Zastava_101

Would you agree with cops when they pull you over for driving 15 mph?
By the way, he told me I was speeding. Didn't get the ticker, but I had to listen to lecture for 30 min.

Treadhead

I think he is gonna try the "I hope the Officer doesn't show up for court" defense. It's worth a try. Here in Ft Worth we are required to show up at court for the tickets we write and we better have a good excuse if we don't.

Mongoose

MR rrobello only about !% win in traffic court and I'll bet even less in your state where I got a ticket for going too slow when I ran out of gas and was trying to get off the freeway. I was so glad to get out of that state.

Here is your drill if you fight it.
You will go to court several times. You will loose more in wages that the fine is.
The judge will listen to your story.
The cop will tell his with a video of you.
You will be found guilty
You will pay fine and get some points
You will attend driving school maybe for several nights.
If you do not do most of above you will go to jail (been there done that)
Your insurance will go up.
The cops have a saying Make Your Own Case ( this is for real ) and they will allow you to talk yourself into a ticket like saying you were doing 95 you respond with no I was not going over 80 for sure.
GOT YA You can also go to jail for lieing to the cops but they do not when they lie to you. ROLL ON

rrobello

ok first off for those that obviously didnt read my entire post, I was not whining, just stating the facts of the story, in fact at the end of my post I even said "go ahead and start the flaming. I deserve."

Second as for the fighting yes I am hoping that he doesnt show and then I am off, its worth showing up and if he does I change my plea to no contest and hopefully then can get a reduction in the fine, for those that dont know how traffic court works. I never said I was going to lie. And as for the odds of winning or having it dismissed because the officer doesnt show it happens more often than you think, its just that most people dont try. There is a lawyer here in SD called Mr. Ticket that will win your case for small fee, I have used him in the past and won, and have several friends who have used him and have won every time. I myself have gone in and defended myself and won and went with a girlfriend once and the cop showed up and then made a dumb comment about why he pulled her over and the judge threw it out. So it is possible to win without lying. Just try and if you do lose than pay it and take the class and have it kept from your record.

TBird Ted

Worked for a guy, who got a ticket for 10 over here in Michigan. He was really going 25 over but the cop took pity. He called his lawyer and asked if there was anything he could do to void the ticket so it wouldn't raise his insurance. (By the way - he's a millionare.) Lawyer checked and told him to write a check for $75.00 to a township fund. If he did, the judge wouldn't show up for the hearing. Wrote the check and never heard about it again.

Ted

rrobello

what just exactly howd that one work? why wouldnt the judge show because of his doing that?

outdoorstom

Oh, that sounds legal! :scratch:

Anonymae Incognito

Some of you need to watch Smokey and the Bandit

rrobello

No Mufflers??

No Mufflers?

You're on the street with no mufflers?

:shock:

How loud is she? Sound good?
[/b][/quote]

Yes no Mufflers and it sounds sick. Nice and loud and throaty, just like the good ol muscle cars. Occasionally gives a small back fire pop that sounds really good too.

Oceansize72

I don't think Mongoose said you were whining, I think he was just quoting a song having to do with getting pulled over.

For what it's worth, I don't think you were whining either.

If it were me, however, I wouldn't fight it...after all you know that you deserve the ticket. And if it makes you think twice about doing 95 again (for an extended period of time ), then it achieved it's purpose. But if you can go to traffic school to avoid the points on your record, then by all means go for it.

It sounds like you speed A LOT, if you've been through this whole process so many times. I hope you never have to learn the hard way what it feels like to cause injury or death to another person...because believe me, after you look at that person's family in the eyes, you'll wonder what the big deal was with going fast all the time. I'm not implying that you aren't a very good judge of your surrounding when you make the decision to speed (since I get the impression that you are), I'm simply saying that I hope you think about such things when you DO speed.

