Traffic tickets on base carry hefty penalties Published May 18, 2011 By Staff Sgt. Jessica Murphy Legal office KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- What happens if you get a traffic ticket on base? The consequences vary for military members and civilians. Offenders who are active-duty, Guard or Reserve members on active status receive a written citation known as the Defense Department Form 1408. These citations are reported to the individual's commander and first sergeant for appropriate action, which may include verbal counseling, letters of counseling or reprimand and Article 15. Additionally, there's a base driving privilege point system which assesses points for violations. Keesler Air Force Base Instruction 31-204, available at www.e-publishing.af.mil, has a point system break-down for individual violations. If more than 12 points are ccumulated in one year, or 18 points in two years, an individual's base driving privileges are revoked for one year. The process for civilians is different, as their traffic matters are handled in federal court according to the Assimilative Crimes Act, 18 U.S.C. Section 13. In many cases, such as speeding, failure to stop or expired inspection sticker, the person cited may mail the fine reflected on the citation. Fines range from $25 to $500. However, more serious traffic offenses, such as driving under the influence, reckless driving or driving without insurance, require an appearance in federal court. In court, the cited individual may plead guilty or not guilty. If the person pleads guilty, an attorney from the base legal office makes a sentence recommendation, such as a fine, court costs, community service, probation and/or jail time, and the judge immediately issues a sentence. If the individual pleads not guilty, the case is set for trial, usually for a month or two later. If an individual fails to appear in court these more serious offenses, an arrest warrant is issued. In addition to these processes, both military members and civilians can have their driving privileges automatically revoked for certain traffic offenses. For example, driving while talking on a cell phone without using a hands-free device results in an automatic seven-day driving privilege suspension for the first offense and 30 days for the second. Driving with a suspended license results in a two-year driving privilege suspension. These strict policies reflect that the installation commander takes his responsibility to maintain good order and discipline on the base very seriously.