Traffic Violations and Charges

Uniform Complaint and Summons (UCS)

• A written document used to show the type of violation and used by courts to establish the severity of the violation.
• Used by the Department of Revenue (DOR) to keep track of violations, including types, points, suspensions, and revocations.

Charges and Charge Codes

• The State of Missouri has set forth a code for each violation of the Traffic Statutes.
• Each violation has a five-digit charge code assigned by the state for statistical purposes.
• The code includes a two-digit severity code and a one-digit code indicating the type of violation (e.g., attempt, accessory, conspiracy).

Common Motor Vehicle Violations

• Chapter 301: Registration and Licensing of Motor Vehicles
  • Failure to register motor vehicle/trailer annually with Director of Revenue (Statute 301.030/Charge Code 4601906.0)
  • Displayed plates of another (Statute 301.041/Charge Code 4605406.0)
  • Displayed unlawful plates (Statute 301.320/Charge Code 4609606.0)
• Chapter 302: Drivers and Chauffeur's Licenses
  • Operate vehicle without proper license (Statute 302.020/Charge Code 4660706.0)
  • Unlawful for person to display suspended, revoked, altered or fictitious license (Statute 302.220/Charge Code 4662506.0)
  • Driving with suspended or revoked license (Statute 302.321/Charge Code 4666006.0)

Uniform Complaint (UC)

• A five-page document with each page designated for a specific agency.
• Fields on the UC that are not filled out every time a UCS is written because the information is not applicable or needed.
• Each summons is sequentially numbered and must be accounted for by the officer issued that summons book.

Completing a Uniform Complaint

• Fill in necessary blocks to make the UC complete for the violation written.
• Fill in blocks that are necessary for the specific violation, leaving out unnecessary information.
• Enter information in a specific format, including dates, times, and addresses.

Examples of UC Fields

• UC number
• State of Missouri in Circuit Court of
• County
• Division
• On or about (Date)
• Upon/At or Near (Location/Log Point)
• At (Time)
• Insurance
• Name
• Street Address
• City
• State
• Zip Code
• Date of Birth
• Age
• Race
• Sex
• Height
• Weight
• Driver's Lic. No.
• State
• Employer
• Street Address
• City
• State
• Zip Code
• Did Unlawfully
• Year
• Make
• Model
• Style
• Color
• Weight
• License Number
• License State
• License Year
• Description of Violation
• Amended Charges
• Driving
• When Limited to
• Seat belt violation
• Detection Method
• In Violation of
• Mo. Charge Code
• In Fatal Accident/In Accident/DWI/BAC