Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with speeding

Got a speeding ticket in Oregon. What options do I have?

Takeyourtime — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:18:44 -0800

Got a speeding ticket in Oregon. What options do I have? I took a trip the other day, first road trip to be exact.

As I was driving through La Grande I got pulled over for going 78 in a 65 MPH zone. It was my fault as I was previously driving in a 75 MPH and didn't notice the speed limit had changed. Plus I was a bit nervous and wasn't really paying attention.

Anyway the fine is $287 dollars (ouch). And of course no doubt an increase in my insurance rates. Now my question is. Is there anything I can do to get this ticket reduced or possibly not have an increase in my insurance?

The last ticket I got was over 10 years ago. My record is very clean. I would be willing to drive to Oregon if need be (I live in Idaho).

I do feel very sorry for what I did and accept full responsibility. I just don't think one honest mistake should cost over $1000 dollars (287 + insurance hike).

I heard there is an option to take driving school. If I do that do I have to pay the full ticket and take the driving school?

Basically if you can tell me my options. Or should I just plead guilty and suffer the consequences?

I got the ticket just 6 days ago.

Also any advise to help me stop beating myself up for this mistake? I can't get over it and its driving me crazy.

My speeding citation has turned into a shit snowball.

desjardins — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:19:22 -0800

Please help me navigate a mess involving an expired car registration, a speeding ticket, a lost insurance card, a license held as bond and a omg I can't even think. This involves Illinois and Wisconsin. 1. My car is registered in Illinois and I have an Illinois driver's license. The registration expires today; the license is good for awhile.

2. However, I'm (technically?) a Wisconsin resident, in that I have a lease on an apartment there, but I work in Illinois and sleep half the week in Illinois and the other half in WI. This is meant to be as temporary as humanly possible until I can stay permanently in WI.

3. I did not renew the registration yet because I was planning to get my Wisconsin license & registration this coming Friday, and hopefully avoid getting caught for the next 3 days while it's expired. Before I can register it in IL I have to get an emissions test. Of course, there will now be a late fee.

4. I got stopped for speeding today in a suburb of Chicago, I could not find my insurance card, and so I received another citation for that & my license was taken as bond. My court date is at the end of December. My driving record is otherwise clean.

5. So, I can't register my car in WI or get my WI license until I have my IL license back, correct? It's my understanding that if you have a valid license in another state, you have to forfeit it to get a WI license. I don't know about registering the car.

6. What's the ABSOLUTE CHEAPEST yet legal way to handle this? I am broke, like really broke, and the thought of having to pay to register my car in Illinois and then re-register it in WI when I get my license back is really disheartening.

7. I am freaking out and not thinking clearly, see above about being broke.

Speeding

yoyo_nyc — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:40:24 -0800

How can I find out if I have a speeding ticket in California? I once may have been cough at night speeding in Silicon Valley (automated system, flashed).

* The car was not rented by me but by a company that interviewed me (yeah, I know, bad idea to speed in this car).

* I got the car with my EU drivers license that does not have an address on it.

I never heard anything. How could I find out if I got a ticket and am obligated to pay it? It has been a couple of years already.

Speeding ticket, after the fact?

reductiondesign — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 13:47:43 -0800

HypotheticalLegalityFilter: If someone films or takes a picture of a car speeding (a civilian, not a traffic camera/police officer), can that footage later be used to issue a speeding ticket/some other fine or penalty? For example, three teenagers take their dad's convertible for a joyride and videotape the event. They go way over the speed limit—95 in a 50, let's say—but they don't get pulled over.

A week later, the video is on YouTube. The local sheriff sees the video. Can he legally do anything about it?

Also, what about running red lights and stop signs?

I'm in Georgia, but I'm interested in the U.S. in general. Differences between states would be even better.

Busted?

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 07:20:01 -0800

Photo-Radar Filter: How can I find out if I was issued a speeding ticket in Chicago? So, as I was leaving O'Hare and heading toward the city, I realized I was speeding just as I was merging onto 294 south of Rosemont. Now I'm worried I might have gotten a photo-radar ticket. This would be bad because I was not supposed to be there at that particular time.

