How do I fight this completely BS ticket?

[BaD_HeX]

The court system is a business. If you treat it this way and just follow the motions your life will be easier.

My wife got a non-moving violation for having expired tags. The DMV screwed up and misprinted the date the tags were issued. It honestly said they were expired the same day she got them. It wasn't until 5 months later that she was pulled over for it. The cop knew there was a mistake but still issued her a ticket even though it was obvious she wasn't issued expired tags. He even looked at the sticker on the plate that showed that they were not expired.

We went down the the DMV and purched a new sticker at the penalty rate (something like $100) to get in "complience" with the state. She took that ticket to court and initially the judge ruled that she was guilty and fined her. She had the ticket re-presented and the judge threw it out. We still ended up paying the extra cash to renew expired tags even though they were not expired.

Sure we could have got a lawyer and played the whole fighting game with the court system, but in the end the result probably would not have been worth the effort.

Moral of that story is the Judge sometimes has a default ruling that they use for certian ticket types as they are presented. Just deal with the system and be done with it.

 

[laracroft]

Alot of LEO's write tickets for following too closely, almost as much as speeding probably.

If I were you, I'd ask if there was a camera in the officer's car. You never know.

Sometimes, they don't show up to court, if they don't... then YES, the citation will get thrown out (they're considered the witness of the case, so they have to show for their side of the events as they happened). If he does happen to appear, then you're screwed. And I will tell you this. Officers put aside one to two days a month just for court dates. So when they write tickets, they write them all for the same dates and make sure to make themselves available and get the time for this from their commanding officer.

If you've just been to a drivers class, then there won't be any "prayer for judgement". Most states have them. It's when you get your first ticket and you haven't had one before. It usually gets thrown out, depending on the severity - and it will still be thrown out, whether the officer shows up or not.

Your best bet is to call around town to the "ticket" lawyers and ask them what they can do for you before you ever pay them a red cent. Also ask them what kind of consequence you would be facing with or without a lawyer.

And for the record... I do have some law enforcement experience. Just my
$.02.

 

[Kobyoshi]

Simple.

Reschedule the court date. When it gets close to the next date reschedule it again.... and then once, possibly twice more for good measure.

The officer will have to reschedule with you each time to make the ticket stick.....frustrating for him.

Good clean family fun for you.

 

[SwampAss]

They reschedule on dates the officer is already slated to appear. Cops have certain days appointed as 'court days'. The only thing you do is prolong your conviction date if you are convicted.

 

[aznsebass]

get a lawyer.

It's teh best $300 you will ever spend.

(iagree) how much is the citation fine on the ticket?

this past summer, I was being stupid while driving [was late for an important meeting, and had a long way to drive], was going 80+ in the carpool lane by myself, and got written up for 2 moving violations costing me $440. got a hold of a great lawyer [FRED HOPKINS, if anyone from washington state is reading this] and he got both violations dismissed for $300.

TEH BEST $300 I EVER SPENT.

 

[BaD_HeX]

FYI, at least in IL, if you're interested if you have any record of tickets; The information that the clerk's office has is public. You can simply go in or call and have them pull up your record. You can even pull up the records of friends or random people if you want to get technical. I would suggest doing this before your court date so you know if your driving record is clean or not.

Most people don't know this.

 

[SwampAss]

That must be something state specific. Motor Vehicle Reports can only be pulled by the individual in Va, only from the DMV, and at a cost of either $6 or $8 after showing proper ID.

 

[BaD_HeX]

That must be something state specific. Motor Vehicle Reports can only be pulled by the individual in Va, only from the DMV, and at a cost of either $6 or $8 after showing proper ID.

That wouldn't surprise me. Still worth the $6-8. Telling a judge that your record is clean is a very good defense. In IL, most tickets that involve supervision and driving school are removed from your record if you comply.

 

[GoFast]

Common ticket. This is what I would do:

Show up, plead not guilty. If the cop doesn't show on your court date the ticket will probably be thrown out.

If it doesn't, ask the clerk that your ticket gets put before the judge again (they usually will and you'll go back up at the end of the court call). Explain that you do not feel that you were following close. Note there were many cars and that the office may be mistaken. With that the worst you will probably get is supervision and/or driving school.

