In California, an infraction is a minor violation punishable only by a fine, while a misdemeanor is a criminal offense that can send you to county jail for up to six months and leave a permanent mark on your record. The difference between an infraction and a misdemeanor in California shapes almost everything that follows a citation or arrest: whether you go to jail, whether you get a jury, whether the state pays for your lawyer, and whether the case ever shows up on a background check.
Where Each Offense Sits in California Law
California Penal Code Section 16 sorts every public offense into three categories: felonies, misdemeanors, and infractions.1California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 16 – Crimes and Public Offenses Felonies are the most serious and carry state prison time. Misdemeanors sit in the middle and can mean county jail. Infractions are the lowest tier, carrying fines but no possibility of custody.2California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 19.6 – Infraction Because no one goes to jail for an infraction, these offenses technically are not “crimes” in the way most people use that word. Misdemeanors are.
What an Infraction Actually Costs
Infractions cannot be punished with imprisonment, probation, or any form of custody.2California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 19.6 – Infraction The only penalty is a fine. Speeding, running a red light, and most local ordinance violations fall here.
The base fine looks manageable on paper. Vehicle Code Section 42001 caps a first offense at $100, a second within a year at $200, and a third or later offense at $250.3California Legislative Information. California Code VEH 42001 – Penalties for Infractions The actual bill is another story. California stacks penalty assessments and surcharges on every base fine, roughly $27 for every $10 of base, plus flat fees for court security, DNA identification, and other funds.4Superior Court of California, County of Amador. Penalty Assessment A $100 base fine routinely climbs past $490 by the time you write the check.
Infraction convictions do not appear on a criminal record and will not surface on standard background checks. Moving violations do land on your DMV driving record, which insurers see, so a $490 ticket can quietly cost far more through higher premiums.
What a Misdemeanor Actually Costs
Misdemeanors are real criminal offenses. The default punishment under Penal Code Section 19 is up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.5California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 19 – Punishment for Misdemeanor That default only fills in when the specific statute is silent. Many common misdemeanors set their own higher limits. A first DUI can mean up to six months in jail and fines well above $1,000. Domestic battery carries up to one year in jail and a $2,000 fine. When the specific statute prescribes a harsher penalty, it controls.
Judges often impose summary probation instead of jail. Most misdemeanor probation is now capped at one year, though certain offenses like domestic violence have their own longer terms. Probation conditions can include community service, counseling, or restitution, and you have to stay out of new trouble.
The record consequences are the part people underestimate. A misdemeanor conviction goes on your criminal history and stays there unless you take affirmative steps to clear it. Employers, landlords, and licensing boards can see it, and it can follow you for decades.
Your Rights in Court
The largest procedural gap between the two categories opens inside the courtroom. Because a misdemeanor can put you behind bars, the Constitution gives you the full set of criminal defense rights. California extends the right to a jury trial to all misdemeanor defendants, even where the maximum sentence is six months or less.6Justia. Baldwin v. New York, 399 U.S. 66 (1970) If you cannot afford an attorney, the court must appoint one whenever jail is a possible outcome.
Infractions strip both protections away. Penal Code Section 19.6 says outright that a person charged with an infraction is not entitled to a jury trial and not entitled to a court-appointed attorney. You present your case to a judge in a bench trial. You can hire a private lawyer, but the state will not provide one. The one narrow exception: if you are arrested for an infraction and not released on your own recognizance or bail, you do have the right to appointed counsel while in custody.2California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 19.6 – Infraction
Practically, this means a misdemeanor defense involves plea negotiations, evidentiary challenges, cross-examination, and a possible jury. An infraction defense is you and the judge, unless you pay for a lawyer out of pocket.
Arrest or Citation
Most infractions are handled with a citation. An officer writes you a ticket, you sign a promise to appear, and you go on your way. Vehicle Code Section 40302 lets an officer take you into custody for an infraction only in narrow circumstances: you fail to show identification, refuse to sign the promise to appear, or demand an immediate hearing before a judge.7California Legislative Information. California Code VEH 40302 – Arrest for Vehicle Code Violations
Misdemeanors work differently. Under Penal Code Section 836, an officer can arrest you without a warrant when they have probable cause to believe you committed a misdemeanor in their presence, and for certain offenses like domestic violence, even without personally witnessing the act.8California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 836 – Arrest Without Warrant An arrest means booking, fingerprinting, and waiting for release on bail or your own recognizance. The arrest record exists independent of any later conviction and can appear on background checks.
