Speeding Ticket
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Always fight tickets in court, most of the time the fine will be lowered before you even go in as they do not want to waste the time in the court room. I fought a seatbelt ticket like that and won, at $100 and 2 demerit points I was not about to let my perfect driving record get ruined.
Hey someone pas me the wrench........ Ahh screw it where is the torch
Hey someone pas me the wrench........ Ahh screw it where is the torch
You could very well get it reduced. I got my first ticket ever last fall, 58 in a 40. I was worried about the insurance because they raise you if the ticket is for over 15mph higher than posted. I had my lawyer take care of it and they reduced it to failure to obey a traffic control. 1 point on my license and $150 fine plus $165 for the lawyer. If I had agreed to go to a 6 hour traffic school they would have reduced it to a parking on the pavement violation with no points.
Ask the presiding judge how to have it reduced, or just pay the lawyers to figure it out. Later I learned I could have just written a letter to the DA asking for the reduction for insurance purposes.
Good Luck!
Ask the presiding judge how to have it reduced, or just pay the lawyers to figure it out. Later I learned I could have just written a letter to the DA asking for the reduction for insurance purposes.
Good Luck!
Champ,
I have tons of experience in that area.
Find yourself a local lawyer that practices in the same town that you got the ticket, have him take care of it. It's a simple system, it will in almost all cases be reduced to something like parking on the highway. I've done it about ten times and still have a perfect record.
Typically you'll pay the fine for the actual violation, you'll pay the lawyer $75-100, but you'll end up with no points at the best....or a couple of points for a NON-MOVING violation at the worst.
It's all a game, you just have to pay the right people to play it for you. I don't know about you but my time is worth too much to do the court thing myself....pay the lawyer, he plays golf with the judge. and they like to keep each other in business.
JohnnyB
I have tons of experience in that area.
Find yourself a local lawyer that practices in the same town that you got the ticket, have him take care of it. It's a simple system, it will in almost all cases be reduced to something like parking on the highway. I've done it about ten times and still have a perfect record.
Typically you'll pay the fine for the actual violation, you'll pay the lawyer $75-100, but you'll end up with no points at the best....or a couple of points for a NON-MOVING violation at the worst.
It's all a game, you just have to pay the right people to play it for you. I don't know about you but my time is worth too much to do the court thing myself....pay the lawyer, he plays golf with the judge. and they like to keep each other in business.
JohnnyB
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501 Posts
JB, that's exactly what I do. If it's during the week, I stop in town and ask who's the best layer, hire him, and that's that.
Fortunately, I haven't had to do that in awhile, knock on wood.
Dgy
Fortunately, I haven't had to do that in awhile, knock on wood.
Dgy
Dougy,
Most of the time I get mine local to Saratoga...I walk in my lawyer's office....Marge the secretary says" Whatcha got John" I drop it on her desk...she says we'll mail you the bill. Thats the last I here of it until two weeks later I'll get a bill for something like $170.
Then the next time I get a ticket...the process starts over..the judge sees no convictions, get the reduction again...still no convictions. It's a neat system if you use it.
JohnnyB
Most of the time I get mine local to Saratoga...I walk in my lawyer's office....Marge the secretary says" Whatcha got John" I drop it on her desk...she says we'll mail you the bill. Thats the last I here of it until two weeks later I'll get a bill for something like $170.
Then the next time I get a ticket...the process starts over..the judge sees no convictions, get the reduction again...still no convictions. It's a neat system if you use it.
JohnnyB
Id take a good large color picture in of the Duc and say with tearful eyes "LOOK....YOUR HONOUR JUST LOOK AT HER ..she begged for it...SHE SEDUCED ME ...she made me DO IT" I was smitten with temperary insanity!!
Besides your honour this bike doesnt do 30 very well, at all!Very unstable you know...
Im so far behind ,that I think Im in first.
Edited by - LiLBull on Apr 23 2007 07:55:09 AM
Besides your honour this bike doesnt do 30 very well, at all!Very unstable you know...
