Help! speeding ticket

[tiggersmom2]

My husband called the judge and he told him to take a defensive driving course before the court date and then fax him the certificate. The judge then reduced the ticket and no points were given.

 

[DawnCt1]

I wouldn't even try lying. I know I was speeding.

You don't have to lie. You can be shocked that you were clocked going that fast and was the radar gun correct. If you consider that lying, then go to confession and donate money to charity for penance.

 

[Shutterbug]

You think you are financially in a bind now? Wait till your insurance company gets a hold of it. Your monthly premium is going to go up!

There are things you can do. First fight the ticket. Go to court and plead not guilty. Get your court date. Sometimes the officers dont show up. If they are not there sometimes they case gets thrown out right then and there.
I know someone that a while back that that had happened to. The prosecutor ended up making a deal with him for him to pay court cost with NO fine and NO points.

 

[ElizK]

You don't have to lie. You can be shocked that you were clocked going that fast and was the radar gun correct. If you consider that lying, then go to confession and donate money to charity for penance.

 

[texas munchkin]

Different states have different rules and procedures, so what "works' in some states, may not work in others.

OP, I am very near you. My TEENAGE daughter had a speeding ticket a few months ago. She was going 34 mph.. that's right 34 mph in what is normally a 35 mph speed zone. It was a school zone, except it was in the summer in the late afternoon (school school ends at noon here) and the school zone isn't in force if the lights aren't blinking. My daughter said she didn't see the lights on, the officer said they were on and wrote a ticket. Obviously she was trying to follow the posted normal speed and hasn't gotten any other tickets since she has been driving (she's 18).. The ticket was $276.00 dollars. Calling the police department does no good as only a Judge can dismiss the ticket. If you want to fight it, you advise the Court of such and show up on court date. If the officer doesn't show up, the ticket is dismissed automatically. If the officer doesn't show up, the fine sticks and you pay court costs. An attorney might be able to help you or not, you pay their fees regardless. Toss the coin on what chance you want to take. We paid the ticket because we felt the court wouldn't give any benefit of the doubt to a teenage driver. We also didn't want to take a chance on the officer showing up and then having court costs added as well.

Oh, her insurance didn't go up a penny, so that depends on your carrier. We have one that is teenager friendly. And yes it has renewed since then.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

Why would you lie? You admit that you broke the law and deserve the ticket. I don't understand why people are telling you to check "not guilty". Now, there may be ways to get the charges reduced and if there's away to admit fault but go to court and speak with the judge, then go ahead. But don't lie.

My husband called the judge and he told him to take a defensive driving course before the court date and then fax him the certificate. The judge then reduced the ticket and no points were given.

We looked into defensive driving for my DH here and found out that it was over $600! If the OP doesn't have the money to pay the fine, I'm sure she wouldn't be able to shell out the cash for this.

 

[disneyaggie]

I believe that if you take a defensive driving course that will eliminate the ticket (I think). Of course it will also be helpful for your insurance for the next 2 years since some car insurances will give you a reduced rate if you can show proof of defensive driving rather with a ticket or not.

 

[tiggersmom2]

Why would you lie? You admit that you broke the law and deserve the ticket. I don't understand why people are telling you to check "not guilty". Now, there may be ways to get the charges reduced and if there's away to admit fault but go to court and speak with the judge, then go ahead. But don't lie.



We looked into defensive driving for my DH here and found out that it was over $600! If the OP doesn't have the money to pay the fine, I'm sure she wouldn't be able to shell out the cash for this.

Things must be different in Canada.... we are in the Southeast and took a DD course through GEICO....it was 85.00. The ticket was reduced to 45.00 and that is all my husband ended up having to pay. Worked for us.

 

[Galahad]

If you haven't had a ticket in 20 years and a single ticket causes your insurance rates to go up - you have a lousy insurance company.

 

[Feralpeg]

I know this won't be popular, but doesn't anyone take responsibility for their actions any more? If you broke the law and you got caught, you should pay the fine. IMHO, for what it's worth, just because you can get out of paying for your offense, that doesn't make it right. Now, I realize it may not seem a big deal to many, but how does this differ from the person who gets a DWI and has it fixed? That person goes out and does it again. If it is so easy to ignore a speeding ticket, what incentive is there for people to follow the law?

I know I am an old fuddy duddy, but I don't believe laws should be followed just when it is convenient or just the major ones. If if is a law, follow it. If you break it, be prepared to pay the consequences.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Having the charges reduced is not lying or fixing anything, One still pays the justice system all it requires. The difference is that one can avoid paying the insurance company thousands of dollars. I see no good reason whatsoever to pay extra thousands of dollars to an insurance company. It is not a moral issue of truth telling or not. The ticket and court costs can be paid and lesson learned without putting yourself in the courthouse.

My insurance agent, of all people, said it is absolutely foolish to just pay a speeding ticket.

 

[RoyalCanadian]

You don't have to lie. You can be shocked that you were clocked going that fast and was the radar gun correct.

The OP will then be doubly shocked to read the notes that the ticketing officer will have made regarding this offence. They will have copious and very detailed notes showing exactly when and how the radar/laser gun was tested and shown to be operating perfectly fine. The notes will give details as to the reason for suspecting the OP was going at a high rate of speed, road conditions, lighting conditions, etc. These notes will also record anything the OP may have said to the ticketing officer in regards to the offence, such as an admission to knowing they were going 69mph in a 55mph zone.

