Would you "fight" this ticket?

I was nailed Saturday night plain and simple. 95 on radar in a posted 65 in my Dino. He wrote me for 85 giving me the option for traffic school which I'm unfortunately not eligible for at this time. I was returning from the ALMS race at LAGUNA SECA and I was quite a ways ahead of the next group of cars so effectively alone. Would you try to go to court hoping the officer won't show? That's my only hope of getting this off my record.

Just wondering if I should even bother taking the time off work and driving close to 2 hours (one way) in hopes of the officer not showing up. I would think that nailing a Dino would stay pretty fresh in his mind.

 

It doesn't sound worth it to me. The Judge could get angry at you for trying to fight an obvious ticket and end up penalizing you for the full amount and any other way he can, e.g., make you pay the fine for 95 instead of 85. The officer most likely will show, but every once in a while they don't. Good luck.

 

I'm kinda thinking the same thing. Oh well, pay to play.

 

Appear but ask the judge if he would consider allowing you to do community service to waive the ticket, since defensive driving is not an available option.
You won't get much sympathy, otherwise, for speeding in a Ferrari.

Good luck.

 

+1. It's a Ferrari. Chances of him not showing are slim at best. Certainly possible, but slim (especially if you were in a relatively small town).

 

I don't see how the judge could penalize him for 95 when the officer wrote down 85. The court would need copies of the radar measurements. And even if that were possible the judge would take issue with the officer effectively lying about his speed on the ticket.

 

Call the prosecutor's office. See if they will reduce the ticket to a non-moving violation. My local town will do this without hesitation. The fine is a bit higher but it doesn't show up on insurance which is nice. I've tried this with out of town tickets and have been met with 50/50 success rate. Certainly worth a try.

 

Fight every ticket. I can't stress this enough. The last ticket I got - 13 December 2005 - was for 91 in a 55 and I pled not guilty. The judge didn't want to deal with case after case of traffic tickets, so she got the criminals out of the way and took a break; that's when the prosecutor stepped in and started calling names one by one... She made deals with everyone... She dropped my 91 to something like 71... We arranged that I would pay the fine - which continued to get smaller as we spoke - and that my insurance company wouldn't find out about the ticket... I paid $120 and my insurance continues to go down every six months.

Fight every ticket. I can't stress this enough.

 

If the officer wrote 85 and the speed gun says 95...sounds like a loophole to me. If he said he'd let you be eligable for school, he assumes you're pleading guilty. That increases the odds he won't show.

If you're worried more about the record than the money, get a lawyer. A good one will probably get you off completely or at least cut a better deal than you could, but it will cost somewhat more than the ticket.

Ken

 

I learned this from an ex-law enforcement officer that actually makes sense. If he got you on radar, you can get it thrown out by arguing no evidence, as there weren't any witnesses, and he can't prove that he got you for going 85 on radar. Also, usually if you show up in Nevada, its easy to get it knocked down to a parking ticket, albeit with a larger fine, but no points or traffic school.

 

I am in Law enforcement and I have not been called to court for a speeding tickets in over 5 years. The reason he put you were doing 85 not 95 is 95 you would of gotten wreckless driving, car towed and those pretty bracelets on. The judge is not going to go after the PO for this and there is no loop hole. The best bet is to plead not guilty and hopefully the court is extremely busy and just have you pay a fine and knock the charges down. Good luck!

 

Why not hire an Attornie?

 

What Carbie said... in the court of law, it doesn't matter about right or wrong, it only matters what can be proven. Radar is a favorite "courtroom whipping boy".

 

Not a lie---An officer has the discretion to lower the citation if you writes the real speed somewhere on the ticket----In MD that is how it works...

 

Never work!!!!

 

ALWAYS go to court---even if it is just a 1% chance the officer will not show--it is worth it..Trust me---Been a police officer for 11 years in Maryland..

 

I could see that...but can the judge go back and penalize you for a speed faster than the original ticket was written for?

Aka, you get clocked at 95mph, officer writes it at 85, but you try to fight in court and judge decides to fine you at 95mph fines.

 

Get a lawyer and fight it.

 

I doubt this happens, but even if it does, insurance/points would surely be more of a concern than the fine?

 

Without a doubt. Just wondering if the judge can usurp the written citation.

 

See if you could get an extension in the court appearance date and also try and transfer the case to another court closer to you. These are two options that a good lawyer can get you that would increase the chance of the police officer from showing up to court.

good luck,
mani

 

I think you ought to go to court. I have beaten my last 5 (five) speeding tickets in California. To begin with, the officer can write a lower speed if he wants to do that. The judge will treat the ticket as the speed that the officer writes. If the testimony comes down to the officer's storey or the driver's story, officer wins because he has more credibility in the court. End of story, althought the judge may have mercy and give you a light fine.

The real idea is to go to court and hope the officer doesn't show. However if the officer does show up, then you have to defend yourself.

As part of my defense I would try to mention that "during the time of the citation" there were no other cars or pedrestrians near by and no one got hurt by your actions. Also mention that the officer said that the judge would allow school over the citation if you just went to court. The fact that you're past school, is beside the point. You don't have to tell everything you know. I doubt that the court would check on that sort of thing anyway. But try to tell the truth as you remember it.

Actually, fighting the ticket starts when the patrol car lights you up. First of all, you have ten seconds to make friend with the citing officer. So be friendly, and apolegetic. Try to make the officer smile with the first words out of your mouth. It's harder to write a ticket on someone who is a nice guy to begin with. Make sure that you pay attention to the officer's eyes, nose and mouth so that when you get to court you can recognize him again. I've had officers other than the one who wrote me the ticket try to testify against me. That automatically throws the ticket out. The judge and police officers pretty much all know each other because in California they see each other every week or so. But if you see that, then ask the officer his name and compare it with who wrote the ticket. This means that you'll have to have a xerox copy of the ticket, cause the judge will have the original. Also write everything you can remember down about the incident at the first opportunity because it will be awhile before you see the guy in court. At the peliminary hearing try to get an extention to a date as far into the future as you can.

Good luck with it.

Bob Wassam

 

I suggest "Trial by Declaration". You can do the whole thing by mail. And there is no downside that I no of. If you don't like the result you can request a "Trial Nuevo" It is listed on the back of the ticket. Has worked several times for me.

You might also go to the website www.ticketassassin.com

Maybe that will help explain the options.

Good Luck

 

Yeah, taking responsibility for your actions is for chumps.

 

Fight all tickets. It has always helped me. Make sure they know whatever you were doing was not intentional. If you tell the judge that you were in heavy traffic and lost awareness of your speed for a few seconds...chances are it will help you out. Talk with your local prosecutor. DO NOT go straight to court before doing this. They will most likely lower the charge.