Find Pinellas County Traffic Court Records

How to Search Pinellas County Traffic Court Records

The Pinellas Clerk Traffic and Parking page is the starting point for looking up a traffic citation or case. It links to the Clerk's court records portal at courtrecords.mypinellasclerk.gov, which covers active cases, closed cases, paid infractions, dismissed charges, and cases pending a hearing. Civil traffic infractions that have been docketed appear there. Parking citations may have a separate payment path through city or county parking enforcement, but court-docketed traffic cases all run through the Clerk system.

Before you start, gather what you have. If you received a citation, the ticket will show a citation number and, once docketed, a case number. You can also search by your full name. The citation number is the fastest route because it returns a single result. Name searches can return multiple matches, especially for common names, so be ready to filter by date of birth or county.

1. Go to the Clerk Traffic and Parking page and follow the link to the court records search portal.
2. Enter your citation number directly if you have it. This gives the quickest, most exact result.
3. If you do not have the citation number, enter your name and use the date or county filter to narrow results.
4. Open the case detail to review court dates, plea or payment status, disposition, fine amounts, and any hearing election on file.
5. From the case detail, choose your next step: pay online, elect a hearing to contest the citation, or request a certified copy of the case record from the Clerk.

Note: Online card payments for traffic and parking citations may carry a 3.5% vendor convenience fee. Check the payment screen before confirming.

Which Courts Handle Traffic Cases in Pinellas County

Pinellas County uses a two-tier structure for traffic matters. Civil traffic infractions, which are punishable by fine only, are heard by contract hearing officers who work under the authority of the Sixth Judicial Circuit. These cases do not require a judge unless unusual issues arise. Criminal traffic charges, including driving while license suspended, reckless driving, and other offenses that can result in jail time, go before a county court judge. Cases that carry the right to a jury trial are assigned to a judge at the Pinellas County Justice Center.

The Sixth Judicial Circuit serves both Pinellas and Pasco counties. Within Pinellas, traffic matters are heard at the courthouse locations listed below. The Clearwater Courthouse on Court Street handles administrative traffic-related services. The Justice Center on 49th Street North handles criminal traffic cases. Some branch locations also process traffic payments and related services.

The Sixth Judicial Circuit court divisions page describes how traffic matters are divided between civil infraction processing and criminal traffic adjudication in Pinellas County.

Types of Pinellas County Traffic Cases on Record

Traffic cases in Pinellas County span a wide range of violations. Some are civil infractions that you can resolve by paying a fine. Others are criminal charges that require a court appearance. Knowing which category your citation falls into matters because the deadline, the payment path, and the consequences are different for each type.

• Moving violations - Speeding, failure to yield, running a red light or stop sign, improper lane change, and similar in-motion offenses; fines vary by violation and speed over the limit.
• Non-moving violations - Seatbelt and child-restraint violations, equipment violations such as broken lights or expired registration; generally lower fines but still docketed if elected for hearing.
• Parking and ordinance - Parking citations issued by city or county enforcement; some are handled outside the court system but can be docketed if contested or unpaid.
• Red-light camera (photo enforcement) - Automated citations from red-light cameras at intersections; the fine for a red-light violation is $266.00, and $333.00 if school-bus-stop related and photo enforced.
• Commercial vehicle and CDL citations - Violations by drivers holding a commercial driver license; these carry additional federal reporting and license consequences beyond a standard infraction.
• Criminal traffic offenses - Driving while license suspended or revoked, reckless driving, leaving the scene, and similar misdemeanors that carry potential jail time and require a court appearance rather than a simple payment.
• Boating violations - Boating infractions processed through the Clerk Traffic and Parking division along with road traffic matters.

The Clerk's Traffic and Parking page lists all categories handled by the office, including toll violations and school-bus-stop violations.

What Pinellas County Traffic Court Records Show

A Pinellas County traffic court record is the official case file created when a citation is docketed with the Clerk. It captures everything that happens from the moment a case opens through final disposition, including fines, hearings, and any driver-school election. The record does not show your full driving history or license status; those details come from the state driver record, which is a separate file. Below is a breakdown of the main fields you will see when you open a traffic case in the Clerk's portal.

Searching by Citation Number vs by Name

The Clerk's traffic search portal accepts several input types. Searching by citation number is almost always faster and more accurate. The citation number appears on the physical ticket and matches directly to one case. Searching by name can return multiple results, particularly for common last names in a county with nearly 1 million residents. If you search by name, you may need to confirm identity by date of birth or review multiple cases to find the right one. The table below covers the main search fields available through the Pinellas Clerk citation search and payment system.

