Got a speeding ticket! What do i do!?

370ZGTR

I've gotten off by contesting the ticket. This is what you do:

1. Ask for extension for arraignment (most states can be done on-line, if not you have to go to court and ask the clerk for an extension) will give you new date for arraignment. (hopefully will be two months later).
2. Show up for court; arraignment, you can plea 1) guilty, 2)not guilty, or 3)no contest; plea not guilty, pay the bail, and the court will give you a trial date (a month to two months later).
3)Show up for trial; this is the tricky part, if the police officer doesn't show up, you win! Hopefully by this time, 5-6 months later from the initial ticket, the police officer will have forgotten about you and your ticket and will not show up. If he shows up, he has to prove to the court, detail by detail to what happened and why he/she gave you the ticket. I've gotten off from a speeding ticket this way. If you're still convicted and found guilty, just ask the judge if you can go to traffic school so that it doesn't go on your driving record and affecting your insurance.

Good luck!

Haboob

It must differ from state to state, because here if you go to court then you waive your right to go to traffic school.

I'd first call the traffic school and see if that's the case in your state.

Oh, and what I learned when I lost my contest in court (was hoping he wouldn't show) is that you must state how fast you were going. It's not criminal court, you're guilty the minute you walk in there.

martin82

Yes, it really varies by states, some you can just call the police department and ask for the number to be put in probation for 6month-1 year usually but only for that same county. I know I did this in Indiana and Illinois. From experience also, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and similar states you can just pay your uncle attorney, friend attorney $70-100 bucks and ticket disappears completely....but you gotta still pay the fine. There's pretty much always traffic school etc that you can do ^.

California is a b/iatch with tickets, so people try to context and extend as much as they can in hopes of the cop not showing up. A lot of judges obviously know this so if the cops shows up sometimes they say screw you no traffic school.....

FYI, I haven't gotten a ticket in ages, but when I was a teenager yes I was wreckless and probably got about 10 tickets but out in the midwest there is really nothing out there.......... luckily my uncle was an attorney, my friend's mom was a judge, and I knew the attorney general.... so all tickets were fixed for $0 pretty much.

dP3NGU1N

In California you pay for the right to go to traffic school. During the arraignment they will say that if you plead "not guilty" then you will be denied traffic school if you're found guilty in court; HOWEVER, even though it's up to the judge's discretion on whether or not to allow you traffic school the court system has incentive to give you traffic school because you pay the court extra for it (on top of the traffic school fee). California's on hard times right now and needs extortion, I mean ticket, fees in order to balance its checkbook.

As it stands cops are still paid for going to court and it will depend on whether he would rather do paper work or continue patrolling the highways. I'm going to go way out on a limb here and say he'd rather keep cruising in his charger.

Honestly if everyone who GOT a ticket would just take some time to fight it then the country's extortion scheme would be financially unfeasible. I blame sheep who automatically plead guilty for the concession prize of a "lowered fine" for allowing the courts to continue to lower speed limits and use that as an excuse to nickle and dime us.

martin82

Pretty much, also think of the time you waste instead of being at work, I'd say suck it up take the online class.

martin82

few more insight from the courts, it says 1 ticket in 18th months period will not show on your driving record check this out.

LASC - Traffic

you can request extension, traffic school, court date, etc through there it looks like.

http://www.lasuperiorcourt.org/traff...ficSchool.aspx

dP3NGU1N

Stupid double post... sorry

dP3NGU1N

All said and done fighting a ticket will cost you about 12 hours (from standing in line, court, etc.) spread out over several days. Avg speeding ticket just from my experience is anywhere between $350-$500 depending on the type of infraction (typically CVC22350 or 22351 will be in the low/mid range and account for 90% of speed related infractions). So you can do the math and determine whether or not 12 hours for $350 (lets argue the low end) is worth your time off from work.

Ofcourse OP was on the highway which I think has its own CVC altogether and probably carries a heftier fine.

Personally I fight every ticket I can because if you don't you also have to factor in cost of driving school + time spent at driving school (once again depending on infraction it could be as simple as an online course or an 8 hour driving class). The counter argument is that winning is never guaranteed which, ofcourse, will need to factor into your decision as well.

Z370Z011

You guys rock!
Ive never gotten a speeding ticket (just one for "taking" a red light) so i instantaneously panicked. Lol

Z370Z011

Honestly i wouldn't mind fighting it, but i don't want my insurance to go up higher than it already is. So id be scared to fight it, loose. And have my insurance go up. But with what martin82 said about it not being on record.. I have some thinking to do.
It would be nice to just make the ticket disappear lol

martin82

thats' what I saw from the website, check out the links, I don't know that fact from experience but what I just read on the LA court website.

Z370Z011

I got my ticket in santa barbara
Would it still count under the LA superior court? Or would that be a different jurisdiction?

Z370Z011

No frekin way! So i just got another citation trough the mail but its for not having up to date registration. And i never signed it. The cop just put owners responsibility. Cant i fight that one too? And say i never signed it. ?? Aghh

dP3NGU1N

I've lost a court appeal one time (judge was a ****) but like I said, the courts have incentive to allow you to take traffic school. Even after pleading not guilty and going to court, appealing, and being found guilty they still offered me traffic school along with a reduced fine.

There is NEVER a reason (legally; if you make so much money it's not worth your time that's another story, but then why are you asking for advice) not to fight your ticket.

The registration is a fix it ticket I believe. Once again, it would help to know exactly what the CVC is because the letter of the law is the most important in court cases not the spirit.

370Z_RACER

buy a radar detector