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Speeding Ticket and What to Do?
Trowizilla
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Bah. So, I got a speeding ticket, made worse by the fact that apparently I was in a construction zone. (I didn't see any construction stuff around, but I might have missed it.) I've got a court summons for the 25th. What should I do about this?
Pertinent facts:
Ticket is for supposedly going 76 in a 55 zone. I really, really don't think I was going 76, but I was speeding, going around 70. I was also one of the slowest cars on the road and only sped up to 70 because I was sick of getting tailgated.
This is the first time I've ever been pulled over.
The only thing I can really think of that might have pushed me over 76 is that I sped up for maybe 10 seconds to get out of the way of a truck that kept weaving in and out of my lane next to me. Trucks scare me.
Went right back down to 70 after that, though.
Given that I was speeding, I don't mind just paying the ticket, but money's really tight right now. Plus, I really, really don't want this going to my insurance. Any ideas?
Pertinent facts:
Ticket is for supposedly going 76 in a 55 zone. I really, really don't think I was going 76, but I was speeding, going around 70. I was also one of the slowest cars on the road and only sped up to 70 because I was sick of getting tailgated.
This is the first time I've ever been pulled over.
The only thing I can really think of that might have pushed me over 76 is that I sped up for maybe 10 seconds to get out of the way of a truck that kept weaving in and out of my lane next to me. Trucks scare me.
Went right back down to 70 after that, though.Given that I was speeding, I don't mind just paying the ticket, but money's really tight right now. Plus, I really, really don't want this going to my insurance. Any ideas?
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If you plead guilty and appear before the judge you might get the fine reduced a little, but dont expect a whole lot. Usually these come with large fees tacked on that are not reducible, even if the judge wanted to.
How much is the ticket for?
but they're listening to every word I say
Is that available for you? I'd find out. You pay the fine but it's pretty much a "freebie".
Go to court. One of three things will happen (two of them can really help you out)
1) The cop may not show. If the ticketing officer does not show then you get off free because it is your word "I wasn't speeding" against nothing.
2) The city prosecutor may strike a deal with you - plead guilty to, say, 19 over and it'll be settled.
3) Cop is there and you go up in front of the judge.
In case #3, tell him you were definitely speeding, but only moving with the flow and you were not driving dangerously. If the ticket is for reckless driving, go into the explanation of the radar gun's +/- threshold and the situation of the ticketing. You will have to pay some fine, this is unavoidable, but if you can get it reduced below reckless, you will save yourself serious trouble.
My friend just had this happen to him and he went to court with pictures and measurements and quotes regarding the fallacy of the radar guns. He admitted he was speeding but that it was no more than the others around him. The judge reduced the speed to 19 over and it went from a $2500 ticket (Virginia has some really f-ed up reckless driving charges) to $150.
Oh, and dress up. Don't show up to court in jeans - wear something decent (khakis or slacks and a button shirt). You may feel out of place, but it shows that you are actually taking this seriously and that is always beneficial.
Murphy's Paradox: The more you plan, the more that can go wrong. The less you plan, the less likely your plan will succeed.
My friend recommended pleading Nolo Contendere since it's my first offense, so I'm looking into that.
The cop apparently tagged me with a laser? That's what the ticket says. It also doesn't say anything about reckless driving, just speeding in a construction zone. I didn't see the cop car, but like I said, I suspect he caught me right when I was trying to get ahead of the crazily-weaving truck, so I was focusing more on that.
The paper I have doesn't say anything about how much the fine is. Weird.
I was planning on wearing a work skirt (below the knee) + a button-up shirt to court and looking as demure as possible.
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Ah yes, Nolo would be good for you if it's possible. Also, I live in Atlanta and I talked to someone just today who told me that Reckless in Fulton is 25 or more, so I think you'll be alright
The ticket was for Dallas county, no court date or anything of the such. Just a website/phone number to call and pay the ticket or dispute it.
About the only thing you could contest with that is whether or not you could safely stop before the light turned red. States like Michigan are drivers discretion to a point. Might check to see if yours is.
in most places a light violation is only 1 point against your insurance. So no insurance raise unless you already have more points.
but they're listening to every word I say
Since he was turning, I doubt that would work. If you can slow down enough to turn, you can slow down enough to stop.