I tried calling the city of Chicago and Cook County, but everyone I spoke to seemed as clueless as I. Is there any way to determine whether or not a ticket was actually issued? Does anyone out there know who I can call?

Please, MeFites, help me find out whether I need to preempt a photo of me in the wrong place at the wrong time by coming clean now.

How can my friend use a Mobile Trunking Scanner to avoid a speeding ticket while traveling across the US?

schindyguy — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:47:14 -0800

How can my friend use a Mobile Trunking Scanner to avoid a speeding ticket while traveling across the US? I have a friend that is planning a roadtrip across the US:

-Los Angeles to Las Vegas
-Las Vegas to Sedona, AZ
-Sedona, AZ to Albuquerque, NM
-Albuquerque, NM to Dallas, TX
-Dallas, TX to New Orleans, LA
-New Orleans, LA to Orlando, FL
-Orlando, FL to Miami, FL

He has bought the Uniden BCD996T Mobile Trunking Scanner in hope of using it to try and avoid a speeding ticket.

We are both complete newbs to CB, scanners, frequencies, etc.

After a some research I found out he should be listening in on 2 bands: police radio frequency bands and truckers frequencies (citizens band) CB radio. That way he can listen in on the truckers talking about speed traps and the police talking about whats going on in the area.

Will he need to use a frequency database to find the different codes (possibly provided at www.scannermaster.com)?

How do you program it to work in this manner?

Any suggestions in general for using it efficiently?

DC photo speeding ticket and insurance rates?

Anonymous — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:00:13 -0800

Will a DC photo enforcement speeding ticket affect insurance rates? I know that it will not increase the number of points assessed on my license, but is that definitely synonymous with not affecting insurance rates? Or is the information public for the insurance companies to do with as they see fit?

Validity of speeding ticket filled with errors?

those are my balloons — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:09:02 -0800

YASTAM (yet another speeding ticket) I received a citation for speeding the other day. All of the "driver" information is correct. (Just about) all of the vehicle information is wrong. Are there any outs? The aforementioned license information is all correct: my number, name, age, etc. However, the car's license tag, year, make, model, and arguably color are all wrong on the citation.

Would this get tossed in court? Should I hire a sleazy ticket defense firm? Should I pay my steep fine and be a newly-reformed grand citizen? Is this worth fighting?

No points = No insurance increase?

mrflibble — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 01:41:46 -0800

Does insurance still increase if no points are awarded in a speeding infraction? If so, how severely?

29mph over in Michigan - Idiot step brother - 79 in a 50 - What are we looking at?

mrflibble — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 10:52:10 -0800

Michigan Speeding - Step brother got hit for going 79 in a 50 - 29 friggin miles over in a car i co-signed ... info no where to be found on MI.gov... He wasn't pleasant with the cop who did in fact write the entire 29 miles over on the ticket probably due to both attitude and radar detector on dash.

The 50 mph road was Gratiot, for those not familiar with the road it's 3-4 lanes each side with businesses and strip malls along it. Nothing country or highwayish about it.

I know they aren't going to give him any leeway whatsoever. 29 is completely different from say even 10 over, even on a first offense.

One theory is this constitutes Felony Speeding here in michigan, possible jail time... They sent a letter for the court date, not the typical pay or contest letter.

I've searched and searched... DMV.gov, MI.gov/sos .. can't find anything with a decent breakdown of violations and their penalties.

I just can't believe how stupid..... just looking for some way to prepare..

Thanks

Please help lead-foot Liquado locate leniency

liquado — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:34:59 -0800

Ontario speeding ticket advice: How can I best plead my case tomorrow to the JP? Long story short: I got a ticket for going 125km in a 90 zone (don't get me started on the situation -- asshole cop when I was a perfectly-behaved victim). Fine is $265 (ouch).

I fully acknowledge that I was travelling too fast, and should have been going slower. Travelling to a meeting four hours away, I had been stuck behind two prefab house/wide load trailers for 40 km previous, on a winding, wilderness highway, and out of frustration, put the hammer down when I finally was able to pass. Add to it that I was on a downhill when he clocked me. Bottom line? Still my fault, but it would have been nice to get a bit of leniency.

