Traffic Matters
Short answer: a traffic ticket written by a Shelby County Sheriff’s deputy or a Tennessee state trooper is heard in Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court, Division 14, the county’s traffic court, at 201 Poplar Avenue. It is a state-law charge, most often a Class C misdemeanor, and paying it online is a guilty plea that puts points on your license. Our flat fee for a regular ticket in Division 14 is $200, and in most cases we appear for you so you never go downtown. If a Memphis police officer wrote your ticket, you are in a different court in the same building: see Memphis City Court traffic tickets.
Text a photo of the citation to 901-412-2973 or call (901) 324-5000. We confirm the court and the date, quote the fee, and tell you honestly whether this ticket is worth hiring a lawyer for. Se habla español.
Is your ticket in Division 14?
Look at the issuing agency printed on the citation, not at where you were driving. Division 14 hears the tickets written by two agencies:
- Tennessee Highway Patrol. Troopers work the interstates through Shelby County, I-40, I-240, I-55 and I-269, and the state routes. Most interstate speeding, lane and following-too-closely tickets in Memphis are Highway Patrol tickets, and they all come here.
- Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies patrol the unincorporated parts of the county, the pockets of Cordova outside the city, Eads and the county roads, and they write tickets inside the cities too. Arlington and Lakeland have no police department of their own and are patrolled by the Sheriff’s Office, so a ticket written in either town is usually a deputy’s ticket. The citation itself names the court.
A Memphis Police Department ticket goes to Memphis City Court, Division 1, 2 or 3, at the same address but with its own clerk, its own prosecutors and its own payment system. A Germantown, Bartlett, Collierville or Millington police ticket goes to that city’s court. The Memphis traffic ticket page covers the full map; this page is about Division 14.
What Division 14 is
Shelby County General Sessions Court’s criminal divisions sit at 201 Poplar, and Division 14 is the traffic and environmental court. Its morning traffic dockets hear the speeding, lane, following, equipment and paperwork tickets written under Title 55 of the Tennessee Code by deputies and troopers, and its environmental dockets hear housing, health, fire and building code cases, public nuisance and animal control matters brought by code enforcement and the police. A traffic ticket in Division 14 is prosecuted under state law by the Shelby County District Attorney General’s office, not by the City of Memphis prosecutors who handle City Court.
Your citation shows the court date and the docket time. 201 Poplar is the Walter L. Bailey Criminal Justice Center, and General Sessions has moved several courtrooms during renovations this year, so follow the posted signage and confirm the courtroom with the clerk rather than relying on a floor number you read online.
The clerk, your court date and paying online
| Clerk | General Sessions Court Clerk, Criminal Division, 201 Poplar, Suite LL-81, Memphis, TN 38103. (901) 222-3500. Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. |
|---|---|
| Other clerk offices | Mullins Station, 1075 Mullins Station Road, Room W115, (901) 222-7900. Southbrook Mall, 1254 East Shelby Drive. |
| Court date | Printed on the citation. The clerk’s Criminal Division page has a “Find Your Court Date” lookup. |
| Pay online | General Sessions Clerk: Traffic Tickets or Court Cost Payments. Payments are also taken by phone and at the three clerk offices. |
Before you use that link, know what the payment is. Paying a traffic citation is a guilty plea. The conviction goes on your driving record, the points attach, and it cannot be undone afterwards. For some tickets that is still the right choice, and we will tell you when it is. If you have other recent tickets, a commercial license, or a job that involves driving, call first.
What a Division 14 ticket carries
Because the ticket is a state charge, the consequences come from Tennessee law rather than the city code. Basic speeding under Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-8-152 is a Class C misdemeanor: a fine of up to $50 plus court costs, and, in theory, up to 30 days. Nobody goes to jail for a regular speeding ticket, but a Class C misdemeanor conviction is still a conviction. What actually costs you is the driving record:
| Conviction | Points |
|---|---|
| Speeding 1 to 5 mph over | 1 |
| Speeding 6 to 15 mph over | 3 |
| Speeding 16 to 25 mph over | 4 |
| Speeding 26 to 35 mph over | 5 |
| Speeding 36 to 45 mph over | 6 |
| Speeding 46 mph or more over | 8 |
| Following improperly | 3 |
| Failure to yield right of way | 4 |
| Careless or negligent driving | 4 |
| Texting or handheld device use | 3 |
| Leaving the scene of a crash | 5 |
Twelve points within twelve months brings a notice of proposed suspension from the Department of Safety. After a speeding conviction, § 55-8-207 lets a driver who completes an approved defensive driving course within 90 days have those points removed, up to five, once in four years, but the conviction stays. Insurers read the driving record at renewal, usually for three years, and an interstate speeding conviction is exactly what they price. Commercial drivers have it worse: 15 mph or more over is a serious traffic violation under federal rules, and the traffic-school and deferral outcomes everyone else can use are closed to CDL holders. See CDL defense before paying a trooper’s ticket.
