Of course the 1 second I drop it into 2nd to pass someone in order to turn, a cop is aiming a radar gun at me! At first I thought I was fine because right after I slowed to 40 (w/o seeing the cop) in what I thought was a 35. Turns out he was after me and he popped out on his bike and told me 52 in a 30! I know this has been discussed to death and I searched a lot, laws in different places are..well...different. I am 17 and got caught in a speed trap 10 months ago for 52 in a 35. That time I was simply going too fast and accepted the ticket..this time I dont feel the same. I called my insurance agent and if I get 2 pts, my insurance doubles to $4200/yr. I have a superior rating now and erased the other ticket through traffic school. Superior is still $2200/yr. Anyways, I would like to contest this ticket to get a little help...Either no points or lower speed or something...basically I am wondering what arguments I could use or something like that. Through searching, a lot of people say to talk to the judge or officer before the trial...I dont see that happening as it relies too much on his mood and assumes I can find or recognize him in the first place! Any ideas for me? If my insurance goes up, I lose my Maxima! And yes, I've slowed down...PLEASE HELP!

 

get a lawyer or one of those cheap pre-paid legal aides

 

Get a lawyer that has handled these kinds of cases before. You're better off paying a good lawyer $1000 than to get you're insuranced jacked up $2000 a yr. Not to mention points....

 

exactly.

 

Pre-paid legal will send an attorney to court only for members who have been members for at least 2 weeks. Motor vehicle services such as speeding tickets are free for these members. A 25% discount off of your provider attorney's normal retainer is what your price would be if you became a member today to battle this ticket.

BTW, DA-MAX is incorrect in saying "aides". Pre-paid legal does not have legal aides (heh). In fact, Pre-paid legal itself is not even a lawfirm; it is a company that "hooks" people up with lawfirms and provides free legal assistance to its loyal members.

I've sold a few memberships to Pre-paid legal on the .org and have had NO complaints.

Shoot me an email if you're interested.

lcf@digitalrice.com

 

A lawyer for a 1pt offence? I was hoping for things I could do myself...

 

I fully understand that if you are charged with a crime, it's a scary ordeal and you're talking about potential years behind bars. Therefore, get a lawyer. I don't understand why people think it's ok to spend hundreds on traffic tickets. Pssssttt...here's a secret--a lawyer cannot do anything for you that you can't do for yourself on a summons. Ah, we been through this a million times. If you're a rich kid I guess money is no object anyway.

 

Hey guys, its a speeding ticket, not a murder....22 over...Im asking if theres an approach *i* should take on it to the judge...anyone? No lawyers here..

 

Don't know the laws where you are, but you might try deferred adjudication. You apply to the court, and it's basically probation: the judge agrees to defer the verdict until a probationary period (usually 90 - 180 days), and if you don't get another ticket in that timeframe the charges are dismissed. That would help you out (but do NOT get another ticket during probation. They don't have much of a sense of humor about that...)

 

the percentage of winning is 50%. tell them your story that you thought you were in a 35 speed limit, and you thought 5 over would be ok, since you seen on tv(news), that police dont pull over if you are doing 5 over. then tell the judge you are sorry for the mistake and you will never do it again. and explain to him that you will be up the creek without a paddle if your insurance goes up to 4200 a year. then tell him you will pay the fine, but can he keep it from going to the insurance and state for points, etc....and he will say ok. dress nice and kiss ace. don't lie so much, they will know.

 

I wouldn't think that would be a very smart thing to say...saying you saw it on tv so you thought it was okay sounds really "immature", nit in a stupid way but it makes you seem kinda ignorant to the judge. I would think a judge would laugh at you for saying something like that since there is no known law that that "5 over" is an exception.

 

so if its no big deal than just go to court and plead yourself to the judge. when I pleaded guilty to my racing ticket 2 years ago, I brought my dad with me to court to "prove my character"(outside of driving) so to speak and that helped out a lot I think.

 

Don't do the crime if you can do the time

I'd be driving 25 in a 30 zone if I were in your shoes

 

hey if i can get out of a 109 in a 70 then you can do it.

 

Not all people, but some people just have bad luck and get speeding tickets all the time. I'm not a crazy driver... but yes, I do drive fast. I've had my license suspended twice by two different states and I don't know how many insurance companies I've gone through. Am I a wreckless driver? No. In all seriousness, I just have the worst luck.