How do I know? Because I was clocked going 75 km/h in a 50 km/h zone in the city where I live. I was wondering why it took the police officer 15 minutes to write up the ticket, but wondered no longer when my friend the paralegal (who talked the ticket down to 65 in a 50 zone, no points off my drivers license) showed me the sheet of notes the ticketing officer made that day. They had me dead to rights, but the crown attorney was willing to agree to a lesser fine for a lesser charge.

 

[MouseJunkie]

I'm so mad at myself I could SPIT!! I was doing 69 in a 55. Got pulled over, received a ticket, yada, yada, yada. I checked online to see what the fine would be ---- $177.00!!! Holy CRAP!!! We are in quite the financial bind right now. This truly couldn't have come at a worse time.

I haven't had a speeding ticket in nearly 20 years (I was 19 or 20 at the time, and I just paid it.) I know the best thing is not to simply pay the fine. Should I hire a lawyer to get it dismissed? Is it better to do defensive driving? If so, do I have to pay the fine AND the defensive driving fee, or just pay for the course.

Any help you can offer would be appreciated. Thanks!

I recently got one too. I hadn't had a ticket for I don't know 10-12 years. 72 in a 60. It would have been $112.50, but I did the deferral which saved my insurance from skyrocketing. I had to pay $182 and go get a couple of money orders, but well worth the extra money and hassle than paying higher insurance premiums.

 

[tar heel]

Every time there's a speeding ticket thread, I'm just amazed at the comments some people make about accepting responsibility, paying your fine b/c you broke the law, etc.

I got a speeding ticket a couple months ago. I was driving to work and neglected to slow down the few miles where the speed limit is lower. I usually don't make this mistake, but I did that day. The ticket and court costs were $170. My insurance costs would have been over $1,000 over the next three years. I had a dozen lawyer letters within a week. I chose one, wrote a check for $195 and got "convicted" of improper equipment. It's a racket purely and simply. The lawyers go to the assistant DAs with a list and make out like bandits. I never even met "my" lawyer much less told him anything about the incident.

 

[dodukes]

I am not sure how it works elesewhere but judging by the things here is varies vastly. Here you can 1. pay the ticket and move on (with points of course) 2. go to traffic school, pay a reduced fine on your ticket and no points or 3. go to court.

The last time i got a ticket was in March, like OP I was driving along with flow(altho at the point i got stopped the front in flow had long moved on so they were def. going faster than me, why they didnt get caught is beyond me, but regardless it was me) and didnt even realize just how fast i was going (apparently really fast). The officer on scene put down a reduced amount of speed so the fine wouldnt be too bad. I simply checked the box that said traffic school and did that. Still paid a hefty fine but it was reduced by a small percentage. It still goes on my record but no points are incurred and I dont belive it goes to my insurance. (My rates have never gone up as a result of either ticket).

Here the driving school option can only be used once every 12 months I belive or maybe 18 months. So its not an everyday thing, its beneficial to those of use who ony get caught every once in a while...LOL, no just kidding but serioulsy its beneficial to the people who arent repeat offenders, because lets face it almost every body will get caught for some traffic thing one day!..lol.

So anyway thats how it works here. Maybe you have that option too. But if you want to get out of the fine, I dont know about that, ive never tried, ive been really pissed but i figured i was after all speeding so i just tried to reduce the aftermath for myself by attending traffice school.

Oh and in traffic school i learned the proper term for what I (and apparently you) were doing, its called Velocitating.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Every time there's a speeding ticket thread, I'm just amazed at the comments some people make about accepting responsibility, paying your fine b/c you broke the law, etc.

I got a speeding ticket a couple months ago. I was driving to work and neglected to slow down the few miles where the speed limit is lower. I usually don't make this mistake, but I did that day. The ticket and court costs were $170. My insurance costs would have been over $1,000 over the next three years. I had a dozen lawyer letters within a week. I chose one, wrote a check for $195 and got "convicted" of improper equipment. It's a racket purely and simply. The lawyers go to the assistant DAs with a list and make out like bandits. I never even met "my" lawyer much less told him anything about the incident.

This was precisely my experience after receiving a ticket in Cabarrus county back in June. I have come to realize that the ticket system is essentially another form of taxation. Lawyers rack up some bux, and the county gets more money for infratsructure without the inconvenience of having to actually raise taxes.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

I think it's more than taxation. I do think that speeding greatly increases your risk of getting into an accident. So, the laws not there to simply make money.

 

[Piecey]

Didn't the actual ticket have the fine written on it? I find it odd that it didn't. How would they expect you to know how much to pay if it's not on the ticket?

Kimya

I've gotten a ticket in KY and one in WV. WV tickets don't tell you how much your fine is for, KY did.

I had to call the Court Office of the county I got the ticket in to find out how much.

 

[Belle1962]

Having some um, "experience" in this field here are my two cents:

1. When is your court date? Most states (at least TN, FL, GA, MD and DC) will let you reschedule at least once. This will push the hearing further away and give you more time to save the money.

2. GO TO COURT. GO TO COURT. GO TO COURT. At least in MD, DC and GA they will knock down the fines and POINTS if you at least show up. In GA they usually knock it down low enough that it's zero points and doesn't show on your record.

Not all states require the officer to be present. GA doesn't for simple speeding. MD does. Check with your state.

What will also make a difference is WHO you got the ticket from (city, county, state, etc).

 

[Shutterbug]

I think it's more than taxation. I do think that speeding greatly increases your risk of getting into an accident. So, the laws not there to simply make money.

Actually around here it is. Many little towns do this, putting the speed limit unnecessarily low.
I think it was in the local newspaper that a reporter did an article listing area roads that the speed limits that seemed low. According to the state these roads indeed could have faster posted speed limits but they cant force the cities to raise the limit.