Petty Offenses or Infractions

A petty offense is the smallest infraction of the law, and is not punishable by incarceration. The typical punishment for a petty offence is a fine, which is meted out in a summary hearing led by a magistrate. There is typically no jury trial for those charged with a petty offense. Since petty offenses are so minor they are typically not even viewed as a criminal infraction, but are rather tried as a civil infraction. Traffic violations and parking tickets are common examples of petty offenses, but petty offenses vary greatly from state to state.