Im so far behind ,that I think Im in first.
Edited by - LiLBull on Apr 23 2007 07:55:09 AM
get it to court. meet the cop before going in and i'd betcha anything he'd drop the points and just give you the fine. maybe not even that much. maybe just court cost. $ is all they're really after. hell, and if they don't show, you're off the hook completely!
N.C.N.R
N.C.N.R
I do this kind of work for a living here in NY and here is a little insight I can give you:
There are two types of ticket prosecution, the police prosecute their own tickets, or there is an ADA who prosecutes the tickets.
If you are in the jurisdiction where the police prosecute their own tickets the first thing you should do when you walk in is try and see if the officer who gave you the ticket is there. If he doesn't show up, you can ask the judge for it to be dismissed, the best case is he/she dismisses it - the worst is he/she give you another date (which if the officer misses again it gets dismissed).
I find that in jusrisdictions where the police prosecute their own tickets they are unwilling to "make a deal", and if they do it is usually not as good a deal you would have gotten as with an attorney. There are some places where the officer actually be willing to make a deal do that he still makes his nonexistant quota on convictions, but those counties are rarer. Most times you can outright say to the judge I am willing to plead to a lesser charge in the interest of speeding up the administration of justice and he'll either negotiate with you personally (sometimes he just tells you the lesser charge and you say yes or no) or sometimes oversee while you and the officer talk.
In areas where the tickets are prosecuted by an ADA, you usually have one or two people in charge of several departments worth of tickets so their more motivated to make a deal. Usually you will meet with them before going before the judge specificaly to make a deal...they want you in and out and your wallet open. In this case becareful of the charges they offer you, some lesse no points moving violations still have insurance penalties. Seatbelt violations and stop sign/traffic signal related violations are two that your insurance company looks for (and yes they pull your driving record yearly). I always shoot for a "unsafe door opening" which is pretty cheap and no points and the ins companys don't pay much attention to it. Seat belt and Cell phone tickets most jurisdictions won't negotiate so if you get one of those you may be better off paying it (although I can't speak for every county in the US). There are some counties where you will see the judge first before negotiation (this is to cull in the people who have been waiting for 3 hours and just want to plead guilty to get the fuck out of there). As before, let the judge know you would be willing to plea to a lesser charge and you may get what you want.
By the way, always be nice, friendly, and have a smile on your face at all times. Avoid making accusatory statements and try to be polite and relaxed. Judges at this level (as well as officers and ADA) have a shit job and are used to everything from insults to conspiracy theories hurled at them, if you are nice and friendly they are more willing to cut you a break because so few people are (this doesn't mean you have to grovel - they hate that too).
If your state has a deal where you take a class and it removes points, do it the insurance companies love to see that and won't automatically jack up your rates.
For those living in the NYC/ LI area here is some advice:
Don't bother fighting in Manhattan, they are the kings of drity play with speeding and parking tickets and it is extremely rare that someone wins (unless you have a lot of them). If you just have one ticket and earn more than $10 an hour you might want to consider just paying it.
Queens/brooklyn/bronx you can try but it all depends on the day and the court. I don't see a very good success rate for people fighting their tickets here either but your odds are a little better than manhattan. Brooklyn tends to be the worst out of the three for you winning
Nassau County - Fight it. Always. They negotiate everything but cellphones and seatbelts (the roadblock tickets). If you get out of date inspection violations, get the inspection within 24-48 hours and they will throw it out. Becareful though that your officer did not write you a misdemeanor, as you can end up in hempstead criminal court and it is a lot harder to win there and you will need an attorney.
Suffolk County - NAZI's. Every stinking one. I can't think of a single person that has won that wasn't based on the officer not showing up, and they reschedule three times before dismissing. Seriously the worst county to get a ticket in and even worse to fight it (they get a large chunk of revenue from this and guard it like it was gold). The court is also in the middle of freakin nowhere. It also sucks up a few hours to be there. If you make more than $10 an hour it is seriously not worth your time to come back 3 times on the chance you will beat it. One way I have found that helps is to make friends with a suffolk county officer or even better a volunteer fireman, usually they know what officers have been transferred or retired plus all the dirt in their lives so you can find out ahead of time if your officer is going to show.
there I have given away all my secrets.
