Florida criminal practice
Florida DUI & criminal traffic offenses, source-linked.
The Florida traffic charges that land in criminal court — not the civil infractions. DUI, reckless driving, racing, fleeing or eluding, leaving the scene, and refusal to submit, each linked to the official Florida Legislature text. A companion to the Florida criminal statutes reference.
Florida criminal traffic · quick reference
Florida DUI & criminal traffic offenses.
The Florida traffic offenses that are charged as crimes — a misdemeanor or felony — rather than as a civil traffic infraction: DUI, reckless driving, racing, fleeing or eluding, leaving the scene of a crash, and refusal to submit to testing. Each entry links to the official Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine) text for the full, current statute. The short description shown is the statute's own catchline, reproduced verbatim.
Scope: the criminal (non-infraction) offenses within chapter 316. Routine civil traffic infractions — careless driving (§316.1925), signal and speed violations, equipment citations — are governed as noncriminal infractions under chapter 318 and are not listed here. Whether a given violation is criminal, and the degree, is determined by the controlling statute text and the facts charged — always open the official link. This index is a navigation aid, not legal advice.
- §316.027Crash involving death or personal injuries.
- §316.061Crashes involving damage to vehicle or property.
- §316.191Racing on highways, street takeovers, and stunt driving.
- §316.192Reckless driving.
- §316.193Driving under the influence; penalties.
- §316.1935Fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer; aggravated fleeing or eluding.
- §316.1939Refusal to submit to testing; penalties.
Source: Florida Legislature, Online Sunshine (leg.state.fl.us/statutes) — the official publisher of the Florida Statutes. Current statutes only. Criminal-vs-infraction classification is governed by the statute text and chapter 318; confirm on the official link.
Defending a DUI or traffic-crime stop?
The stop and the testing start with the officer.
DUI and criminal-traffic cases turn on how the stop was made and how the testing was run. BenchRecon's Officer Lookup searches the arresting officer's Florida FDLE/CJSTC certification-discipline and incident-ledger record — every row cited to the underlying public record — surfacing the impeachment and suppression angles before you draft the motion.
Florida results currently show FDLE/CJSTC certification discipline and incident-ledger rows only, not local-agency internal affairs complaints or Brady/Giglio lists.
Florida DUI & criminal traffic — common questions.
- Which offenses does this reference list?
- The criminal (non-infraction) Chapter 316 offenses: DUI (316.193), reckless driving (316.192), racing (316.191), fleeing or eluding (316.1935), leaving the scene of a crash (316.027 and 316.061), and refusal to submit to testing (316.1939).
- Why aren't speeding or careless driving listed?
- Those are noncriminal traffic infractions governed under Chapter 318, not criminal offenses, so they are excluded from this criminal-traffic reference.
- Is a listed offense always a crime?
- Whether a given violation is criminal, and its degree, is determined by the controlling statute text and the facts charged — always open the official link for the controlling text.
- Is this legal advice?
- No. It is a navigation aid for locating statutes; the official statute controls and nothing here is legal advice.