I took defensive driving to remove a ticket for running a stop sign (in Texas), so I don't think a red light would be much different. It's worth looking into.
I could be wrong, but I'm somewhat sure that a plea of no contest (Nolo Contendere) is generally only useful when one is facing a criminal matter, which in addition to criminal prosecution, has the possibility of additional civil penalties as well. As a poor example: You hit someone with your truck while driving recklessly, plead no contest to reckless driving, but don't give up your right to trial in the event the victim pursues you in civil litigation.
Anyway, it sounds like your best bet is to goto court, ask for mercy to see if you can get a lower fine, and do whatever defensive driving/traffic school programs required to take the point off. Even if your fine isn't lowered, you can almost certainly work out a payment plan with the court to make it affordable. Also, the ticket generally doesn't have the fine on it, but you should plan on receiving a letter from the court in a week or two which will have your fine (plus court costs, which can be considerable) and instructions on how to get a court date. If you're really curious as to how much it may be, you might be able to lookup what they call the "bail schedule" from your county's courthouse (assuming it has a website), which should give some idea as to what you're dealing with.
Best of luck, and don't worry too much about it, as it happens to the best of us.
It also wouldn't hurt to bring up the truck
especially if the speeding up was a safety concern i doubt they can fault you too much for "that isn't really a car i wanted to be behind"
As far as the person who ran the red. One thing I heard is you could fight the ticket with how well the picture identifys you. I have heard people said that wasn't me driving and then the ticket thrown out.
I've gotten a ticket in Fairfax once, god I was so screwed.
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But aside from that I got pulled over earlier this year for speeding and here's what happened:
I was going ~55 in a 35.
Driving without an up to date insurance card (expired on 12/31/07 and I didn't have my new card on me, but I did have insurance).
And my registration was expired. Expired 12/31/07 as well.
Prior to going to court I got the registration renewed and got my new insurance card, proving I had insurance, showed it to the judge and he let me off all three, just having to pay 1/2 of the speeding fine.
I fully expected to pay 300+ dollars because I was in the wrong and have this on my insurace, instead I got out of it with paying ~60 dollars and no points on my record nor did it affect my insurance. The judge was nice and saw that this was my first moving violation ever (I'm 23 and been driving for 7 years) so he let me off.
Just go before the judge and be confident and very polite and respectable. I assume that they like to be respected because of their position, so it goes a long way. I'm sure he would let you off since it is your first offense, unless you're still a teenager, which I don't think you are.
Trust me, its not only Fairfax. Northern VA is the fucklord of all traffic tickets and their courts are just short of insanity. I got lasered driving 90+ in a 55mph zone (i was trying to make it to an international flight) and thankfully the cop was a nice guy who was retiring in a week so he was like "damn man i aint gonna give you a reckless on my last week but i cant let you go with a 90+"... so he wrote me a 74 on 55 ticket 8-) i almost hugged him. haha.
of course then i totally forgot about the ticket when i came back to the u.s., a year and a half went by and then i remembered. so i had to pay like $200 on it + the points
Agreed, before I moved to AL in Northern VA was just stupid when it came to traffic. They bumped up the cops patrolling and I got caught going 15 over right down the street from my house! All my neighbors saw me get a ticket, not fun =[.
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I don't have a huge problem paying the ticket, but I'd prefer my insurance not go up. It seems like first offenders can get some concessions, and like I said, I've never been so much as pulled over before.
I'm 22, going to be 23 five days after my court date.
The cop was kind of a prick, honestly. Pretty much every other car on the road was going 75 or higher, some of them at least 80, and I was hardly the only one to speed up to get away from that truck. I guess he pulled me over because I was easy to catch. :P
I'm always polite and respectful, though, and I clean up pretty well. Current plan is to plead Nolo and, if asked, explain about the truck and the flow of traffic. Hopefully I'll be in a courtroom full of rowdy, ill-dressed teenagers who reek of cigarettes, heh.
That is backwards.
Now it is quite likely that there are radar/laser guns that have the ability dial in the angle that they are reading traffic from (and if the officer improperly enters the angle there could be error in his favor), but with a non-adjusted measurement, you can only appear to be going slower from any angle of measurement other than directly ahead or behind.
Talk to the judge (and the cop), get the speed reduced to +19 or less, and take a driver's safety course to get the points off your license.
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