicles in the state. Members of the military are the only exemptions allowed.

[You Are Guilty]

Originally Posted by racer72

The answer is yes to all the above. College students are not exempt from laws that require new residents to become licensed to drive or register vehicles in the state. Members of the military are the only exemptions allowed.

All true, although there is typically a grace period (30-90) days within which to make the necessary changes in the paperwork. If the ticket(s) fell in the grace period, it's a valid defense.

More importantly, I think it's time you parents cut some of the strings to The College Speeder, as I am certain he is able to handle this himself and will be much less likely to get future tickets if mommy and daddy don't rush in and bail him out of his self-made mess.

Thanks for those two replies. Conflicts with what others are telling me. They say it is not necessary to change. College students don't establish a permanent residence.

You only answered one question. What about my other questions? What are the answers to those?

JSL,
You need to contact the Michigan DMV to see what they officially say. I've been looking over their DMV website, and I found this in their FAQ:

Can I drive on my out-of-state driver's license while temporarily in Michigan?

Answer:
You may drive in Michigan with an out-of-state driver license as long as the license is valid, and you are not a Michigan resident.

I imagine your son still uses your home addy in TX as his permanent address, especially if he's still living in dorms.

I would tell your son to show up to court on his court date then plead "nolo contendere". Every five years you get the chance to use this plea ... you essentially are admitting no guilt, you get no points added to your record, and the fine has to be paid ... 10 over probably won't be too bad monetarily. That takes care of the speeding ticket ...

If he can provide paper documentation of his registration at his court date, there is a chance that they'll throw this ticket out.

The only one he'd be left with is the failure to yield, and personally 1/3 is a lot better than 3/3 ...

Good luck ...

You might also want to post on [url]www.realpolice.net[/url] in the "Ask a Cop" forum.

In Texas we can take defensive driving instead of paying the ticket or being guilty. Does defenseive driving apply in Michigan?

Thanks.

[CdwJava]

The key may be the definition of "resident" in Michigan. Generally, taking up residence (i.e. renting an apartment or a house) or getting a job establishes residency for driving purposes ... at least in CA.

So, if a student is exempt from this by MI statute, or he lives in the dorm without a job, then he might be able to fly with out-of-state license and registration.

Carl

Originally Posted by jsl

In Texas we can take defensive driving instead of paying the ticket or being guilty. Does defenseive driving apply in Michigan?

Thanks.

Call your son, ask him to grab his phone book and look up the number to the court house then call and ask all the questions that you have posted here. Also get him to call the DMV for a definitive answer on the license/registration for out-of-state students questions. Sounds like your son has been out of the house for at least an entire school year, its time for him to grow up a little. The tickets were his fault, he should have to do a little research too ... I'm a recent college grad and most of my friends had parents who coddled them throughout our college years ... the first hint of trouble and they'd call home to the 'rents who would proceed to take care of it. I don't think any of them have had to handle anything important on their own, ie rent, paying bills, handling tickets, etc and so forth. I've always wondered how they were going to be able to figure out how to take care of themselves once they were out on their own ... Not trying to give parental advice, just telling you about my own experiences ...

[You Are Guilty]

Interesting. Turns out Michigan has a rather unique definition of resident:

“Resident” means every person who resides in a settled or permanent home or domicile with the intention of remaining in this state. A person who obtains employment in Michigan is presumed to have the intention of remaining here.

I'd have to dig a little further to determine whether a 4-yr college student qualifies as having the requisite "intent" to remain in the state. However, if he does, then there is no grace period to register the car in Michigan:

New Michigan residents must immediately title and register their vehicles at a Secretary of State branch office and turn in the title from their previous home state.

So there goes that idea.

Originally Posted by You Are Guilty

Interesting. Turns out Michigan has a rather unique definition of resident:



I'd have to dig a little further to determine whether a 4-yr college student qualifies as having the requisite "intent" to remain in the state. However, if he does, then there is no grace period to register the car in Michigan:



So there goes that idea.

Until she or her son actually contacts the Michigan DMV to find out what they officially say, no idea is actually gone. I reiterate my statement that someone in her camp needs to talk to the official peeps in Michigan, and not take the word of people who don't live in Michigan ....

[You Are Guilty]

Originally Posted by needserioushelp

Until she or her son actually contacts the Michigan DMV to find out what they officially say, no idea is actually gone. I reiterate my statement that someone in her camp needs to talk to the official peeps in Michigan, and not take the word of people who don't live in Michigan ....

You're pretty dense, huh? Those quotes came directly from the Michigan Department of State website: [url]http://www.michigan.gov/sos/1,1607,7-127-1627_8669_9044-25234--,00.html[/url]

But if you really feel the need to call them and have them repeat the same definition, more power to you.

Originally Posted by You Are Guilty

You're pretty dense, huh? Those quotes came directly from the Michigan Department of State website: [url]http://www.michigan.gov/sos/1,1607,7-127-1627_8669_9044-25234--,00.html[/url]

But if you really feel the need to call them and have them repeat the same definition, more power to you.

Name calling, eh? That's mature ...

This quote also came from the Michigan DMV website:
Can I drive on my out-of-state driver's license while temporarily in Michigan?

Answer:
You may drive in Michigan with an out-of-state driver license as long as the license is valid, and you are not a Michigan resident.

As you can see there are conflicting statements from the DMV's very own website ... she needs to call the DMV for clarification.

As an out-of-state college student, I imagine he spends 8-9 months out of the year in Michigan, and the others in TX. Those 8-9 mos are probably not continuous either, as he probably returns home for major holidays and school breaks (I know a lot of dorms will shut down forcing residents to return home). He's probably registered to vote in TX as well as using his permanent address in TX for school purposes, ie he's paying out of state tuition as opposed to in-state. I live in GA, I have many friends at my college who are from out-of-state. Their driver's licenses, vehicle registrations, voter's registrations, etc are all tied back to their home states. Some have been pulled over for tickets and what not, and the out-of-state registration has not been a problem b/c they were not considered to be residents of the state due to their status as college students. Are things the same in Michigan? I don't know. Who would know the definitive answers? The Michigan DMV and the Michigan courthouse. ... not people like you and me who have no experience with Michigan and its driving laws outside of what we spent a few minutes reading on a DMV website. You could be right in your assessments, but I wouldn't bank my driving record nor the record of anyone I knew on a piece of advice I picked up from an anonymous forum without researching it for myself first. I hope you would have the common sense not to, either. If you were in her situation, I imagine you would be calling the DMV as well to make sure any info you had was the truth. Also, might I point out that if the title to the car that he's driving is in his parent's name, he might not be able to register it in Michigan. I imagine his parents pay for both the car and insurance. In order to have the car on your ins. policy, you have to have the title in your name. The title is probably in his parent's name in TX. Until the title is swapped over to him, which I doubt they'll do as it will totally FUBAR their car insurance policy, he can't legally register the car under his name in Michigan.

It all boils down to whether an out-of-state college student is considered a resident of the state. States do have "special rules" when it comes to college students and residency. I could find nothing on the Michigan DMV website that pertained specifically to college students ... maybe you did and would like to post the link?