AGO 1951-53 No. 41.

• Case Date: May 18, 1951
• Court: Washington

Washington Attorney General Opinions 1951. AGO 1951-53 No. 41. May 18, 1951[Orig. Op. Page 1]PRIVATETRAFFIC VIOLATIONS VENUE.Where a traffic offense has been committed outside the city limits of an incorporated city or town in a county other than a Class A or a first class county, the offender may be cited into the justice court at either (a) the incorporated city or town nearest to the point the violation allegedly occurred or (b) to the justice court at the next nearest incorporated city or town at the option of the arresting officer.Honorable Robert E. ConnorProsecuting Attorney, Chelan CountyFuller-Quigg BuildingWenatchee, WashingtonCite as: AGO 1951-53 No. 41Attention: !ttMr. Jon H. Phelps Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dear Sir: On April 17, 1951, you wrote us as follows: "1. Where a traffic offense has been committed outside the city limits of an incorporated city or town in a county other than a Class A or a first class county, may such offender be cited into the justice court at either (a) The incorporated city or town nearest to the point the violation allegedly occurred, or (b) to the justice court in the next nearest incorporated city or town, at the option of the arresting officer? "2. Is the failure to cite the offender into the correct justice court a matter of venue or jurisdiction?" ANALYSIS [Orig. Op. Page 2] We give an illustrative example: Whatcom County is a county of the third class. Bellingham is a first class city and is the county seat of Whatcom County. Ferndale is located some eight miles northwest of Bellingham and Blaine some twenty miles northwest of Ferndale. Both Ferndale and Blaine are incorporated cities or towns, although much smaller in population than is Bellingham. Highway 99 runs through Whatcom County in a general northwesterly and southeasterly direction, and runs through Bellingham and Blaine, and very...