My driving record is quite clean (a 15km over ticket last summer, other than that, no accidents, etc. in the last 7 years), and I plan to plead guilty with an explanation. I've never been to court, before a judge or JP, and am looking for some advice on what they are going to listen to, or want to hear.

(The one positive going for me is that the JP on the bench could be a very good friend who I've done work for in the past, but I don't want to count on that for anything.)

YANML, but I'm grateful for any advice.

Fight a speeding ticket on the grounds of inaccurate radar?

kraigory — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:32:35 -0800

I got a speeding ticket, but there was a car next to me that was speeding, while I was not. What is the likelihood that I can argue this in court? Here are the details:

I was traveling south on a road with two lanes going each direction, and a turn lane in the middle. It was about 1am, so late at night, and it was dark. I was in the left lane, and a crazy teenager was in the right lane next to me, passing me on the right, playing super loud music with his subwoofers turned up.

The police officer was sitting on the other side of the road, facing north. As I came around a turn, about 100 yards from him, and entered a downhill straightaway towards him. He turned on his headlights rather quickly, and pulled in behind us. There was also one car behind the speeding car to my right.

The car on my right was in the process of passing me when the officer clocked me. I would like to contend that he could've clocked the car next to me instead of my car.

Also, the officer could have been tired, as when he brought me the ticket, he said "I'm only going to get you for the speeding, not your license." I gave him a questioning look, and he looked at my license, and said "Oh... you're 19... not 18... nevermind." I asked him what the problem was, and he said "Nothing... I'm just loosing my mind." I assume he was going to fine me for being out past curfew as well, although I didn't think there was a curfew for 18 year olds.

Additionally, I cannot make the assigned court date, as I will be in college. I think it won't be very hard to delay the court date at least 6mo or so, maybe more. By then, the officer may not remember the situation as clearly.

What do you think my chances are in court? What arguments will he use against me, in order to prove that it was indeed me that was speeding? And, how can I combat these arguments?

Thanks!

Quite a snafu at court today

bagels — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:59:35 -0800

I just had a court date for speeding. I found out they have a warrant on me specifically due to a legitimate error on the ticket. I got a speeding ticket during the July 4th weekend. I was given a ticket with a court date of today at a specific time. I planned on pleading "Not Guilty" and showing my GPS readouts indicating I never exceeded the posted limits (regardless of whether or not that defense is legal).

The good part -- I get there and they have a warrant out for me, saying I missed my court appointment. The clerk could not find the date that the court thought it was, just that I had missed it.

I showed her my ticket, which clearly stated July 16. She said, "Hmm, that's strange, it does say July 16." They do not hold court on Wednesdays. I was then rescheduled for Monday.

I asked if the ticket could be dismissed. The clerk said that was impossible without the judge, who would only be there Friday or Monday. Friday is not possible for me due to work. Monday morning is when they deal with the "weekend problems," so she indicated it could be a long wait.

The question: There seems to be some way I should be able to get out of this situation. The clerk of courts said the police officer was probably just confused. Is making me show up at a "false" court date/time legal? Is there some specific legal rule or procedure I need to call upon?

I am in Ohio.

Might wanna watch your speed in Wyoming, partner...

konolia — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 11:17:00 -0800

So...what's with jail terms for speeding tickets in Wyoming? My twenty-three year old son got a call last week from one of his fellow newly graduated buddies...seems the buddy was pulled over for speeding in Wyoming and given THREE DAYS IN JAIL for it.

THREE DAYS.

My son got pulled over for speeding in Colorado and just got a warning.

Granted, from what he tells me, the roads in Wyoming are long, straight, uncrowded, and very tempting to use when trying to see what your car will do. But three days in the pokey?

So, what is the scoop on this?

How to deal with a speeding ticket, given the notoriety of this particular ticketing police force?