There are two types of ticket prosecution, the police prosecute their own tickets, or there is an ADA who prosecutes the tickets.
If you are in the jurisdiction where the police prosecute their own tickets the first thing you should do when you walk in is try and see if the officer who gave you the ticket is there. If he doesn't show up, you can ask the judge for it to be dismissed, the best case is he/she dismisses it - the worst is he/she give you another date (which if the officer misses again it gets dismissed).
I find that in jusrisdictions where the police prosecute their own tickets they are unwilling to "make a deal", and if they do it is usually not as good a deal you would have gotten as with an attorney. There are some places where the officer actually be willing to make a deal do that he still makes his nonexistant quota on convictions, but those counties are rarer. Most times you can outright say to the judge I am willing to plead to a lesser charge in the interest of speeding up the administration of justice and he'll either negotiate with you personally (sometimes he just tells you the lesser charge and you say yes or no) or sometimes oversee while you and the officer talk.
In areas where the tickets are prosecuted by an ADA, you usually have one or two people in charge of several departments worth of tickets so their more motivated to make a deal. Usually you will meet with them before going before the judge specificaly to make a deal...they want you in and out and your wallet open. In this case becareful of the charges they offer you, some lesse no points moving violations still have insurance penalties. Seatbelt violations and stop sign/traffic signal related violations are two that your insurance company looks for (and yes they pull your driving record yearly). I always shoot for a "unsafe door opening" which is pretty cheap and no points and the ins companys don't pay much attention to it. Seat belt and Cell phone tickets most jurisdictions won't negotiate so if you get one of those you may be better off paying it (although I can't speak for every county in the US). There are some counties where you will see the judge first before negotiation (this is to cull in the people who have been waiting for 3 hours and just want to plead guilty to get the fuck out of there). As before, let the judge know you would be willing to plea to a lesser charge and you may get what you want.
By the way, always be nice, friendly, and have a smile on your face at all times. Avoid making accusatory statements and try to be polite and relaxed. Judges at this level (as well as officers and ADA) have a shit job and are used to everything from insults to conspiracy theories hurled at them, if you are nice and friendly they are more willing to cut you a break because so few people are (this doesn't mean you have to grovel - they hate that too).
If your state has a deal where you take a class and it removes points, do it the insurance companies love to see that and won't automatically jack up your rates.
For those living in the NYC/ LI area here is some advice:
Don't bother fighting in Manhattan, they are the kings of drity play with speeding and parking tickets and it is extremely rare that someone wins (unless you have a lot of them). If you just have one ticket and earn more than $10 an hour you might want to consider just paying it.
Queens/brooklyn/bronx you can try but it all depends on the day and the court. I don't see a very good success rate for people fighting their tickets here either but your odds are a little better than manhattan. Brooklyn tends to be the worst out of the three for you winning
Nassau County - Fight it. Always. They negotiate everything but cellphones and seatbelts (the roadblock tickets). If you get out of date inspection violations, get the inspection within 24-48 hours and they will throw it out. Becareful though that your officer did not write you a misdemeanor, as you can end up in hempstead criminal court and it is a lot harder to win there and you will need an attorney.
Suffolk County - NAZI's. Every stinking one. I can't think of a single person that has won that wasn't based on the officer not showing up, and they reschedule three times before dismissing. Seriously the worst county to get a ticket in and even worse to fight it (they get a large chunk of revenue from this and guard it like it was gold). The court is also in the middle of freakin nowhere. It also sucks up a few hours to be there. If you make more than $10 an hour it is seriously not worth your time to come back 3 times on the chance you will beat it. One way I have found that helps is to make friends with a suffolk county officer or even better a volunteer fireman, usually they know what officers have been transferred or retired plus all the dirt in their lives so you can find out ahead of time if your officer is going to show.
there I have given away all my secrets.