Paying or Contesting a Pinellas County Traffic Ticket

Most civil traffic infractions in Pinellas County must be resolved within 30 calendar days from the date on the citation. The Clerk's Traffic and Parking page lists accepted payment options including online payment through the court records portal, mail-in payment by check or money order, and in-person payment at Clerk locations. If the ticket is not paid or contested by the deadline, the Clerk will enter a notice of suspension with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and additional penalties may apply. A $23.00 delinquency fee is added once a citation becomes past due.

If you want to contest the citation rather than pay it, you must elect a hearing before the deadline. Electing a hearing means you choose to appear before a hearing officer or judge rather than simply pay the fine. For most civil infractions, hearings are conducted by contract hearing officers. For criminal traffic charges, a court appearance before a county court judge is required, and you cannot resolve the matter by paying a fine online. Some mandatory-court citations such as speeding 30 mph or more over the limit must go before a judge regardless of your preference. The step-by-step process below applies to standard civil infractions.

1. Read your citation. Note the issue date and the 30-day deadline printed on it, and check whether it is labeled as a mandatory-court citation.
2. If paying, go to the Clerk payment portal or mail payment to the address on the citation; confirm any convenience fee before submitting an online card payment.
3. If contesting, submit a hearing election through the portal or in writing to the Clerk before the deadline.
4. If you are eligible for a driver improvement course (defensive driving), elect that option before paying or contesting; follow the Clerk's instructions on enrollment and completion deadlines.
5. If you miss the 30-day deadline without paying or electing a hearing, contact the Clerk immediately; a $23.00 delinquency fee will apply, and a suspension notice may already have been sent to the state.
6. If your citation is labeled mandatory court, do not simply pay online; a payment without an appearance will not properly resolve the charge and may create additional problems with your license status.

The Clerk's fee schedule lists all fine amounts by violation type, including the $60.00 driver license reinstatement fee that applies after a suspension is cleared.

Pinellas County Clerk Traffic and Parking Portal

The Pinellas County Clerk Traffic and Parking page is the official gateway for looking up citations, making payments, electing hearings, and finding information on parking tickets, boating violations, red-light camera notices, and ordinance citations.

The portal connects to the full court records system, so once a citation is docketed you can view case status, scheduled hearings, and final disposition in the same place where you pay.

Public Access Laws for Pinellas County Traffic Court Records

Traffic court records are public records in Florida. The legal foundation is Florida Statutes Chapter 119, the Public Records Act, which requires custodians to make nonexempt records available for inspection and copying. Court records specifically are also governed by Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.420, which defines what judicial branch records are public, what is confidential, and how remote electronic access is managed. For most traffic infractions, the case docket, disposition, and fine information are publicly accessible through the Clerk's portal without any login requirement.

Some information within a traffic case file may be protected. Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, and certain personal identifiers can be redacted. Under Florida Statutes §119.0714, court files and official records carry specific exemptions for certain sensitive data embedded in case documents. If you believe your record contains information that should be redacted, the Clerk's View Records page explains the redaction request process.

Court Traffic Records vs State Driver Records in Pinellas

One of the most common points of confusion around traffic cases is the difference between the court traffic record and the state driver record. They are not the same file, they are maintained by different agencies, and they serve different purposes. The Pinellas Clerk maintains the court traffic record, which is the official case file from when the citation is issued through final disposition. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) maintains the state driver record, which is a history of your license, convictions, points, and suspensions. A dismissed citation may still show as a court record but will not appear on your DHSMV driver history as a conviction. Conversely, your license status and full point history are not visible through the Clerk's court records portal.

If you need a driver record for insurance, employment, or CDL purposes, the state driver record from DHSMV is the correct document. If you need proof of how a specific case was resolved in court, a certified copy of the Pinellas court record from the Clerk is what you want. See the Clerk fee schedule for current copy and transcript rates.

CDL and Commercial Driver Records in Pinellas County

Drivers holding a commercial driver license face stricter rules than standard license holders when it comes to traffic violations. Federal law prohibits CDL holders from masking, diverting, or deferring most traffic convictions from the CDL record. This means that even if a court withholds adjudication on an infraction for a regular driver, CDL holders may still have the conviction reported to the DHSMV and reflected on their commercial driving record. Many violations that a non-CDL driver can resolve through a driver improvement course without a conviction cannot be handled the same way for a CDL holder in a commercial vehicle.

