If you have received a ticket (Summons and Complaint) from the Arvada Police Department, read the front and back of your ticket carefully to determine which jurisdiction you are required to appear in. Arvada police officers can write tickets into the Arvada Municipal Court as well as Adams and Jefferson County Courts.
Arvada Municipal Court tickets will begin with one of the following prefixes:
- AM tickets are hand written, yellow, full page with additional information on the back of your copy.
- CE tickets are Code Enforcement violations, hand written, yellow, full page with additional information on the back of your copy.
- ET tickets are issued electronically on a long narrow print out
- PK tickets are parking tickets in the form of an envelope
Tickets contain:
- The offense you are alleged to have committed.
- The date, time and location of the alleged offense.
- The date and time you are required to appear in court.
Plea Bargains
Please read your ticket carefully to determine if it is a Penalty Assessment or a Mandatory Court Summons.
Penalty Assessment
A Penalty Assessment ticket will allow an officer on the street citing a motorist for a traffic infraction to extend a compromise to the motorist. The compromise follows City Attorney guidelines allowing the motorist to plead guilty to a reduced offense with a known fine and resolve the entire matter by mail or online. The cited driver will not lose any rights but will gain a simplified process for easily resolving certain traffic infractions. Points will be reduced per the City Attorney’s point schedule and the driver will not have to appear in court. The process must be addressed by the summons date on the ticket.
Mandatory Court Summons
Some citations require a Mandatory Court appearance. This information will be listed on the summons along with the date and time you are required to appear in court.
Juveniles
All juvenile citations require a mandatory court appearance. If you are under the age of 18 years old, you must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
Rescheduling
If you are unable to appear on the specified court date, you must appear at the court office located at 8101 Ralston Rd. Court hearings will not be rescheduled over the phone. No one else can appear on your behalf. If you are a juvenile defendant under the age of 18, you are required to bring a parent or legal guardian with you to court.
Proof of Insurance
In order to dismiss a No Proof of Insurance charge, we must be able to confirm you were a covered driver in the specified vehicle on the date and time of the violation.
Consistent with the Model Traffic Code as adopted by the City of Arvada, the Arvada Municipal Court will not accept an Insurance ID card after a No Proof of Insurance ticket has been issued. The court REQUIRES a detailed letter from your Insurance Agent/Company providing all of the following:
- Letter must be on company letterhead
- Letter must be dated
- Policy Number
- Defendant’s name
- Year, Make and Model of vehicle
- Statement of coverage for the defendant driving the specified vehicle on the DATE AND TIME of the violation
This letter can be faxed to 720-898-7164 or emailed to insurance@arvada.org. If you or your agent have any questions, please feel free to contact the Arvada Municipal Court office at 720-898-7150.
FAQs for Teens
- I lost my ticket! Can I get information by phone or email?
- No. Information regarding juveniles cannot be provided by phone or email. You must appear in person to get information.
- Can my parents come with me?
- Yes, in fact, if you are under 18 years old, you must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.