Wobblettes: When the Charge Could Go Either Way
Some California offenses can be filed as either a misdemeanor or an infraction. Lawyers call these “wobblettes,” to distinguish them from “wobblers,” which swing between felony and misdemeanor. Penal Code Sections 17(d) and 19.8 together define the category.9California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 17 – Classification of Offenses
Wobblette offenses include disturbing the peace, certain trespassing charges, driving without a license, driving on a suspended license, failure to appear in court, and furnishing alcohol to a minor, among others.10California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 19.8 – Offenses Subject to Section 17(d) Prosecutors decide the classification based on the facts and your record. A first-time disturbing the peace charge with no aggravating facts often comes in as an infraction. The same charge with a history of similar incidents may be filed as a misdemeanor.
One detail is easy to miss. If the prosecutor files a wobblette as an infraction, you can reject that classification at arraignment and elect to have the case proceed as a misdemeanor instead.9California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 17 – Classification of Offenses Why choose the more serious charge? Because a misdemeanor defendant gets a jury and an appointed attorney. If you intend to fight the case, those tools can matter more than the lower ceiling. A court can also reduce a wobblette from misdemeanor to infraction with your consent, which is often the goal in plea negotiations.
Clearing the Record Afterward
This is where the daily impact of the two categories diverges most sharply. An infraction never enters your criminal record, so there is nothing an employer, landlord, or licensing board will find. A misdemeanor does, and it stays there permanently unless you petition to clear it.
The main relief for misdemeanors is Penal Code Section 1203.4. Once you have completed probation and are not currently charged with or serving a sentence for another offense, you can ask the court to set aside the guilty verdict and dismiss the case.11California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4 – Dismissal After Probation If granted, most penalties tied to the conviction go away, and you can legally state in most private employment contexts that you were not convicted.
The relief has limits. Even after a 1203.4 dismissal, you must still disclose the original conviction when applying for public office, a state or local professional license, or a contract with the California State Lottery. The dismissal does not restore firearm rights if the conviction triggered a firearms prohibition, and in any future criminal case the prosecution can still use it as a prior.11California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4 – Dismissal After Probation
Infractions are not eligible for dismissal under Section 1203.4.11California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4 – Dismissal After Probation That sounds like a disadvantage but is not one. Because an infraction never creates a criminal record, there is nothing to dismiss.
Traffic School for Infraction Moving Violations
If your infraction is a moving violation and you hold a noncommercial driver’s license, traffic school is often the practical win. Completing a court-approved course keeps the violation point off your DMV driving record, so insurers cannot see it or raise rates because of it.12California Courts. Traffic School You still pay the fine and a traffic school fee, but you avoid the insurance hit, which over a few years often dwarfs the ticket itself.
Eligibility is not automatic. You generally qualify if your ticket involves a noncommercial vehicle and you have not attended traffic school within the past 18 months. Tickets for equipment violations, alcohol or drug-related offenses, and certain other categories are excluded, and the judge has discretion to grant or deny.12California Courts. Traffic School
Immigration Consequences for Non-Citizens
For non-citizens, the gap between infraction and misdemeanor takes on an entirely different weight. Infractions generally do not trigger immigration consequences because they are not criminal convictions. Misdemeanors can be devastating.
Federal immigration law defines “aggravated felony” much more broadly than the name suggests. Under 8 U.S.C. Section 1101(a)(43), a state misdemeanor can qualify as an aggravated felony for deportation purposes when it falls into certain categories: a theft conviction with a one-year jail sentence, a crime of violence with a one-year sentence, or a fraud offense involving losses over $10,000, among others.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1101 – Definitions An aggravated felony conviction makes a non-citizen deportable, bars most forms of relief from removal, and permanently prevents reentry.
Misdemeanors that fall short of aggravated felony status can still trigger deportation or inadmissibility if they qualify as crimes involving moral turpitude, drug offenses, or domestic violence offenses. The analysis turns on the elements of the statute you were convicted under, not just the sentence you received. This is one area where getting a wobblette treated as an infraction rather than a misdemeanor can change the trajectory of a life. Defense attorneys representing non-citizens routinely push for infraction treatment specifically to avoid federal consequences.
Side-by-Side Comparison
- Maximum jail time. Infractions carry none. Misdemeanors carry up to six months under the default rule, or up to one year for offenses with their own penalty statutes.
- Fines. Infraction base fines start low but multiply with penalty assessments. Misdemeanor fines can reach $1,000 or more depending on the offense, and are also subject to assessments.
- Jury trial. Available for misdemeanors. Not available for infractions.
- Court-appointed attorney. Guaranteed for misdemeanors when jail is possible. Not provided for infractions except in rare custody situations.
- Arrest. Misdemeanor arrests are routine. Infraction arrests are limited to specific circumstances.
- Criminal record. Misdemeanors create one. Infractions do not.
- Record dismissal. Misdemeanors can be dismissed under Penal Code 1203.4 after probation. Infractions are not eligible because no criminal record exists to clear.
- Immigration impact. Misdemeanors can trigger deportation, inadmissibility, or loss of immigration relief. Infractions generally carry no immigration consequences.