Since I got my own personal membership, Pre-paid legal has saved my a$$ 3x. I saved my own a$$ twice. It "pays" for itself.

And just a FYI, Pre-paid legal costs less than high-speed internet.

*shrug*

Motor Vehicle Services aside, there are four other areas of FREE coverage. It's worth it to some... not to others.

To the poster of this thread:

One point offense you say? You positive about that? From my own experience I've found that the DA/magistrate will be willing to work with you depending on your driving record. Yours isn't exactly clean but it's not my driving record either. Heh.

Good luck!

 

Do I beg the judge for the point to be removed?

 

I'm no angel, but getting a speeding ticket is not a matter of luck, getting caught is. You're lucky if you don't get stopped. If you decide to speed, don't call it bad luck if you get a ticket.

 

some Colleges/Universisties provide lawyers free of charge( its included in your tuition)

my firend got his license suspended, went to the school lawyer, paid 13$ transportation fee fro the lawyer, 40$ for reopening the case, 35$ to remvoe the suspension, and he got his license back

 

This is very true. I was once stopped for "crossing a red light" even though the light just turn yellow when I made a left turn. When i went to court, the officer told his side of the story and then the judge typed in something in the computer and it pulled up my driving record. My ticket was dismissed. The cop didn't help himself either cause he said I was driving a white honda when I was really driving a white pontiac.
They say always fight the ticket,no matter if ur guilty. There is always a chance of winning.

 

you should know.

 

so should everyone else, its called common sense

 

what college is that? ive never heard of that in my life.

 

My friend went to University at Albany (SUNY). She had a dispute with her landlord, and she used the university attorney. He got her deposit back. Now you've heard of one.

 

ha. at UF where i go they would laugh at such a statement. they dont give a **** about what we think about housing.

 

http://www.union.ufl.edu/slservices.asp

 

Don't hire a lawyer, I've been in your shoes. I payed out my bung hole for one back when I was 16. He said nothing special that I couldnt have said myself. Ever since then I went without a sleezeball lawyer and have done alright each time I went to court.

 

Every Judge is different and there is no right thing for you to say that will convince the Judge to drop the charges against you. If the Judge can see that you, a 17 year old, is serious enough to hire an attorney... you might be innocent? Or wait, maybe you could just get up there and tell the Judge you're really really really sorry and that you'll never do it again? Or maybe you can call the police officer a liar? Heh. Remember, in essence, by pleading not guilty that is what you are doing. I've kinda gotten the sense that Judges really dislike having their time "wasted". I have no words of wisdom for you. All I can say is... just pray your insurance doesn't go up. Who cares about a speeding ticket. It's all about the points that make your premiums go up. That is what hurts. That's why it is worth it to some to hire an attorney.I've never hired a sleazeball lawyer... the profession really has a tarnished image though. I agree with you there. There are a lot of shady characters out there. Hiring an attorney is just like hiring anyone else... you want to do your research and find out as much information about their firm, etc. as possible.

Pre-paid legal uses only lawfirms that are given the A / V rating which is the highest rating given by Martindale-Hubbell.

For example, Pre-paid legal's provider lawfirm in California also represents companies like All-State Insurance. They pay a lot more than you would though. Hehe.

 

Dude just get a lawyer like suggested by many be4 me. Look on the bright side, atleast ur not gonna be payin $18,500/yr for insurance like some1 I know for being a moron with cars several times.

 

That's good advice. Again, don't DIY if you're facing a misdemeanor or felony, you'd be a fool not to have an atty represent you. But when you have a violation or summons you're also a fool to pay an atty. Any atty worth his salt would not take your money, but it's like anything else--some need the business.

I'm exaggerating, but when you get down to it real courts are more like the show Night Court, not Law and Order.

 

Also if you've never been to court before, go down to your local court house and watch a proceeding. Its open to the public and you can watch the procedure and see what happens to people and what to say. It can actually be quite entertaining cause you have some absolute morons take the stand, and since everythign is in your hometown it just brings a local feeling to it that you can relate to.

Each state has their own procedure. In Maryland, you dont battle with a DA or prosecuter for minor traffic offenses (not DUIs, driving with suspended licenses etc). You take the stand on one side, and the police officer is on the other. You also dont get to talk to the judge before hand. And also, very rarely is traffic school issued to "erase" a ticket. The "2nd chance" option here is PBJ or probation before judgement. I know you're probbbly not in MD but I'm just illustrating how our court system goes.