How we handle a Division 14 ticket
- You send us the citation. A photo by text is fine. We confirm it is a Division 14 ticket, check the date, and quote the fee.
- We appear for you. On a regular ticket you do not come downtown. We enter an appearance and handle the docket setting.
- We work toward the outcome that keeps it off your record. In order of preference: a dismissal; an amendment to a non-moving violation that carries no points and no insurance consequence; or, where the prosecutor wants more, a driver improvement course or a deferral that ends in a dismissal. The speed alleged, your record and whether there was a crash decide which is realistic.
- We try the ticket when the proof is weak. A trooper’s radar or lidar reading has to be laid as a foundation in court: the unit, its calibration, the officer’s training, the angle and the traffic. If the trooper does not appear, or cannot establish the reading, the charge may not survive.
- You hear the result the same day, with the court costs, if any, and how to pay them to the clerk.
We have handled thousands of tickets across Shelby County, and part of what you get on the first call is a straight answer about whether this one is worth the fee. An adult seat belt ticket usually is not, and we say so.
Charges that are not regular tickets
Not everything a deputy or a trooper writes belongs on the Division 14 traffic docket. Reckless driving, driving on a suspended or revoked license, leaving the scene of an accident and DUI are criminal charges heard in the General Sessions criminal divisions, with jail exposure, a criminal record and different fees. If any of those words are on your paperwork, call before the court date; the defense and the stakes are different. A ticket written after a crash, such as failure to maintain a proper lookout, is usually still a Division 14 ticket but needs care of its own, because a conviction can be used as evidence of fault in any claim over the crash.
What it costs
Our flat fee for a regular, non-commercial traffic ticket in General Sessions Division 14 is $200 per ticket, the same as in Memphis City Court, quoted before you decide anything. Court costs and any fine are paid to the clerk and are separate. Several tickets from one stop, which is common on an interstate stop, are quoted together after we see them. Commercial drivers’ tickets are priced by court on the CDL ticket fee page, and the full schedule is on what a traffic ticket lawyer costs in Memphis.
What to do this week
- Check the agency on the citation. Sheriff or Highway Patrol means Division 14; Memphis police means City Court.
- Do not pay it yet if you have other recent tickets, a CDL, or a job where you drive.
- Do not miss the court date. A missed General Sessions date can mean a warrant, and an unsatisfied citation reported to the Department of Safety can mean a suspended license. If the date will not work, have a lawyer handle it before the date, not after. See missed court dates in Shelby County.
- Text us a photo of the ticket at 901-412-2973. You get the fee and an honest opinion the same day.
Frequently asked questions
Which court is a Highway Patrol ticket in Memphis heard in?
Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court, Division 14, at 201 Poplar. The same is true of a Shelby County Sheriff’s ticket. A Memphis Police Department ticket is heard in Memphis City Court instead, in the same building.
Do I have to go to court for a Shelby County traffic ticket?
Usually not, if you hire a lawyer. On a regular Division 14 ticket we appear for you. If you do not hire a lawyer and do not pay the ticket before the court date, you have to appear yourself, and missing the date is the one thing that makes a small ticket expensive.
How do I pay a Shelby County traffic ticket online?
Through the General Sessions Clerk’s payment page, or by phone or in person at the clerk’s offices at 201 Poplar, Mullins Station or Southbrook Mall. Remember that paying is a guilty plea with points; a free call first costs nothing.
How do I find my court date for a Sheriff or Highway Patrol ticket?
It is printed on the citation. If you have lost it, the General Sessions Clerk’s Criminal Division page has a court-date lookup, and the clerk answers at (901) 222-3500 on weekdays.
What happens if I miss my Division 14 court date?
The court can issue a warrant for failure to appear, and a citation that is never satisfied is reported to the Department of Safety, which can suspend your license. If you have already missed the date, call; it is usually still fixable, and the sooner the better.
How many points is an interstate speeding ticket?
It depends on the speed, not the road: 1 point for 1 to 5 over, 3 for 6 to 15, 4 for 16 to 25, 5 for 26 to 35, 6 for 36 to 45, and 8 for 46 or more over. Points attach only on conviction, so a dismissed or amended ticket adds none.
How much does a lawyer cost for a Division 14 ticket?
At Brooks Law Firm, a flat $200 per regular ticket, the same as in Memphis City Court. Court costs are separate and paid to the clerk. CDL tickets are priced by court.
Talk to a Shelby County traffic ticket lawyer
Brooks Law Firm handles Sheriff’s and Highway Patrol tickets in General Sessions Division 14 every week, from our office at 2299 Union Avenue in Midtown, a few minutes from 201 Poplar. Text a photo of the citation to 901-412-2973 or call (901) 324-5000.
This page is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Court schedules, courtrooms and clerk procedures change; confirm your court date and courtroom with the clerk. Point values are the Department of Safety’s and may change. The outcome of any case depends on its facts.