speeding tickets

[chiquita24 0]

I got my first speeding ticket in over 3 years tonight on my way home from dinner and I'm so annoyed. I got a new car about 1 1/2 months ago and am adjusting to the different gauges. It was pitch black and I was coming up over a steep hill and going 39 in a 30. Navy blue dark cop car sitting on the side of the road no lights on or anything and next thing I know lights are on behind me. He asked me if I new why he pulled me over and I knew then it was obviously for speeding so that's what I said. So I pretty much admitted guilt.
Does it ever help to not pay the ticket right away and go to court to fight it or explain? Like I said I pretty much admitted fault. How much can this 1 ticket in 3 year effect my insurance??

[Jbag 0]

what state? try and do trial be written declaration, NEVER admit guilt, never say anything really, just take the ticket and be polite, even when they are being dicks! admit nothing even if you were blatantly speeding.

IHYD

[amstalder 0]

Gawain has posted a lot on this topic...

I PMed him last month when I got one (it was my 2nd in 2 months )

But seriously, I highly doubt it'll affect your insurance. From my understanding each ticket is only on your record for 3 years.

[Southern_Man 0]

Highly dependent on jurisdiction. I've only gotten a few but in some jurisdictions they will pretty much automatically reduce your speed (and the insurance hit) if you show up to court. I got a 73 in a 55 reduced to 64. Have to ask locally, though.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[micduran 0]

Always fight it. You can get the fine reduced, pay the fine but not get the points, go to traffic school.
It is worth it.

Be patient with the faults of others; they have to be patient with yours.

[mutumbo 0]

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Always fight it. You can get the fine reduced, pay the fine but not get the points, go to traffic school.
It is worth it.

And if the cop dosnt show up in SOME places for the assigned court date you get off . . . i ALWAYS go to court for EVERY ticket I get. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

Thanatos340(on landing rounds)--
Landing procedure: Hand all the way up, Feet and Knees Together and PLF soon as you get bitch slapped by a planet.

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

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Highly dependent on jurisdiction. I've only gotten a few but in some jurisdictions they will pretty much automatically reduce your speed (and the insurance hit) if you show up to court. I got a 73 in a 55 reduced to 64. Have to ask locally, though.

Depends on where it happened, but this is my experience too.
Show up, explain about the new car and all that, they may offer a reduction in charges.

And one minor ticket in 3 years shouldn't matter. But it depends on your insurance co.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[kalaniwavo 0]

It ALWAYS pays to show up at court. At a minimum the judge will usually reduce the ticket and at best the cop will not show up and the judge will dismiss it altogether.

There are ALOT of ways to get out of tickets too. Could be tough since you admitted to speeding, but there are ways.. you could ask the DA or the judge for a continuance at court. this will by you more time and increase the odds that the cop won't show up at a later date. all you need is to find a loop hole. If the cop wrote on your ticket that he radared a black car and your car is blue thats grounds for dismissal... and as a last resort hiring a traffic lawyer can be cheaper in the long run than paying sky high insurance for a couple years...

you should be ok though if this is an isolated offense. its not if your guilty or not guilty, its how you manipulate the law unfortunantly...

good luck!!

[Shell666 0]

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Always fight it. You can get the fine reduced, pay the fine but not get the points, go to traffic school.
It is worth it.

And if the cop dosnt show up in SOME places for the assigned court date you get off . . . i ALWAYS go to court for EVERY ticket I get. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

What he said.

Go to court and fight it. It's worth the time. Here, in Canadia (at least where I live) if they don't show in court, chances are, you'll get off.

I did one time. Was clocked doing 140k in a 100 zone heading into a small town ... in a 1977 Honda Civic that could BARELY get up to 100k on a good day ... downhill .. both ways ...

Went to court and the judge asked me why I shouldn't be given the ticket (and the officer that gave it to me wasn't present) and I pointed out the window and said "I was driving THAT".

Dismissed.
Explain the new vehicle. See what happens.

Good luck!

'Shell

[mutumbo 0]

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It ALWAYS pays to show up at court. At a minimum the judge will usually reduce the ticket and at best the cop will not show up and the judge will dismiss it altogether.

There are ALOT of ways to get out of tickets too. Could be tough since you admitted to speeding, but there are ways.. you could ask the DA or the judge for a continuance at court. this will by you more time and increase the odds that the cop won't show up at a later date. all you need is to find a loop hole. If the cop wrote on your ticket that he radared a black car and your car is blue thats grounds for dismissal... and as a last resort hiring a traffic lawyer can be cheaper in the long run than paying sky high insurance for a couple years...

you should be ok though if this is an isolated offense. its not if your guilty or not guilty, its how you manipulate the law unfortunantly...

good luck!!

yes, go over the ticket with a fine toothed comb. check the EXACT time, the color of the car, the speed, everything has to be perfect or you can get it possibly dismissed. a friend of mine had a purple camaro that in the streetlights looked black. he got out of multiple tickets that way.