NikitaNikita — Sun, 18 May 2008 20:45:34 -0800

How does a driver with a squeaky-clean record (previous to this) handle a speeding ticket from a town that has national notoriety for a history of shady ticketing practices? I've never been issued a speeding ticket before, and was issued a ticket this past Saturday, about 45 min outside the city I live in. Details: 83 in a 70 mph zone, on the interstate on a clear day. I was tagged by a laser, as opposed to a radar gun, apparently, as well. The fine is approx $210, and the officer said I can probably attend driving school to get points removed from my license -- this school costs about $125, on top of the fine, of course.

I'm looking for any advice about what to do about this ticket, and whether to contest it in court. I've gotten such a wide variety of conflicting answers in my internet search and chats with locals. I don't know what court fees will cost, yet. I suppose I can find this out A lot of people asking this question online seem to have multiple offenses, and dont mention this driving school option, so I guess I'm trying to weigh the court/contesting route against paying for everything like fine and or/the school. I'm also a freshly minted Ph.D. with no signed contract on a job yet, so, yeah, money is a bit of an issue.

But, perhaps even more of an issue is that I found out from local friends that this particular city is a notorious speed trap. Then, in looking this up on the internet, I found several articles that chronicle the speed trap reputaion, and the town's move to remove the mayor, based on mandates regarding ticketing, and possible racial profiling.

See here:
local paper: State sues to remove mayor and another
New York Times
Wikipedia

This confuses me even more, in terms of my ability to contest or argue down my charges/fine. On one hand, this news makes me want to argue against it more. (I'm not hispanic, but I'm multi-ethnic. Apparently hispanic looking enough that people will walk up to me and speak spanish. "Solomente un pocito espanol! lo siento!")

Then again, I think to myself, "Without documented proof of your speed, how can you ever beat this?" In general, I'm NOT an ass or speed demon on the roads, like a lot of people. However, I'm getting tanner with every sunny day. This can't possible help me showing up in court, I'd imagine.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Fight the system!

GrooveStix — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 21:53:11 -0800

Help me fight a traffic ticket. :( I got stopped by the cops today and received one 'speeding' and one 'disregarding a stop sign' ticket. Both of them are BS and I intend on fighting them in court. So I have two questions.

1. Is it possible for me to find out what evidence is going to be used against me? I am asking this because I don't know if they have any evidence of me speeding, because I wasn't. They didn't even bring that up when they were talking to me. Mainly they talked to me about the stop sign, so I was very surprised to see that they added that as a civil infraction too. The ticket says: Violation of basic speed. Too fast. [too furious?!] :)

2. I say they because there were two cops - one car, and they both came out when I was pulled over. The other one stood at the passenger window. I wanted to know if both of them need to show up in court for the hearing, or just one of them.

By the way, this happened in Michigan, if that helps.
Thanks!

Help me keep my vinyl (record) clean, please. ;)

wierdo — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:02:27 -0800

Anyone know a good traffic attorney in New Hampshire? So I was in New Hampshire a couple of days before Christmas and found myself on the receiving end of a ticket for 18 over the speed limit. Since I'm halfway across the country, my standard "show up at the arraignment, plead not guilty, call the DA and plea bargain" won't work too well. The fine isn't the issue (it's only $250), but I don't take well to having a blemished driving record, so I need an attorney, or perhaps some advice specific to New Hampshire on how to plead out without showing up, if that's even possible up there, since many states in the northeast seem to not bother with prosecutors and such for traffic tickets.

It's in Laconia District Court.

Yeah, what you have right here is your classic kangaroo court.

joshrholloway — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 19:37:04 -0800

Multiple requests for dismissal in a trial I just took part in were denied, even though they seemed to be extremely basic and logical. Do I have any recourse? I received a speeding ticket in November for traveling 36 miles per hour in a 20 mile per hour speed zone. The area this ticket was given in has extremely exorbitant fines and I don't believe I am guilty of this crime.

I examined case laws and how court proceedings should go in these instances, and I thought I was extremely well-prepared for this case. I went in for my trial this evening and I felt that the "impartial" judge had a blatant disregard for the law and legal precedent.

The first sign of trouble came when I pointed out to the judge that there was no prosecutor present and asked him if he would be serving as prosecutor. Of course, based on the US Constitution, a judge cannot act as both a prosecutor and a trier of facts in the same trial. He said that no, he was not acting as prosecutor, but that the police officer who issued my citation was. I immediately asked for dismissal based on the fact that the officer could not be prosecutor and witness in the same trial because she would be questioning herself. From everything I read before the trial, this is a very obvious and standard legal precedent that any judge should agree with. He denied my request for dismissal without any reason, and because I had chosen not to testify, he said I could not speak other than to cross-examine the officer.

I was puzzled, but I moved on, hopeful, because I had prepared a layered defense. After the officer gave her testimony, it was clear that she did not recall me personally from any sort of independent recollection, as she had to refer to her notes for details, and she completely overlooked a rather memorable incident that occurred at the same time of the citation. I pointed this out and asked for dismissal based on lack of independent recollection. Again, I was denied without reason.

I should also say that this officer seemed completely clueless about radar, and she had no idea that they had to be calibrated at all. She did not even know what audio Doppler was. After I grilled her, she claimed in her testimony that the self-test when the radar was turned on was enough to calibrate it. Even knowing that the self-test only checks circuitry and not accuracy, I could not make any statement to this effect because I was not giving testimony.

Again I trudged on. All the case law I had read claimed that it was an widely-recognized precedent that radar units must be tested with external means (tuning fork, frequency beat oscillator, etc.) before and immediately following a reading in order to be considered accurate to a legal degree of certainty. The officer had already stated that evening that the radar units were only tested internally, and only at the beginning of the day. I asked her this again and she again confirmed this fact. She also could not produce evidence after questioning that the radar units were calibrated at all. Again I asked for dismissal, this time based on a complete lack of evidence. Once again, denied by the judge.

After this I was starting to get the idea that this judge really didn't want to hear what I had to say and instead was going to say whatever it took for me to pay this fine. I gave a rather well-thought-out (I thought so, anyway) closing argument, hoping that this would finally sway him. Without much in the way of explanation, he found me guilty. He asked if I wanted to take traffic school and I told him no, that I would be appealing his ruling.

I'm in Tennessee. This ruling was made in a very, very small town, in what I can now see was a classic kangaroo court. I feel that I accurately presented my case, and I feel that the legal precedents and even the Constitution was ignored in my case. Heck, after I left the courtroom, two police officers advised me to appeal because they said I had an "excellent cross-examination."

So, short of taking this thing to an appeal trial, which will likely cost more than just paying the fine, do I have any routes of legal action to take considering this judge outright ignored the law? I mean, when I had two police officers, one of which who said he was in charge of radar for this town, tell me my case was good, what can you say? I know most of you aren't lawyers, but is there something else I should know here about what my recourse is? If I do appeal this and post the bond on my warrant, do I get that back after the trial? What can I do here?

NY traffic lawyer

Anonymous — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 06:49:38 -0800

Any recommendations for traffic lawyers in upstate NY (speeding ticket)? Preferably something of the flat-fee, won't rob you blind variety.

How do masons communicate?

jimbaud — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 03:44:21 -0800

Masonfilter: If I were pulled over by the police for a minor infraction (35 mph in a 30 zone) and I wanted them to know that I was a member of the masons, how would I do this? Obviously Masonic police officers NEVER do favours for civillian masons while in uniform. However, in a situation that offers limited mobility and opportunities for a handshake how could one communicate a shared affiliation?

Address Correction on Speeding Ticket

emptybowl — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 08:28:35 -0800

Who do I contact to have the address corrected on my recent speeding ticket? I got a speeding ticket over the weekend on the DC Beltway in Prince George's County, Maryland. After driving away, however, I realized I neglected to give the officer my addendum card with my current address on it meaning the address on the ticket is 3 years old. (I don't know how it is in other states, but in Maryland, rather than paying for a completely new card when you have an address change, you can get an official piece of paper that has your new address on it)

My record is squeaky clean, so I plan to go to court in hopes of PBJ, but I don't want the court summons to be sent to the wrong address. I have no idea who to contact to get it corrected, though. The only phone number on the ticket is an automated system for finding out your court date. Can anyone help?

Photo radar speeding ticket issued by mail: do you really have to pay it?

sportbucket — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 12:47:27 -0800

I've heard that it's easy to get photo radar tickets thrown out, especially tickets that are delivered by mail. Is this realistic, or is it one of those "you don't have to pay federal income tax" things? I was ticketed by photo radar [Portland, OR] for going 43mph in a 30mph zone, but a 40mph speed limit sign is visible about 100 yards in front of where the van was parked. They got a picture of my face, but I was wearing a hat, and you can't see my eyes. Additionally, they sent the ticket to my parents' house, where the car is technically registered, but I don't actually live there anymore. It's not a ton of money ($100 or so), but I'd rather not have this on my record, if only for insurance reasons. Can I beat it?

Most of the info Google has pulled up on the subject says they're easy to beat, but is several years old and not specific to Oregon, so I'm a little wary. Some author in Arizona advises people to simply not respond to mailed tickets, but I'm a little worried about this thing spiraling out of control if I don't take care of it promptly.

Advice Sought on Yet Another Speeding Ticket Questions

tuxster — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 12:29:24 -0800

SpeedingTicketFilter: I just got a ticket for going 85 at a limited highway (70mph speed limit), outside of Detroit, MI (on I275). The problem is I had my cruise set at 74, so I know for a fact that I couldn't be going that fast. How do I fight it? Ok, here are more facts:

1) Not my first speeding ticket, I've gotten others before: never on a highway, usually for going 30 on a 25mph road (none of my tickets are more than 5 over the limit, which has no points associated with it in Michigan). I seem to average about a ticket per year, not all speeding but all very minor - failure to yield at a stop sign, etc. I've never been involved in accidents. I always pay the tickets, because I know I'm guilty, but this time it's different.

2) I had my 10-month old baby in the car and I was in no hurry, so I was going at the speed of the traffic and not doing any aggressive stuff like changing lanes, etc. I know that Michigan is an absolute-speed-limit state, so "going at the speed of traffic" is not a valid reason (at least not one you argue in the court). But, the fact of the matter is I was going at a safe speed, with other cars on the traffic. As part of the normal traffic flow, I passed some cars, and other cars passed me. In fact, just 30 seconds before I got stopped, a car passed me on the left, and two other cars zoomed passed me on the right, so I know I wasn't going THAT fast, nor was I the fastest on the road.

3) When I saw the sirens at my back, I looked at my speedometer and indeed it was at 74. I had my foot of the gas pedal too, so I couldn't have accidentally been speeding either.

4) The cop told me that he clocked me first at 88 and then at 85. Very respectfully, I told him that I didn't see how it was possible, and explained to him everything above (cruise set, baby in the back, in no hurry, checked speedometer, cars passed me 30 seconds ago). He said he didn't care and that I could argue that in court if I wanted to, and wrote me a ticket for 85; so 15 over the speed limit.

This was on the 29th of the month, so I am convinced that he was trying to meet his quota and was on the hunt (again, I know this isn't something I could use in the court). It was also dusk, so it is quite possible that he confused me with one of the other cars that passed me moments before.

However, even though I'm convinced that I wasn't going that fast, all of the above arguments is "you said - he said", obviously I have no documentation to prove anything I said and I wouldn't be surprised for the judge to believe the officer's word over mine.

I don't mind paying the fee, but 15 over also comes with 2 points. So if I was able to have it reduced to 5 over, I get no points and thus no impact on my insurance (plus that was really what my speed was, so it would be fair).

I read the dozen or so AskMF threads on the topic, and did some Googling. As usual, there is more misinformation on the Internets than real info, but there was some good stuff on ExpertLaw, and WorldLawDirect and Nolo, among others.

I called the court and they gave me two options: "appear before a magistrate with the officer present and argue your case; It's all-or-nothing. Or, appear before a prosecutor and the judge, and try to negotiate a lesser fine". I chose the latter.

