Section 257.626 of the Michigan Compiled Laws defines reckless driving as "driv[ing] a vehicle upon a highway or a frozen public lake, stream or pond or other place open to the general public, including, but not limited to, an area designated for the parking of motor vehicles, in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property." Reckless driving in Michigan carries a number of penalties, including possible jail time.
Reckless driving is a misdemeanor in Michigan. A person convicted of reckless driving may be sentenced to pay a fine of up to $500, to serve up to 93 days in the county jail or both. A criminal record showing the misdemeanor is also created and may follow the reckless driver for many years after the event.
Reckless driving that causes serious injury or a death is a felony in Michigan, under MCL 257.626. After Nov. 1, 2010, a person convicted of reckless driving that causes "serious impairment of a body function" may be required to serve up to five years in prison and pay a fine of at least $1,000, but not more than $5,000, an amendment to MCL 257.626 provides. The court also must order that the vehicle be forfeited or immobilized.
A person convicted of reckless driving causing a death after Nov. 1, 2010 may be required to serve up to 15 years in prison and pay a fine of at least $2,500, but not more than $10,000. The court must also order the vehicle be forfeited or immobilized.
Michigan law includes reckless driving among its "qualifying offenses" or driving offenses that earn the offender a penalty separate from any criminal sentence. For reckless driving, the quality-offense fine is $500 per year for the two years immediately after the incident.
The first year's fee must be paid within 30 days of conviction for reckless driving, or the Michigan secretary of state may suspend the driver's Michigan driver's license. Payment plans may be available if you cannot pay the entire fee up front.
Driving offenses in Michigan are tracked by the Michigan secretary of state by a "points" system, in which points are assessed against a Michigan driver's license according to how serious a traffic infraction the driver committed. Once seven or more points are amassed, the secretary of state charges the driver an annual fee corresponding to the number of points. As of 2010, a reckless driving conviction earned a driver six license points. If a driver accumulates 12 or more points in a year, she can be required to take a driver re-examination test or risk having her license revoked.
If recklessness cannot be proved, a driver still may be convicted of careless or negligent driving under Michigan law if he "operates a vehicle upon a highway or a frozen public lake, stream, or pond or other place open to the general public including an area designated for the parking of vehicles in a careless or negligent manner likely to endanger any person or property." Careless or negligent driving is a civil infraction, earning a fine and three points on a driver's license.