Thanatos340(on landing rounds)--
Landing procedure: Hand all the way up, Feet and Knees Together and PLF soon as you get bitch slapped by a planet.

[AggieDave 6]

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And if the cop dosnt show up in SOME places for the assigned court date you get off . . . i ALWAYS go to court for EVERY ticket I get. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

Most cops get over time pay to go to court, if it is on their day off. They also get in trouble if they don't show up. So good luck with that.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[mutumbo 0]

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And if the cop dosnt show up in SOME places for the assigned court date you get off . . . i ALWAYS go to court for EVERY ticket I get. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

Most cops get over time pay to go to court, if it is on their day off. They also get in trouble if they don't show up. So good luck with that.

And if they have some other appt that day? Such as a bigger court appt to be at, their car breaks down? Or they are sick, or a THOUSAND other possibilities. I never stated that it was guarnteed to work, jsut that it MIGHT. If all else fails you still have to pay the same amount, so why not try?

Thanatos340(on landing rounds)--
Landing procedure: Hand all the way up, Feet and Knees Together and PLF soon as you get bitch slapped by a planet.

[Beerlight 0]

First, never admit to anything. Second, what other options in your state do you have? Defensive driving, deferred disposition (ie. probation) etc..etc..? Check em all....

[BIGUN 1,051]

Please speak with an attorney.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[JohnDeere 0]

First i have way too much exp. on this topic I have gotten alot (30+) of ticket's (not just me but my vehicles, with my workers driving them). Any ticket i get goes to a lawyer! The prices range from $15-$50 per ticket. Then they do all the work and it goes to court. If the cop doesn't show up then it is dismissed. If he does then the worst case is i have to pay for probation. Most of the time (like 95%) I dont have to goto court with the lawyer. As i see it if they want to write some BS ticket to me then they can goto court and talk to the judge and the lawyer i hired about it Most tickets take 6- 24 months to get to court. YMMV. Check with a local lawyer about your ticket.

Nothing opens like a Deere!

You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers!

[silent_pumpkin 0]

Considering the economy, counties are not as lenient with reducing/absolving traffic fines as they once were. However, I will tell you my story and opinions from a 2003 infraction and hope that it may help you.

I was pulled over for a red light violation and paid the (GINORMOUS) fine with the court clerk, then made an appointment for traffic court. In court, the officer stated the facts and I stated mine - in the end my fine was reduced to barely a smidgen of the original amount and I still had to do traffic school (online ~$30) to get it off my record. ALL the defendants before me had their original fines upheld...which leads me to wonder why mine was reduced:

I can only remember what I think pushed things more in my favor - dressed professionally, did not admit guilt ("I honestly don't remember if I came to a complete stop while turning right"), stating that the fine was already paid (maybe causing the court to realize I had some guilt, but wasn't just trying to be cheap??), and did not come up with random crazy ass stories to explain my alleged actions.

Hope you can fight it, best of luck!!

[CSpenceFLY 1]

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Please speak with an attorney.

It's a freakin' speeding ticket. Lets take something that might cost $150 and make it cost $500.

[JohnDeere 0]

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Please speak with an attorney.

It's a freakin' speeding ticket. Lets take something that might cost $150 and make it cost $500.

Not so much. Like I said the avg. ticket cost for a lawyer is $15- $50. Most of the time they will get your bill lowered. I have saved alot of money by using lawyer for traffic tickets. If you've paid even 1/2 attention to my post you would know i dont like paying lawyers or anyone else.

Nothing opens like a Deere!

You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers!

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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Does it ever help to not pay the ticket right away and go to court to fight it or explain? Like I said I pretty much admitted fault. How much can this 1 ticket in 3 year effect my insurance??

If you go to court the prosecutor will probably offer you a plea deal so they don't have to try it. While the fine is unlikely to go down, the ticket can change into a non-moving violation like "defective vehicle" (like you had a tail light out) which does not cause you to spend hundreds of dollars in increased premiums over the next three years.

[chiquita24 0]

I'm in MN. So it sounds like everyone says I should at least show up in court. I know that I should have never admitted guilt, but I did. I was probably going a little faster than 39 in a 30, but not by much. My ticket is $125. My court date is Nov 19 and I must pay the ticket by the 10th if I'm going to pay it.