Cat.... yeah I should have said.... In our town a cop can't change the ticket..... I know they can in some places. In our town once the cop turns in that ticket at the end of the day it's no longer in his hands. We had a ticket fixing scandel a decade or so ago and they changed all the rules in our town.
I know the State Troopers seem to have a lot of leeway when it comes to handling tickets...they can just kind of disappear. The Sheriff's never help out anyone cause they are miserable because their boss is a dink. The local city cops can't change a ticket...but I know most of them so I'm unlikely to get it in the first place
.
For me...it's always been the easiest to just let my lawyer do it...they know the game...I don't. I usually get them reduced to something like failure to obey a traffic device....which I know covers a lot of ground....but the type it gets reduced to is a non-moving, no ticket type....and 1101 or something like that, I forget.
JohnnyB
I know the State Troopers seem to have a lot of leeway when it comes to handling tickets...they can just kind of disappear. The Sheriff's never help out anyone cause they are miserable because their boss is a dink. The local city cops can't change a ticket...but I know most of them so I'm unlikely to get it in the first place
.For me...it's always been the easiest to just let my lawyer do it...they know the game...I don't. I usually get them reduced to something like failure to obey a traffic device....which I know covers a lot of ground....but the type it gets reduced to is a non-moving, no ticket type....and 1101 or something like that, I forget.
JohnnyB
Jim,
Jersey is a funny place...despite the fact I can fart in a building on 9th ave and they can smell it in hoboken (not that anyone would notice) I can't practice there. I have never gotten a jersey ticket so I have never had the pleasure of appearing before a jersey judge (couldn't be any worse than a county in western NY that held traffic court in the judge's barn). Y'all got some really nutty traffic laws...do you still have orange plates for drivers convicted of DWI but got their licenses back?
IIRC, all jersey counties use lazer or radar guns and don't really negotiate, plus if you decide you are going to fight it some counties require you to produce a lazer or radar gun expert (which you pay for). The Jersey approach is basically waste as much of your time and money as possible as an incentive for you to pay the ticket. And the only way you are going to beat it is if 1) the officer isn't up on his certifications (which you have no way of knowing about until after the plea), 2) the gun actually malfunctioned which you have like a less than 1% chance of that happening, or 3) the officer was so sloppy with his paperwork that you can raise a serious question as to whether it is you or your car.
The best way to deal with a speeding ticket is to not get one in the first place. If you are going to haul ass do it on less heavily trafficked roads and an investment in a radar or lazer dector is not a bad idea either.
in maryland, if they do catch you speeding with a detector, its automatically an extra 250 bucks. they arent illegal mind you. but they pile on the offenses if they catch you with one. there is ont spot on 95 just norht of baltimore. at just about the city line. the troopers are always there with a trap setup. i pass it every single day. so i make sure im down to within about 10mph of the limit. i cant count how many times ive had douche bags from jersey or virginia go speeding past me and then get pulled over right in front of me. and another thing, dont get a ticket in virginia. they will put the screws to you. i can guarantee it. they dont even cut other cops slack there.
jc
aaron sent my wheel!
jc
aaron sent my wheel!
A customer of mine is the Major of the NYS police for our area. He said just to carry a picture of him (I'm a portrait photog) in my wallet and show it to the ticketing officer............
I also learned once a trooper writes the ticket, it is a done deal, he can't change it since it is now all computerized and as soon as he writes it it goes to Albany. So if you want to talk your way out, talk fast. Or, try to get it reduced later.
I told him I would trade him for a couple "let my friend go" cards.. I did get a Police Ben. Assoc. sticker though!
I also learned once a trooper writes the ticket, it is a done deal, he can't change it since it is now all computerized and as soon as he writes it it goes to Albany. So if you want to talk your way out, talk fast. Or, try to get it reduced later.
I told him I would trade him for a couple "let my friend go" cards.. I did get a Police Ben. Assoc. sticker though!
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