In Arizona, most traffic violations involve simple civil ticketing. In other words, those who break the law will wind up fined and could have a few extra points on their license. Otherwise, they can generally go on with their lives mostly uninterrupted.
However, there are situations in which the state of Arizona will decide to treat a speeding infraction like a more serious criminal offense, as opposed to a civil one. You could wind up facing excessive criminal speeding charges, which means a Class 3 misdemeanor instead of a civil infraction. Knowing the circumstances that could lead to excessive criminal speeding charges can help you avoid those exact situations.
The most common cause is probably going 20 miles an hour over the limit
People can wind up charged with excessive criminal speeding for a number of different infractions. Going over 35 miles an hour in a school zone during posted hours can produce such charges, regardless of what the maximum speed for the area actually is. Going over 85 miles per hour on any road could also result in charges, as could exceeding 45 miles per hour in a business area.
For most people, the biggest risk for an excessive criminal speeding charge will be going substantially over the speed limit in a certain area. These special criminal charges can occur when someone drives 20 miles an hour or more over the posted speed limit for an area. Knowing these rules can help you make more informed decisions while driving that can reduce your risk of facing such charges in the future.