Anonymae Incognito

Speeding is OFTEN irrelevant. Most of the time, things come down to general driver competence. Look at the Autobahn... it's the safest major freeway system in the world, yet it has no speed limits

rrobello

Thanks I didnt recognize the song. As for having gone through this before I must admit when I was younger I was a lot more relaxed about watching my speed and I was a young kid driving a nice black mustang that still stands out on the road, so I was an easy target. But all in all I have actually recieved very few tickets in my 10 years of driving(and this is the first one in at least 5 years), but when I have I did pursue it and learned quickly how the system works. I dont see why not roll the dice and see what happens by showing up to court, it is everyones right to do so, and if the officer does not feel that it is important enough to show up to defend his giving you a ticket than I do not see why one should have to pay for the fine; as do the courts obviously since they drop the case. I realize I shouldnt be speeding and I do become very aware of my surroundings when I do and analyze if I would possibly be putting other people in jeopardy (this is why I do not ever speed with someone in my car), but I also think that personally I do not need to pay an expensive fine to learn my lesson, being pulled over is enough to slow me down and I have been even more cautious than normal lately. And perhaps the officer doesnt show up because in his judgement he just might feel the same way that given the circumstances and who he was dealing with that being pulled over is enough to get that person to rethink their actions. And if you think that paying a fine is your duty because you were in the wrong and deserve it then you should also not attend traffic school to have the point removed after all you were at fault and this is your punishment and you deserve it. Why stop at paying the fine, the law has already determined that you should be further penalized beyond the fine by having a point system and having your insurance effected as a result, but they also have allowed for those found guilty to take responsibilty for their actions and redeam themselves and make penance for their actions without having to condemn them for the rest of their lives. The US is so great because of its laws and its understanding that people are not perfect and will make mistakes and while holding them responsible for those actions it still allows them to change and have a second chance. And in the case of speeding it is that you have the right to defend yourselve in court, either to have the fine removed or reduced (and they do penalize the morons that make it worse for themselves in court with stupid comments like I was only going 80 by adding to the fine) and the opportunity to have the points removed from your record.
SO I will excercise my rights as a citizen of the United States and have my day in court and see what happens.

rrobello

While I agree with you that it really depends on the driver, the problem here in the United States is that it is often not in your hands all of the time with so many people on the road. Majority of them are numbskulls who cant drive and at any given moment can affect even the best drivers abilities in the most disasterous ways. While speed does not mean you are going to die, it will make those odds much higher when one of these tools decide to run a red light or cut you off or break any of the laws.

As for the Autobahn, they do have speed limits as you approach city limits. They have speed minimums and you must only use the left lane to pass, both of these are heavily enforced and is one of the reasons why the Autobahn is so safe. Also in Germany they make it very difficult to obtain a drivers license and it is pretty costly not to just obtain a license but also to have a car when one is not needed a much as they are here to get around. So only those that are serious about it obtain one and once they do they are cautious to keep it, all in all for the most part there are more adept drivers on the Autobahn then there are on our freeways.

HastaLaVista

You should have to pay because you committed the offense.

This is a fairly simple concept.

[clipped the remainder of the rambling, including the absurd flag-waving]

Talk about protesting too much.

If you get out of the ticket, it reduces the deterrent for you and others, as you'll think you can just get out of the ticket again in the future. As you wrote: "There is a lawyer here in SD called Mr. Ticket that will win your case for small fee, I have used him in the past and won, and have several friends who have used him and have won every time."

You obviously knew this before you were caught this time. If the penalty for speeding were higher (say license suspension until you had your day in court a month or two later), you'd probably be much more reluctant to speed. As it is, you can maybe get it reduced, get the impact on your point/insurance reduced, and go right back to doing it just to get out of it again next time.