Another point is, alot of people here seem to act like hiring a lawyer is the ticket to getting out of a ticket. This simply isnt true. Unless a situation arises where there is some technicality, but this just isnt so with most speeding tickets. Fact the matter is the cop gets you on radar and thats it. In MD, the cop doesnt have to show you the radar, or give you some kind of print out or anything like that. In my experience the judge could care less if you had a lawyer or not. I've seen people with lawyers get screwed and people without lawyers get off easy.

As for your speed, 20 MPH over the speed limit is pretty serious. The best you can do is go there, say you're really sorry and you regret it, you're a full time student and work hard and if this ticket stays you're insurance will double.

 

Eric's pretty much right on.

I assume that you do not have the option of going to driving school and have the points withheld. In Florida, so long as you haven't done it within a year or (I think) 5 times lifeftime, you can automatically pay the ticket and go to school.

If not, find out how your county handles tickets. Some Judges, depending on the county, allow you to plead no contest, send you to drivers school, withhold points and fine you a bit more than the ticket. I once went to one where the judge did that for everyone present who pleaded no contest - en mass.

Best way to find out is call the clerk of the court, determine who your judge is, find out when he'll have traffic court and go there for an earlier traffic court.

 

Derek, whatever "techniques" people will tell you here, they are not reliable enought for you to depend on them. You have many independent factors like the judge and the kind of day he/she is having. If you are caught in the bad mood don't ask for mercy. Even if it is one point, but since you have so much at stake, hire the damn lawyer, it won't cost $1000 like someone told you here. An average fee for traffic citation is about $200-300 bucks. Get on with it and someone lock this thread.

 

What he said

 

Exactly. The kid should have known this beforehand and he shouldn't have been speeding? Straight up. But we all make mistakes. No one is blaming him. I'm not anyway. I've had to stand in front of more a$$hole Judges than merciful ones. If you want to go this route... more power to ya. Personally, I think it's extremely risky.

The person who said that hiring an attorney for anything less than a misdemeanor/felony is right on. This is what I did before getting Pre-paid legal. However, in this kid's case, sounds like his insurance premiums are already pretty high and more points will be not taken lightly. He's only 17 and already have a violation on his record, insurance companies already consider him a liability. I also assume that his parents will be the ones that will be taking his car away? IMO, that's even more incentive to get this taken care of professionally. Isn't this as serious as a misdemeanor/felony? Just because he's not facing a suspended license or jailtime doesn't mean that retaining an attorney is a waste of $$$. No car at 17... sure there are worse things in life but at that age it would've blown!

Don't get me wrong fellas. I'm not only trying to "sell" something here. I'm giving this kid my advice. It's a wee bit biased, but I'm being truthful and realistic. If he decides to let an attorney handle this, I'd be more than happy to help him. If he'd prefer retain an attorney on his own, that's cool too. I'll still offer my advice if needed and asked for. I don't think many people "notice" me around, since I don't PW, heh, but I try to stick my nose in some places where I've had some experience.

Derek, good luck again!

 

Yea just pray and hope you have a lenient judge. Back when I first started driving (which really wasnt that long ago-5 years) when I had to appear in court the judge looked heavily upon if your mom/dad was in the court (this went for my friends too). So thats another thing, make sure your mom/dad both are in the court room. They dont have to take the stand with you but just make sure they are there.

I got it lucky once when my parents werent there, the judge said "I'll let your parents deal with you as they seem to be responsible people". When I got home, my parents said "We'll let the state take care of you since you violated their rules".

Anyway the ball is in your court now. The worst thing to do is to FAIL TO APPEAR to go to court. Let us know what happens. Dont worry though no matter what happens, it will take a while but all of this will eventually be behind you.

 

Ive looked it up and realized this will only be one point on an otherwise "SUPERIOR" rating. It may or may not raise my insurance a negligable amount. However, I still intend to fight it because I see no reason not to. Im going to schedule a court date, and then attempt to reschedule it. I took traffic school in late May/early June of last year so Im afraid that is not an option. I was in risk of losing my car by my parents because the insurance would have been too much for them or me to pay and therefore, I would have no reason to have a car I cant drive that Im paying on monthly. So, I know now its not serious enough to justify the cost of an attorney who cannot really do anything. Can anyone elaborate on the PBJ and whether it is used in CA? Thanks! Ill keep you all posted...I suspect the process will take a while..

