How to fight a speeding ticket?
02-26-2013, 05:12 PM
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How to fight a speeding ticket?
So I was driving home today a little spiritedly I'll admit. The motorcycle cop that pulled me over said I was going 65 in a 45 and that he has me on radar. He said I could fight it in court or go to traffic school. This is my first ticket and I was wondering if I try to fight it in court and I don't win can I still do traffic school or is it one or the other. Also I'd appreciate any tips for getting out of this one. Don't want my insurance to go up. Thanks in advance for any help.
02-26-2013, 05:21 PM
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If you don't go the lawyer route, here's what you do. Submit a written declaration with the best defense you can muster while researching circumstances and traffic codes. If that fails, request a "trial de novo" where you'll go to court in front of a judge for a "new trial". If the LEO doesn't show, you're dismissed. If you're found guilty, you can ask for a reduced fine AND traffic school. A reduced fine is exactly that. Traffic school keeps the points off of your license and that keeps your insurance rate from increasing. You're only eligible once every 18 months so don't get another ticket.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
02-26-2013, 05:22 PM
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If you don't go the lawyer route, here's what you do. Submit a written declaration with the best defense you can muster while researching circumstances and traffic codes. If that fails, request a "trial de novo" where you'll go to court in front of a judge for a "new trial". If the LEO doesn't show, you're dismissed. If you're found guilty, you can ask for a reduced fine AND traffic school. A reduced fine is exactly that. Traffic school keeps the points off of your license and that keeps your insurance rate from increasing. You're only eligible once every 18 months so don't get another ticket.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
02-26-2013, 05:28 PM
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No problem. This is all outlined in the forms they mail you. Or you can call the court that's listed on your ticket for info. Some even have forms on their websites.
Traffic school is either in person or online. Basically, it's a review of best practices for safe driving. You take a test and voila, you get credit. The online course costs $50 and takes about an hour. There is sometimes a fee to pay before you can even take traffic school.
Yeah, it's a bit of a racket if you ask me.
Traffic school is either in person or online. Basically, it's a review of best practices for safe driving. You take a test and voila, you get credit. The online course costs $50 and takes about an hour. There is sometimes a fee to pay before you can even take traffic school.
Yeah, it's a bit of a racket if you ask me.
02-26-2013, 05:29 PM
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No problem. This is all outlined in the forms they mail you. Or you can call the court that's listed on your ticket for info. Some even have forms on their websites.
Traffic school is either in person or online. Basically, it's a review of best practices for safe driving. You take a test and voila, you get credit. The online course costs $50 and takes about an hour. There is sometimes a fee to pay before you can even take traffic school.
Yeah, it's a bit of a racket if you ask me.
Traffic school is either in person or online. Basically, it's a review of best practices for safe driving. You take a test and voila, you get credit. The online course costs $50 and takes about an hour. There is sometimes a fee to pay before you can even take traffic school.
Yeah, it's a bit of a racket if you ask me.
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02-26-2013, 06:32 PM
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But if you lose the case, its upto the judge to grant you the traffic school or not! I gave the traffic school last month for a ticket that i got back in october. The online school cost 30 bucks, had 7 modules and took forever to complete since you cant jump to the next topic until few seconds have elapsed.
02-26-2013, 06:57 PM
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If you don't go the lawyer route, here's what you do. Submit a written declaration with the best defense you can muster while researching circumstances and traffic codes. If that fails, request a "trial de novo" where you'll go to court in front of a judge for a "new trial". If the LEO doesn't show, you're dismissed. If you're found guilty, you can ask for a reduced fine AND traffic school. A reduced fine is exactly that. Traffic school keeps the points off of your license and that keeps your insurance rate from increasing. You're only eligible once every 18 months so don't get another ticket.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
My brother has used TicketKick before for a $500 ticket and it worked for him. The service costs about $200, but better than getting points and paying a $500 ticket
02-26-2013, 07:14 PM
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It's funny that no one asked the OP what state he lives in. In Florida it's SUPER easy to beat traffic tickets, specially in Miami. Officers never show up. Pay $70 to a traffic lawyer and forget about the ticket. Worst case scenario you'll have to pay the traffic ticket but no points.
02-26-2013, 07:35 PM
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It's funny that no one asked the OP what state he lives in. In Florida it's SUPER easy to beat traffic tickets, specially in Miami. Officers never show up. Pay $70 to a traffic lawyer and forget about the ticket. Worst case scenario you'll have to pay the traffic ticket but no points.
02-26-2013, 08:17 PM
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Just so u guys know your points never disappear and the school DOES NOT REMOVE your points it just defends you in front of the judge that u took action after u got a ticket that u moving in the rite direction of being a safe driver in the future. Then the judge takes that into consideration and makes a final dession on if u should get a fine or points or both if u record is bad.
That's what I learned in my passed.
Good luck and hire a good lawer.
That's what I learned in my passed.
Good luck and hire a good lawer.