RiverDiver

I don't understand what the big deal is. He got pulled over and it's his right to go to court and try to get it reduced or thrown out all together. Sometimes pleading No Contest help, my local judge throws out cases all the time based on driver record or reduces fines and no points assessed. I'm an ex police officer and I know that alot more than 1% are thrown out. Plus everyone is bashing like they never ever spped under no circumstances. Come on give me a break, he admitted he done wrong, but hoping for a better outcome. Just my $.02

rrobello

You should have to pay because you committed the offense.

This is a fairly simple concept.

[clipped the remainder of the rambling, including the absurd flag-waving]

Talk about protesting too much.

If you get out of the ticket, it reduces the deterrent for you and others, as you'll think you can just get out of the ticket again in the future. As you wrote: "There is a lawyer here in SD called Mr. Ticket that will win your case for small fee, I have used him in the past and won, and have several friends who have used him and have won every time."

You obviously knew this before you were caught this time. If the penalty for speeding were higher (say license suspension until you had your day in court a month or two later), you'd probably be much more reluctant to speed. As it is, you can maybe get it reduced, get the impact on your point/insurance reduced, and go right back to doing it just to get out of it again next time.
[/b][/quote]



And maybe they should impound your car the next time you don't signal while making a lane change on an empty road.

Oceansize72

Yes, comparing the Autobahn to U.S. Freeways isn't really fair. And while there is a lot of talk about the speed of the Autobahn, there isn't much talk about the deadly accidents.

My only response regarding fighting the ticket is that the reason you have a choice of fighting the ticket is because our system recognizes that officers are fallible, and that citizens should have the right to disagree with the officer. I've fought a ticket myself before, and won even though the officer showed up, because I truly did feel he was a moron, and I was able to persuade the judge. The fact is in this case, however, that you do NOT disagree with the officer, which means you are basically taking advantage of the system. I'm not judging, I agree you have the choice and the right to use the law to your advantage...it's just not a decision I would make for myself. Honestly, the reason has just as much to do with my ideals as it does with the fact that I hate going to court more than I hate paying tickets. Hence the beauty of traffic school...pay the dough, ditch the points.

The ironic thing about traffic school is, each time I've gone I've learned a new way to "beat the system" so to speak. For example, one time I learned that (in CA), speed limit signs that are black-on-yellow are only SUGGESTIONS, and that you can't actually be given a speeding ticket for exceeding those limits (although an officer CAN give you a reckless driving ticket if he feels your speed was excessive, regardless of what the actual limit is). Blakc-on-white are the actual limits.

I also learned that you CAN change lanes in an intersection, again, as long as the maneuver is not considered reckless.

I take advantage of those lessons all the time. Thanks, Traffic School!

rrobello

Thanks. I knew someone out there had some common sense.

Oceansize72

Just want to clarify...I'm not bashing, and I don't think it's a big deal (although I do feel that someone who drives 95 in traffic IS a big deal). We're just discussing justifications used in fighting tickets, IMO.

I also understand that conditions vary greatly from locale to locale. I live in the heart of Southern California, where traffic on the freeways is ALWAYS dense (except maybe between 2am and 4am). There is rarely an opportunity to drive 95 without putting someone else in danger.

rrobello

Black on Yellow Speed Limit Signs? Where are those? Thats good to know. And yeah isnt that funny how traffic school teaches you how to get out of tickets. My friend took one from an ex cop who told the class that if you want to speed on the freeways, the way to go about it so that you are less likely to be noticed. And how if you assert your rights at the time of the ticket and ask a lot of questions that they are obligated to answer the officer might very well get tired of it and give up and let you go or if they do not answer or provide requested info then you have grounds to have it dismissed in court (basically annoy the cop until he gives up). I have experienced times when the cop was just a complete tool and fought it based on principle and I was right, and I too won, but unlike you I am not truly bothered by spending half an hour in court to not pay the fine or have it reduced and am more bothered by wasting my time in Traffic School. If you actually go to school then it takes much longer then it would to just go to court and adds to the cost as well. Its a good thing they allow you to do it on the internet now and it only takes 15 minutes from start to finish.