I got busted yesterday, and I was wondering if it would do me any good to show up for the court date. I have heard it can sometimes get you out of it, but how? And what would I say?
2006-07-20 03:10:13 · 13 answers · asked by Olive Green Eyes 5 in Politics & Government ➔ Law Enforcement & Police
This happened to me not too long ago....it was pretty much a huge waste of my time....I spent 2 1/2 hours sitting in traffic court (there were probably 120 people called before I was) hoping to get the fine reduced, but all I got was 1 point back on my license...I still had to pay the entire amount of the ticket...if you want to get your point(s) back, then I guess it's worth it, but I would tell you just to pay the fine...
2006-07-20 03:17:18 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
99% of the time that I go to traffic court, it is because the person that I wrote the ticket to doesn't want points on his or her license. Occasionally they will plead not guilty and loose 99.9% of the time. In fact I have only seen a handful of cases in which the judge has found the defendant in a traffic trial not guilty.
Also if you elect traffic court, in Florida at least, the judge or hearing officer can fine you up to $500, and you will have to pay court costs.
Also officers are under subpoena to appear in court. The officer could be held in contempt for not appearing, and many agencies discipline officers who fail to show up. That said, it's rare for an officer to not show up.
My advice is that if you were speeding, elect the school. You can usually take it online for about $20, which is cheaper than the court costs. And don't get caught in a lie because the judge or hearing officer will make sure that you remember it for some time.
2006-07-20 12:14:45 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The cop will typically show up to court. Do the crime, pay the fine. You'll basically have to prove you weren't speeding. They generally keep calibration records in the court house now, if you were caught on radar, so there's really no way to get out of it anymore unless you hire a traffic attorny, and then you still have to pay a fine AND the attorny, but you don't get points. You're just going to piss the judge off if you ask for the cop's certificate of training with the radar.
Also, Cosmo is dead wrong and that's an urban legend. Look it up on Snopes.
2006-07-20 10:15:08 · answer #3 · answered by sovereign_carrie 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have gotten out of many tickets.
If you go to court and the officer does not show up, often the magistrate will dismiss the charges. If you go to court and the officer does show up, just request the magistrate not impose any points on your license. Pay the fine and be done with it.
It's the points that kill you, not the price of the ticket. If you pay the ticket without going to school or attempting to go to court, you have points assessed to your license and that makes your insurance higher.
2006-07-20 10:14:47 · answer #4 · answered by brad_left_jenn_for_me 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only sure way to get out of a speeding ticket in court is if the officer who issued you the ticket fails to show up, the judge has to dismiss the charge if the officer fails to show up.
2006-07-20 10:14:40 · answer #5 · answered by boker_magnum 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't go to court if I know I deserved the ticket.
Once I got a ticket that I don't think was actually breaking a law...cop friends have told me they don't know what the one cop was thinking...anyway, I went to court to contest it, and when the judge called me up, she talked so loud and fast, I was totally intimidated! I have no idea what she said, but she ended with "Guilty or Not Guilty!" It was my first time ever in court, and I was so intimidated, I just whispered, "Guilty" and slunk out.
The second time, I went to court was when I got a ticket for not having a front license plate. I had been in a fender bender and the body shop that fixed my car said I didn't need a front license. I went to that body shop when I got the ticket, and they said, yeah, they'd been telling people that but that they'd stopped...they agreed to back me up, if I needed.
I showed up...more prepared than the first time and pled, no lo contendre....no idea what that means..but was advised to say that....I mentioned what happened with body shop and they dropped the ticket...subsequently, I got a front license plate.
2006-07-21 03:02:07 · answer #6 · answered by scruffycat 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you live in Cali its pretty unlikely that you'd be able to contest the ticket in court and hope to win. The courts weigh the testimony of an officer more heavily than they would a civilian driver. You can contest your ticket via mail in California and hope for the slight chance that the officer may not show-up in court in which case you'd win by default but thats taking your chances.
2006-07-20 10:36:48 · answer #7 · answered by sohrob76 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, and it cost more. A "friend" at DMV had erased my points and teh judge had my DMV printout and my traffic court record. Since I should have had enough points to lose my license, and he felt sorry for a soldier losing his license, I had to pay the $77 for speeding, $1000 to not lose my license and $375 of my Army Special Duty Pay (one month worth of Special Duty Pay) so I would learn my lesson.
Lesson learned, I have not had a ticket since this occurred in March 2000.
2006-07-20 10:20:00 · answer #8 · answered by Mark W 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have heard of something. You accept the ticket by going to court. But then when you pay the fine you pay it by a few cents over what it actually is. They then send a return check for however much money you payed them over. If you never cash that check, they will never cash yours. But that is just a rumor I heard.
2006-07-20 10:14:51 · answer #9 · answered by cosmo5847060 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes go and plead not guilty, in many ( and I do mean many cases) the officer who wrote the ticket never shows up for court, if he does not show up to testify, you ask the judge for a dismissal, they normally will,
2006-07-20 16:19:32 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