02-26-2013, 08:33 PM
#16
here's a couple of websites that are very helpful for me when i got a ticket. actually, i got 2 tickets within 4 days!
http://helpigotaticket.com/proc/arraign.html
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=806936
http://helpigotaticket.com/proc/arraign.html
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=806936
02-26-2013, 08:43 PM
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It's funny that no one asked the OP what state he lives in. In Florida it's SUPER easy to beat traffic tickets, specially in Miami. Officers never show up. Pay $70 to a traffic lawyer and forget about the ticket. Worst case scenario you'll have to pay the traffic ticket but no points.
02-26-2013, 08:54 PM
#18
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The jurisdiction issue is pertinent, as every jurisdiction likely handles matters differently.
One should also keep in mind that (at least here in Alberta) police officers are basically professional witnesses. They do get paid to attend in court, and so they usually do show up! So relying on the officer to not show up is generally not worth it.
Also in Alberta, traffic prosecutors are very amenable to deal making. If you plead guilty to a traffic offence, they will typically give you reduced demerits (say, instead of 3 demerits, you just get 2 demerits - 15 demerits and your licence is suspenced) and a reduced fine (anywhere from 30-40%). All it takes is some patience, I generally wait longer in line and for the meeting with the prosecutor than the actual time to speak with the prosecutor. I just ask for a reduction and have almost always been successful. The only time I wasn't successful was when the officer had already given a reduction when the ticket was issued.
BTW, this post makes it sound like I get a lot of traffic tickets, but I don't!
I'm a lawyer and I handle these things for friends or relatives (and sometimes myself) when I happen to be in court on other matters. It's not really worth my billable time to handle these for clients.
That said, more involved traffic matters may require trial - and I've never done any of those. Alberta courts permit 'agents' (ie. non lawyers) to represent people in the lower level of court, ie. Provincial Court, where traffic items are heard. So locally, there are outfits run by entrepreneurs, frequently ex-cops or ex-traffic prosecutors, who will handle these matters for people. I'd say, though, that unless you are facing a huge fine or potentially losing your licence, it's not worth the effort to have someone fight a speeding ticket for you. Usually, you are best served by either paying the fine, negotiating a reduced fine, or argue the trial yourself. These comments do not include DUIs - those are criminal matters and likely require a criminal lawyer to handle.
Final note - not sure about other jurisdictions, but we have a preponderance of 'photo radar' here - vehicles parked on the side of the road with a commissioner sitting in it, automatically taking photos of speeding vehicles. Easy to spot from far away (especially in the winter - it'll be the idling vehicle on the side of the road). These tickets only produce a fine for the registered owner, and not a demerit (because you can't tell from the photo who was driving). These are nice as you just have to negotiate a fine reduction.
One should also keep in mind that (at least here in Alberta) police officers are basically professional witnesses. They do get paid to attend in court, and so they usually do show up! So relying on the officer to not show up is generally not worth it.
Also in Alberta, traffic prosecutors are very amenable to deal making. If you plead guilty to a traffic offence, they will typically give you reduced demerits (say, instead of 3 demerits, you just get 2 demerits - 15 demerits and your licence is suspenced) and a reduced fine (anywhere from 30-40%). All it takes is some patience, I generally wait longer in line and for the meeting with the prosecutor than the actual time to speak with the prosecutor. I just ask for a reduction and have almost always been successful. The only time I wasn't successful was when the officer had already given a reduction when the ticket was issued.
BTW, this post makes it sound like I get a lot of traffic tickets, but I don't!
I'm a lawyer and I handle these things for friends or relatives (and sometimes myself) when I happen to be in court on other matters. It's not really worth my billable time to handle these for clients. That said, more involved traffic matters may require trial - and I've never done any of those. Alberta courts permit 'agents' (ie. non lawyers) to represent people in the lower level of court, ie. Provincial Court, where traffic items are heard. So locally, there are outfits run by entrepreneurs, frequently ex-cops or ex-traffic prosecutors, who will handle these matters for people. I'd say, though, that unless you are facing a huge fine or potentially losing your licence, it's not worth the effort to have someone fight a speeding ticket for you. Usually, you are best served by either paying the fine, negotiating a reduced fine, or argue the trial yourself. These comments do not include DUIs - those are criminal matters and likely require a criminal lawyer to handle.
Final note - not sure about other jurisdictions, but we have a preponderance of 'photo radar' here - vehicles parked on the side of the road with a commissioner sitting in it, automatically taking photos of speeding vehicles. Easy to spot from far away (especially in the winter - it'll be the idling vehicle on the side of the road). These tickets only produce a fine for the registered owner, and not a demerit (because you can't tell from the photo who was driving). These are nice as you just have to negotiate a fine reduction.
02-26-2013, 11:07 PM
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02-26-2013, 11:09 PM
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02-27-2013, 01:16 AM
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All of my advice so far is in reference to CA. I learned that jurisdiction is squat in this state. Any LEO can ticket you anywhere in the state. Now, the likelihood of them going significantly out of their way back to the county court of the incident is unlikely.