CDL holders who receive a citation in Pinellas County should not assume the standard "pay and avoid points" option is available to them. Certain violations require a mandatory court appearance regardless of license class, and some disqualify a CDL holder from operating a commercial vehicle for a set period even on a first offense. Serious traffic violations such as speeding 15 or more mph over the limit, following too closely, unsafe lane change, and reckless driving carry federal CDL consequences. If you hold a CDL and received a Pinellas citation, contact an attorney before paying the fine or electing a driver school course.

DUI and DWI Cases in Pinellas County

DUI charges in Pinellas County are criminal matters, not civil traffic infractions. A DUI arrest in Pinellas results in a criminal case handled by the County Court or Circuit Court depending on the severity of the charge. A first-offense DUI without aggravating factors is a county criminal case. DUI involving serious bodily injury, death, or prior felony DUI convictions routes to Circuit Criminal at the Pinellas County Justice Center. These cases appear in the Clerk's criminal court records system, not in the civil traffic infraction portal. They carry potential jail time, probation, fines, and mandatory license action.

For full Pinellas County DUI and DWI case information, see Pinellas County criminal records.

Deferred Adjudication and Defensive Driving in Pinellas County

Florida law allows eligible drivers to elect a driver improvement course, commonly called defensive driving or traffic school, to avoid having adjudication entered on a civil traffic infraction. If you elect this option in Pinellas County and successfully complete a state-approved course within the required time, the court withholds adjudication. This means the violation is not counted as a conviction, and the associated points are not posted to your DHSMV driver record. You may still be responsible for paying the citation fine. The court traffic record will show that you elected and completed driver school, but the disposition will reflect withheld adjudication rather than a finding of guilt.

Eligibility limits apply. Florida law generally allows this option once every 12 months and no more than five times in a driver's lifetime. Some violations are not eligible, including mandatory-court citations like speeding 30 or more mph over the limit, and violations in school or construction zones at certain speeds. CDL holders driving a commercial vehicle cannot use this option to mask a conviction from the commercial record. The Clerk's Traffic and Parking page explains the election process and deadlines that apply in Pinellas County. The election must be made before the citation deadline, which is normally 30 days from the issue date.

Note: A $23.00 delinquency fee applies if a citation payment or election is submitted after the 30-day period expires.

Sealing or Expunging Pinellas County Traffic Records

Civil traffic infractions in Florida are not criminal convictions, so the standard sealing and expunction process under Florida Statutes §943.059 and §943.0585 does not apply to ordinary moving violations or parking citations. Those statutes govern criminal history records for eligible criminal offenses. A paid or dismissed civil traffic infraction remains a court record that the Clerk retains as part of the official case file, but it does not generate a criminal history entry that would be eligible for sealing or expunction under those statutes.

Criminal traffic offenses are a different matter. A charge like driving while license suspended with an adjudication of guilt is a misdemeanor criminal conviction. If you later become eligible under Florida law, and if the charge is among those the statutes allow to be sealed or expunged, you could apply through the process administered by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. That process requires obtaining a Certificate of Eligibility from FDLE, then petitioning the court. The Clerk filing fee for a sealing or expunction petition is currently $42.00 plus applicable copy, certification, and mailing fees. The Clerk's View Records page has more detail on what the process involves in Pinellas County. See Pinellas County criminal records for a fuller explanation of sealing and expunction eligibility.

Fees for Pinellas County Traffic Records and Citations

The Pinellas Clerk fee schedule lists scheduled fine amounts for civil traffic infractions as well as fees for certified copies, search services, and driver record transcripts. Fine amounts are set by the Florida Legislature and vary by violation type and speed level. The table below covers the main fee categories from the Clerk schedule relevant to traffic records.

Plain and certified copies of court records follow the Clerk's standard copy fee schedule. Contact the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller at (727) 464-7000 to confirm current copy fees for certified traffic case records. If you need a copy for a legal proceeding, ask specifically for a certified copy, as uncertified printouts from the public portal are not accepted in court.

Related Pinellas County Record Searches

Traffic cases can overlap with other record types depending on the circumstances of the stop or charge. For DUI and other criminal traffic matters, Pinellas County criminal records cover arrest history, charges, and dispositions handled through the criminal court system. If a traffic stop led to an arrest and an outstanding warrant, warrant records will show any active capias or failure-to-appear warrant. General case searches across all case types, including civil, family, and probate, are available through the main Pinellas County court records portal. For questions about the Clerk office, copy fees, records requests, and in-person services, see the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller page. County court jurisdiction and how traffic matters fit into the broader court hierarchy are explained on the Pinellas County Court page. Frequently asked questions about the court system, including traffic-related topics, are answered in the FAQ.