Penal Code section 19.6. An infraction is not punishable by imprisonment. A person charged with an infraction shall not be entitled to a trial by jury. A person charged with an infraction shall not be entitled to have the public defender or other counsel appointed at public expense to represent him or her unless he or she is arrested and not released on his or her written promise to appear, his or her own recognizance, or a deposit of bail.

It would seem to me that an infraction, regardless of what the "punishment" is, is still a crime. (I just heard from a friend yesterday that one of her renters was in jail over the weekend due to an error in the system. A traffic fine that had been paid three years ago, but they didn't mark it as paid, and he ended up in jail.)

And furthermore, if it's NOT a crime, then why am I entering a plea? What am I pleading to? Did the officer enter a "crime" on my Notice to Appear? If I enter any plea at all, then am I not somehow giving the court jurisdiction over the matter? If no "crime" has been committed, and this is somehow "civil", where is the injured party?

In the case of how traffic procedure works, what if a person takes the stance that there is no valid charging instrument on which to plea? I am upholding my agreement to appear, and I want to question whether or not there is a valid cause of action.