Keep in mind I'm no lawyer, but both my brother and mother work as county clerks in IL.

wrong. 99% of the time when you decide to take a ticket to trial and if you lose, the judge is more than likely going to be a lot harsher with the fine than if you had just plead guilty

 

[BaD_HeX]

wrong. 99% of the time when you decide to take a ticket to trial and if you lose, the judge is more than likely going to be a lot harsher with the fine than if you had just plead guilty

I'm pretty sure all of this is state specific. Probably wouldn't hurt to put in a call to the clerk's office over by you and figure out your options. I know for sure in IL you have 3-4 different routes you can take when you get a ticket and they can answer any questions you have. Keep in mind they won't give you legal advice but they can clear up the process in your state/county.

 

[SwampAss]

wrong. 99% of the time when you decide to take a ticket to trial and if you lose, the judge is more than likely going to be a lot harsher with the fine than if you had just plead guilty

It is your right to have your case heard. You cannot be penalized for it.
In Va, your fine is stated before the court date. Paying over the phone = 100% guilt. You pay court costs here whether you show or not.

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

I just went through this with a ridiculously high speeding ticket (I was 100% guilty), There should be a number on the ticket you can call for questions. Most of how the courts work in these cases is state specific. Here in KY, if you have a ticket for which you have to appear, your first appearance is a pretrial hearing where the cop is not present, and often the DA will make you an offer for a reduced charge. If you decide you don't want to do that, you plead not guilty and they schedule an actual court date where the cop will appear. Bear in mind that in these cases the cops are often required to appear or they get written up, so they have plenty of motivation to appear. Also, this court date will be before the same judge as pretrial, so you run the risk of less mercy from the judge, especially if you act like an idiot.

I would call the number and ask all of these questions to get an idea what you are dealing with and how this works in your state. My goal was to minimize the long-term financial impact of the ticket (insurance rates) and I was able to do so in my pretrial discussion with the DA. Sorry, tickets suck, I hope you get it worked out.

 

[GoFast]

It is your right to have your case heard. You cannot be penalized for it.
In Va, your fine is stated before the court date. Paying over the phone = 100% guilt. You pay court costs here whether you show or not.

you are absolutely correct. However, It is at the judges discretion to give you whatever fine he/she feels appropriate within the law. And when you just plead guilty on a ticket that is a mandatory court required ticket, he/she tends to give you a slightly less penalty. But when you go through the entire process of a a "trial" and lose you are more likely to receive the maximum penalty.

 

[SwampAss]

See, with Va it's different. There is a pre-set fine for things like following too closely. Infractions like reckless driving require a court appearance. You cannot prepay those. Fines are assessed during your hearing.

 

[Sacrilicious]

See, with Va it's different. There is a pre-set fine for things like following too closely. Infractions like reckless driving require a court appearance. You cannot prepay those. Fines are assessed during your hearing.

i heard reckless driving in VA is like an over $1k fine...(blarf)

 

[SwampAss]

It also carries civil penalties. A reckless driving ticket can cost you in upwards of $3500 in civil penalties over 3 years. That law is currently under attack and HOPEFULLY becomes defeated. I think it's unconstitutional.

 

[Sacrilicious]

It also carries civil penalties. A reckless driving ticket can cost you in upwards of $3500 in civil penalties over 3 years. That law is currently under attack and HOPEFULLY becomes defeated. I think it's unconstitutional.

CIVIL PENALTIES?!?! (bang)

good lord. i'm really freakin glad my move to VA got delayed a year...hopefully, this law will get pwnd in the meantime? (2thumbs)

 

[GoFast]

personally my favorite state is NV. I just moved back to chicago from a 6 year stay out there and I must say i love the way traffic tickets work there. NV, atleast S.NV doesnt have a dedicated traffic court and if you are in court for a ticket you could be sitting next to a rapist, robber or a murderer while waiting to get your court case heard. With that in mind, traffic tickets really just clog up the court systems. SO there was a lawyer there named craig p. kenny, im sure there are others, that would go to court for you and 99.9% of the time get it reduced to a parking ticket. The best part is that there was no cost for the lawyer you only had to pay the parking ticket. it was great!