drawde

Sorry for creating a new thread, thought I'd get more exposure this way though.

I recently got a speeding ticket and my court date is coming up. The ticket says 74 in a 65 (was *allegedly* going faster, but that's irrelevant now I'm assuming since he wrote 74).

Do you think I need a lawyer? I don't care about a large fine, just don't want any points on my record. Think I'd be able to get them to dumb it down and remove points on my own? This is my first speeding ticket, haven't had a moving violation in years.. no points.

GBlansten

In many cases a lawyer will equal a good chance of getting the ticket reduced to a non-moving (no point) violation. The court is then happy to collect a fine commensurate with the original ticket.

mthis

Get a lier they work wonders. (katz law firm) Ny area

e1000

imo, not worth it for a 74 in a 65. Have you taken driving school recently? Most states will let you get a pass on your first moving violation, especially one like this one where you weren't going that much faster than the posted speed limit.

mthis

I got someone in NJ for u but his very very $$$$

drawde

I have taken the driving class a few years ago to get rid of some points from running a stop sign.. This was maybe in 2006. They offered the larger fine and no points but being my first ticket and all I was like why pay all that money when I can pay like $80, lol. So yes, I have taken it before. Will they allow me to take it again should I not be able to get them to lessen the charge?

crazjayz

I don't know what the law is in NJ, but here in California, you can take a driving school class once every 3 years, to my knowledge.

Quadcammer

no. Go to court, talk to the prosecutor, he will suggest some other charge like impeding traffic or some other BS with no points, and you will accept it, and you're done.

mthis

that can also work. +1. If u like taking chances do it. I would but I also spent about 10000 around courts ad that's what lawyers do

drawde

Yeah, I was thinking it wasn't worth it because I was only 9 over. If it were a more serious charge, such as 30mph over, or a DUI/DWI I would not hesitate to get a lawyer.

e1000

Exactly. I completely agree with the poster above.

1. Go to court, go early and try to find a prosecutor or equivalent. Different states vary if you can even talk to him but in most cases you can. Just tell him "hey, it's 9 over, can I pay the fine and not get any points? I don't want this to go on my record and have my insurance rates go up". MOST likely, if you get a chance to talk to the guy, you should be golden, especially for some piddly ticket for going 9mph over.

2. If that dosen't work, lookup how often you can go to driving school in your state. All states differ. if it was 2006 it's very possible you can go to driving school again. If option 1 dosen't work, go stand in front of the judge and ask if you can do driving school.


Save the lawyer for when you get caught doing 74 in a 35!

Merc-Skycap

The above post it the best so far.

Just opt to pay the fine and go to traffic school. I think you can even do traffic school online now so its a no brainer. Lawyer is definitely not needed, you would be wasting time & money if you got a lawyer. Also i would advise that you read up on how to fight speeding tickets online for the future.

Go to this site to start: http://lifehacker.com/software/cars/...ces-208611.php

Good Luck!

Quadcammer

Keep in mind that they are just looking for revenue, they don't care about your points. So they will come up with a no-point charge with a high fine. So you may pay $200 for the fine, but you'll get no points.

Not once in the 4-5 speeding tickets that I've gotten over the years has this strategy not worked.

drawde

Can anyone familiar with NJ law comment on this?

drawde

Over how many years, if you don't mind? Just curious.

MikeG_C63_AMG

Drawde, NJ has a so called “loop-hole” in the law for municipal court aka traffic citations. It’s called “Unsafe Driving” which is 0 points however when court cost and fines are assessed comes to a grand total of $450 dollars. You may plead guilty to this twice in a 3 year period, however if you are convicted of it on the 3rd time you are assessed all the points from the previous violations plus ( could be a set limit like 4 points not 100% sure on that) a stiffer fine. I recommend when you speak to the prosecutor you mention you would like to plea bargain to this citation which the prosecutor has the power to allow. If all goes well you wait for your turn to be called by the judge, listen to his short lecture and what you are being charged with. Plead guilty to the Unsafe Driving violation then open up your check book.

Quadcammer

8 years.

c63crazy

no you dont need a lawyer b/c your not 15 mph over the speed limit, you will most likely go to court and one of those people will talk to you and probably offer you an open door violation for the same price because they only care that they make their money. That way you wont get points. lawyer fees for speeding tickets are around $750. I got out of a 95 in a 30 and 110 in a 55.

JonMBZ

Why does the point really matter? I got a seat belt ticket and refuse to go to traffic school for something this petty. I just took the point all the money you end up spending on a lawyer will not warranty the marginal increase in your insurance premium.

e1000

insurance premiums can EASILY pile up to be significantly more than any court or lawyer costs.

For example, I recently had a ticket stick and went from paying $380/6months to just under $700/6 months. That's $300/6months or $600/year for at least the next 3 years until it drops off of my driving record.

JonMBZ

well I have only seen my premium fluctuate around $30 a month which doesn't really affect me at all, but paying these inflated fines and spending however much money a lawyer costs (im guessing is thousands) and dealing with the hassle of court isn't really worth it to me. I guess you are right if you calculate it over 3 years but I don't have that kind of money to front and I rather give it to the insurance companies over a lawyer or court house. oops on the warrant spelling I guess I type warranty way too often

haxorwear

California is every 18 mos...plus, California has Trial By Written Declaration, which is like a "try to get out of it free" card, because if you don't like the result you can request a new trial within 20 days of the decision and go to court in person.

soulsearcher

A lot of good advice but no special formula. The suggestions about taking an online drivers ed. if it is available in your state is the way to go, since this will allow u to differ guilt as long as u dont get another within 12 months. Otherwise hire an attorney. Look up attorneys that do this for a living. They tend to be very reasonable, since they are in court all day fighting tickets. Usually they will get it dismissed but you will pay court costs equal to the fine. Showing up to court without an attorney may work but its a risk I never took. I "beat" 7 tickets in 2008, all with attorneys.

drawde

Just a follow up to this, I was able to get the no points/higher fine deal. However they did tell me that it is my 2nd time receiving that and they said it would not be available to me next time. Ever. I thought it was for x amount of years, but apparently now it's 2 times and that's it.

taylorcoleman

I had 2 speeding tickets in 2 weeks. Decided to hire an attorney as the combination would have caused my license to be revoked for 3 months + the added expense of insurance premium increases. I paid him $500 per ticket in advance to represent me. That SOB did not show up for my court hearing--called me on my cell 5 minutes before my court time and said he was running 45 mins late, and to ask the judge to call me last (yeah, like I'm going to do that). So I went to court myself and pleaded 5 miles over w/ no points (though it does appear on my driving record).

Asked the attorney for my money back and he refused. I'm now taking him to court.

It just pays to stay out of trouble Tough to do in the C63 however.