[Tuna-Salad 0]

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I got my first speeding ticket in over 3 years tonight on my way home from dinner and I'm so annoyed. I got a new car about 1 1/2 months ago and am adjusting to the different gauges. It was pitch black and I was coming up over a steep hill and going 39 in a 30. Navy blue dark cop car sitting on the side of the road no lights on or anything and next thing I know lights are on behind me. He asked me if I new why he pulled me over and I knew then it was obviously for speeding so that's what I said. So I pretty much admitted guilt.
Does it ever help to not pay the ticket right away and go to court to fight it or explain? Like I said I pretty much admitted fault. How much can this 1 ticket in 3 year effect my insurance??

First mistake, don't admit fault. Cops play gotcha games. Fact is you were speeding paying the ticket sooner than later will not decrease the fine. Going to court to fight or explain what? You know you were going 9 mph over, you broke the law and told the cop you knew it. The law is the law and it does not make exceptions for excuses because judges and police have heard them all. Far as insurance goes.. not real sure

Millions of my potential children died on your daughters' face last night.

[skymama 35]

My son went to court for a ticket. The Judge told all of the people that they could plead no-contest and they wouldn't have any points added to their license, they wouldn't have to go to traffic school and they could pay their fines in installments. Just about everyone took the deal, especially when they saw that the Officer showed up.

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[BIGUN 1,051]

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It's a freakin' speeding ticket. Lets take something that might cost $150 and make it cost $500.

Spending $500.00 for an attorney for good advice may be a lot cheaper than some of the "freakin" advice she's getting on here. It's not just a speeding ticket.
Depending on the State, a subsequent ticket in the same year can raise her insurance rates as much as 30% for three years (assuming a grand a year, that increase will cost her $900.00).
Traffic school has a cost - to go, to be away from work, to have to go back to court to present the completion certificate.
A subsequent ticket in the same year after traffic school will mean nothing.
If an attorney can get it removed, reduced or something else by speaking with the prosecutor (attorneys hang out with attorneys),
It was 9 miles an hour over, a good attorney could prolly get the thing thrown out or at least suspended for a year.
And, for the record (pun intended), that officer WILL be in court. And, he might even bring that little pesky dash cam thingie.

I stand by what I recommended.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[AggieDave 6]

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And if they have some other appt that day? Such as a bigger court appt to be at

Court dates are set fairly far in advance, so stuff gets rearrange or the trial gets reset to a different date.

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their car breaks down? Or they are sick

Last time that happened the trial was going to be reset, but then the violator didn't show and a warrant was issued for his arrest.

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If all else fails you still have to pay the same amount, so why not try?

Yes, please try. You're exercising a constitutional right; however, educate yourself first. Hoping the officer doesn't show up to court is simple naivety.

If you want to do well in court for a citation, read up on basic court room procedure, dress well and be prepared with a real defense. Showing up with "but I didn't think I was speeding" won't sway a jury or a judge.

Internet BS about how radar or the LIDAR works won't typically work either, since typically the officer is very well trained in the operation of what they were using and the equipment is verified accurate many times through out the day.

The information I've seen on the internet about how to get out of a speeding ticket or traffic ticket is all pretty much BS. It may have worked for someone once in some court some where around 30 years ago, but good luck now.

Video is king, mounted radar units are tied into the digital video system. It displays the radar speed, lock and patrol speed (if moving) on the video. It also records the 30-90 seconds before the record button was pushed (or the lights were activated). So when you go to court you get to watch the officer show the judge or jury your vehicle with the speeds displayed.

You can still win and not pay the fine for having exceeded the speed limit, but you need to be prepared and not just simply hope the cop doesn't show.

A note about an officer's motivation for issuing citations: there are no quotas, quotas are illegal and if they occur the state law enforcement agency and then possibly the FBI tends to get involved with the department in a bad way.

If you have been an officer for more then about a day then you have had to work a bad accident. After enough serious accidents that are caused by drivers speeding, rolling stop signs/stop lights, etc then you get some motivation for traffic enforcement. Now, work a few fatality accidents and something like wearing a seatbelt becomes a motivation. Cut a dead body out of a car, then go knock on the parent's door or the husband's door or the wife's door and tell them that their loved one is dead. Tell them their loved ones are dead because someone rolled a stop sign or was going to fast.

Well, good luck with your citation. For me, last time I received a moving violation, I paid the fine and took defensive driving to keep it off my insurance.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

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Please speak with an attorney.

It's a freakin' speeding ticket. Lets take something that might cost $150 and make it cost $500.

Not necessarily.

A lot of lawyers will give the first consult for free or low cost ($20 or so).

You then get real advice. Not just this internet crap (sorry AggieDave I don't mean you).

In my case, the lawyer consult was free. His advice was to go by myself and see what happened.
The prosecutor offered to drop the charge one level (from 15 over to 10 over) which saved me both fine and points.

I also had a friend get a ticket while driving my car. Same thing. Went to court, got the charge dropped one level, ironically from 15 over to 10 over.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo