I got a speeding ticket driving to the store. The officer told me that I was speeding at 55 mph at a 45 mph street while I was pretty positive that at the MOST I was driving at 50 mph. I got the citation that gave me all the information about my car and violation but there wasn’t even a court date on it. How do I fight this?
Your best bet from what I can tell is to go to court and hope that the officer doesn’t show up as you’ve admitted already to speeding.
Go over the ticket and see if they left out any relevant areas as it will be quashed because of this.
Btw, I’m in Canada, so this may not apply.
Starting two threads at around the same time = attention whore.
Pay it and move on.
Your time in court (sometimes all damn day) isn’t worth taking off work to fight.
I’ve give you some info.
First off: Check on the back and see if it says whether or not the office has to be present or if a representative of the police can stand in. If an officer can represent the department as a whole- don’t waste your time. The officer’s job is to be at the court house and he will be there. You can’t question the representative because all he has to do is read off the 1 paragraph report which is vague at best. You can’t make a compelling case for innocence against a vague paragraph which is by design almost impossible to fight.
Roughly 95% of people don’t receive a judgement voiding the ticket. When you have a lawyer who specializes in speeding tickets (if you are in a major city they are cheap) then go that route. Depending on the state a lawyer winning your case will save you 2K in the long run for insurance. When you have a lawyer you don’t have to be at the court house which means going to work and offsetting the cost of the lawyer. If you show up and lose- you lose a vacation day,or 8 hours of pay and you spend it at the court house.
If you are determined to fight it yourself: Do your homework. Ask for the paperwork behind the ticket, the officers records, car maintenance records, equipment record etc. Freedom of information act ftw!
You need to try and persuade the judge that the officer made a mistake, is biased towards your specific vehicle (4 door sedans that are red were much more likely to be pulled over than other vehicles etc). You need to attack everything you can and be brutal about it. This may get the police angry- people have been followed home by officers so try not to be to harsh.
In the end you may get the ticket reduced just for showing up. I’ve fought two tickets and saved about 150$ and got extensions to pay. But I also paid 25$ each time to get time in front of the judge. I live 5 minutes from the court house and got a time I wasn’t working so it was worth it.
One more thing: Don’t be afraid of fighting the ticket. The judge doesn’t care about you and the officer representing the police doesn’t care about you. They aren’t interesting in being there, so they won’t get upset… Hell the first time I fought a ticket the officer almost fell asleep. Be aware that lying and admitting guilt to something can still get you in trouble. Plead “nolo contendere” or No contest- not guilty if you agree to their terms on lowering the fine. Don’t say you were speeding (even 5mph over) because they will be forced to give you a fine of at least 100$.
[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Pay it and move on.
Your time in court (sometimes all damn day) isn’t worth taking off work to fight.[/quote]
this, not to mention it’s a PITA
btw- heard on the radio this morning, coming to the DC metro area soon stop sign cameras.
Take Defensive driving online or go to one at Hooters or something.
Not worth the effort Tony
[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
btw- heard on the radio this morning, coming to the DC metro area soon stop sign cameras. [/quote]
Yep. You won’t even be able to cruise over the line a few inches.
[quote]QuadasarusFlex wrote:
I got a speeding ticket driving to the store. The officer told me that I was speeding at 55 mph at a 45 mph street while I was pretty positive that at the MOST I was driving at 50 mph. I got the citation that gave me all the information about my car and violation but there wasn’t even a court date on it. How do I fight this? [/quote]
You will most likely receive a letter by mail informing you of your court date. Your best case scenario is going to court and the police have no representation and it’s thrown out. I wouldn’t hold my breath though. The ticket would be the least of my worries for now though because when your insurance finds out, you will be seeing a premium hike, no doubt.
[quote]Derek542 wrote:
Take Defensive driving online or go to one at Hooters or something.
Not worth the effort Tony[/quote]
x 2
If you can’t take defensive driving because you have another ticket on your record, then you can request for deferred adjudication until your first ticket ages out, and then take the class.
The deffered adjudication process depends on the county. Travis county was automatic with a $25 fee. Brazos county involved a phone call to a judge and maybe a fee too - don’t remember. Guess that the process depends on the county.
The defensive driving thing kept my record clean with multiple tickets over the years.
[quote]Derek542 wrote:
Take Defensive driving online or go to one at Hooters or something.
Not worth the effort Tony[/quote]
Can you suggest me a cheap / fast coarse?
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
Starting two threads at around the same time = attention whore. [/quote]
What?
If I take the Online coarse, I know it wont show up on my record but will my premium still go up?
[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Pay it and move on.
Your time in court (sometimes all damn day) isn’t worth taking off work to fight.[/quote]
Yes it is cause soon as your insurance finds out they rape you for the next 10 years if they can.
[quote]QuadasarusFlex wrote:
[quote]Derek542 wrote:
Take Defensive driving online or go to one at Hooters or something.
Not worth the effort Tony[/quote]
Can you suggest me a cheap / fast coarse?
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
Starting two threads at around the same time = attention whore. [/quote]
What?
If I take the Online coarse, I know it wont show up on my record but will my premium still go up?[/quote]
Mine didn’t. It depends on when your insurance company does its upload. State Farm used to upload annually from TXDPS. If you get the ticket off your record soon enough, they shouldn’t catch it.
The system is setup for you to lose in all cases of this. The best thing you can do is not speed in the future to remove yourself from this system.
[quote]QuadasarusFlex wrote:
[quote]Derek542 wrote:
Take Defensive driving online or go to one at Hooters or something.
Not worth the effort Tony[/quote]
Can you suggest me a cheap / fast coarse?
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
Starting two threads at around the same time = attention whore. [/quote]
What?
If I take the Online coarse, I know it wont show up on my record but will my premium still go up?[/quote]
Sorry man, I have not had to use that in forever.
Last time I did it, you rented it from blockbuster, it was this little portable TV thing you brought home and hooked to your phone line.
I have seen billboards at like comedy clubs etc that have Saturday defensive driving.
You can usually do an online course to prevent your insurance from going up. If that does not work call your insurance company explaining the situation (only 5mph over limit and you are not an unsafe driver). Have another insurance quote ready from another company and tell them you are switching unless they can ignore your ticket.
curious, anyone here drive the speed limit? There are times if I’m not in a hurry I will try to go the limit for a few minutes, but beyond that I can’t seem to keep at the limit. +10-15 majority of the time for me… I avoid +20 b/c in MD that would be 2 points and an increase in insurance.
People that drive the limit, befuddle me and aggravate me.
[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
curious, anyone here drive the speed limit? There are times if I’m not in a hurry I will try to go the limit for a few minutes, but beyond that I can’t seem to keep at the limit. +10-15 majority of the time for me… I avoid +20 b/c in MD that would be 2 points and an increase in insurance.
People that drive the limit, befuddle me and aggravate me.[/quote]
Generally set my cruise for 5-7 over, especially in areas of known speed traps.