What should my strategy be at the court? I know I need to dress nicely and be humble that I shouldn't piss off the judge, the prosecutor, or the officer. But, do I tell the truth and hope that they listen to me to negotiate a lesser penalty? Or, do I follow some of the harsher --and time consuming-- tactics of reading up on the case law and questioning things like the calibration and maintenance records of the device, the training of the officer, etc. to try to find a technical way to have the case dismissed? I don't have a lawyer training, nor necessarily the time to become a self-designated lawyer in the 15 days I have before appearing at the court. I could read some of the stuff but obviously will never be as knowledgeable as the prosecutor.

So, to summarize the questions are:

1) Does anybody have experience with the 35th District Court in Plymouth to give me an idea how things go at that court?

2) Is it worth getting a lawyer for this and how much would it cost?

3) Do any of those e-books sold on the Internet for fighting speeding tickets worth buying (personally they all look like scam, but I would be interested to hear if anyone tried them)? (1) (2) (3) (4) etc.

4) How do you negotiate with a prosecutor? Before, the date of the court? Early that morning? During the court? What do you say? How do you approach him? Is this the same everywhere, or does it change from state to state, court to court?

5) If I should argue it myself, what should my strategy be? Go for the honest truth and hope for justice, or try to win on a technicality, or a third strategy?

Thanks, if you've patiently read so far :)

Do I want a jury of my peers?

jammer — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 19:44:59 -0800

Should I request a jury trial for my (arguably invalid) speeding ticket? I was ticketed this weekend for doing 38 in an area with an artificially lowered speed limit of 25. This was on a side street off of a main thoroughfare where the speed limit drops immediately from 45 to 25.

Illinois vehicular code requires that all signs indicating a reduced limit be positioned so that they can be observed by a "reasonably alert" person. This particular sign is positioned approximately three feet directly behind a large lamp-post that blocks it from most angles.

There is a second speed limit sign further around the bend. However, the officer who clocked me on radar did so only 400 feet from the sign. Illinois code refuses to admit electronic speed readings taken within 500 feet of a sign as evidence of a speeding violation.

Given that the first sign was obscured, and the citing officer was within the 500 foot limit from the second sign, I feel I have a good chance of getting this one dismissed.

Here's the question: In Illinois, I have a right to a jury trial for this infraction, should I request it. Am I more likely to find a sympathetic jury than judge, given this information, or would a judge be more likely to rule fairly on this than a bunch of grumpy jurors annoyed at having to take a day off work? Any experience and/or suggestions?

(Yes, you are not my lawyer. And also, please remember the AskMe rules, and address the question, not whether or not I was knowingly or unknowingly in violation of the law)

Northfield's finest have nothing better to do...

allkindsoftime — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 06:38:29 -0800

North Chicago suburbs speeding ticket with a CA drivers license. To plead guilty or not? Just off of North-bound 94 late last night, I realized I had gotten off an exit too early and took a road parallel to the freeway to head up to my hotel. Unfortunately I was doing freeway speed in a 35mph (Northfield, IL, fwiw).

He said he clocked me at 46mph and then paced me up to over 70mph. He first said 80mph but he realized I was contrite and really didn't think I hit even 70, so he wrote me up for 65 in a 35, or 30 over (31 would have involved handcuffs apparently). The actual description on the ticket says "Speeding (Paced) 65/35."

My options:

A) Plead guilty, pay $95. Conviction is reported to the Sec of State for entry on my public driving record. No court appearance.

B) Plead guilty, pay $135, go to traffic school, no court appearance or public record entry.

C) Plead not guilty, request court hearing.

Please note that I have a California drivers license - I've had other out-of-state tickets where I've paid the fine and never seen anything show up on my CA record. That said, I work here in IL on a weekly basis so my main concern is that they keep a state record and I get in bigger trouble the next time I get pulled over.

So, two questions:

1) Which of the three options, and why?

2) Do they keep a state record on out-of-state licenses that should make me consider an option other than A (which I'm currently leaning towards)?