Unregistered Vehicle

Question

David asked: A Pinellas Co Sheriff gave me this ticket. A lawyer wants $500 to have it dismissed or pled down to a civil fine (will know tomorrow-( 1-30- 2014) Tried many other avenues for legal help-V.A., Poverty legal aide, (Am on disability)-No one wants to asst w/ a criminal traffic ticket in my area. Can you recommend someone? I need a sharp-up-to–speed barrister not afraid of this challenge. Would like to keep driving my low-power asst. bike!!

Answer

We can’t advise you of an attorney, nor do we offer legal advice. We only state the laws about bicycling and offer our interpretation.

It sounds like you were operating a bicycle with a gas assist motor, which is not a legal vehicle on the roads and cannot be registered or titled.

If you were operating a bicycle equipped with an electric assist motor, your vehicle may have been legal if it meets the definition of “bicycle” in the statutes, and does not require registration, title or a driver’s license.

s. 316.003 – Definitions

(2) Bicycle – Every vehicle propelled solely by human power, and every motorized bicycle propelled by a combination of human power and an electric helper motor capable of propelling the vehicle at a speed of not more than 20 miles per hour on level ground ….

See the posts under the tag “motorized bicycles” for more information.