 

Too bad all states are not like CT, where the fines are hefty and they don't let you postpone at all. If you plead not guilty, basically you have to show up only to be told to pay the fine. You get lesser points I believe but must pony up the $$$, usually nearly $200 or more. If you insist on a trial, you basically will pay the fine plus get points. No nonsense system. All this postponing BS costs taxpayers $$$. I think our system fails to work because everybody plays a game and nobody seems to learn any lesson until there is a crash. I know few agree with me, but a man takes responsibility.

 

I will attempt to keep this from a flaming war but Im not sure if you are an officer of the law. If you are, with all due respect, the costing of taxpayers money is MINE and you know very well that by the bill of rights every citizen is due the right of a trial. I have been accused of something and I intend to excersize my right. There is nothing immoral about requesting my rights. Enough on that, does anyone have an advice for me?

 

Being honest might help. Judges like that. Ask if there are alternatives to having a ticket on your record. Go sit in on traffic court to see what may be a possible alternative to a fine and record of the ticket. Community service is one thing to offer.

When you go to court, be honest, humble, polite, and intelligent. If your pants hang below your ***, your hair is purple and you have a nose ring, get rid of the ring and color your hair brown, and wear some clean pants that fit. Put on your clean and lucky underwear. Offer and ask to make ammends and to work things out somehow. If you plead guilty, continue speaking (politely) with questions or your offer before the judge can move on.

That is all you can honestly do. You screwed up. Nobody got hurt this time.
Now take reponsibilty for your actions. Or hire a lawyer and maybe weasle out of it.

It's a bummer that insurance is so high, but that's life.
How much is just liability on a clunker?? Because that is what you will probably have to drive until you can either afford the high insurance, or your driving record clears, and you learn when and where to speed.

Good luck.

 

I tend to agree with Frank and some others on this one. You are right that as an American citizen, you have certain inalienable rights. And I fully support people exercising their rights (hell, I've fought to gain others those rights and to protect ours). I think what Frank and some others are trying to get across is this: If you are guilty, don't try to turn it in to some sort of game by drawing it out and hoping for some technicality (which in Louisiana, small "technicalities" in traffic court don't matter; such as the officer got the wrong car color,make, etc...). Don't get me wrong, though. If you are not guilty of the offense charged, fight it.
However, from the original post, I gather that you were exceeding the speed limit. The questionable part may be by how much. Here's an example of a court case where that came in to play (keep in mind this is Louisiana; state laws vary). I write a guy for doing 60 something in a 35. I had paced him (no radar/laser, just using my CALIBRATED speedometer, courtesy of Ford) in my cruiser for .8 miles. He fights it. I take the stand, and he "faces his accusor" by trying to drill me. I testify to the truth, referring to the notes on the back of my original ticket which were written immediately following the stop (now 2+ months in the past). He takes the stand, and the assistant DA questions him (remember, this is Louisiana, state laws/procedures vary). He testifies that he was not going 60 something in a 35. When asked how he knew, he testified "because my speedometer said I was only going 45". Judge found him instantly guilty, chastised him for wasting the court's time, and maxed out punishment (fine, court costs, points, mandatory driver improvement course with associated fee, community service with associated fee, etc). The moral here is simple. One, don't say you weren't going what the officer said you were and then give a number that is still above the limit. Two, if guilty, admit it and hope the court shows mercy.
If not guilty, fight it. There is nothing an attorney can do for you in traffic court that you can't do yourself.
Like others have said, probably the best thing you can do at this point is to go to your city/county's traffic court and watch how it is held. Pay a lot of attention to the strategies some of the defendants use, and note which ones have a desired outcome. Also note which ones don't work, and avoid them. Once you've seen how the court system works (nothing like TV), you'll have a better idea of what you face.
Being 17, having a parent with you will look very good on your behalf. Dress appropriately (that can't be stressed enough. Conservative slacks, button up shirt, dress shoes are approriate. Suit and tie can push it a little, but it depends on what the norm is for your area). Be respectful towards the court, DA, and officers, even if you can't stand them. Speak proper English, avoiding any slang, etc... Stand up straight (no slouching), and keep your hands out of your pockets (judges tend to hate that).
These are just some pointers, and I'm sure others may disagree with them. But these are my observations from being in courts hundreds of times. Good luck, and keep us posted.

Dave