I have a question about speeding tickets

[los panda]

it wasn't unusual to see a dozen cops a day in howard county. i see about a dozen a month out here. i don't drive like an animal anymore anyway, i have 1 speeding ticket in the last 4 years

i have never got out of a ticket in court, i've always had the fine cut in half. i did get out of a ticket once on the way back from funtime. i think i was 17 or 18. my eyes were so red he had to have known i had sinned, it was almost 2am i told him my mom didn't know i took the car out, had to have it back before 2am. he checked my record, which was clean a whistle, and let me go

[That Guy]

okay, here's the deal with tickets - this is mainly experience with fairfax co, but i imagine its about the same most places.

the officer's word is fact in the eyes of the judge. you can't talk to the officer, but if you have a lawyer, he can talk to the officer on your behalf (and normally they're pretty decent people).

show up (WITH a lawyer if at all possible) - best case, the cop doesn't show (it happens, but it's one day a month for all their tickets, so it's really bad on them if they miss court). your lawyer can probably talk to the cop and getting it down to if he's reasonably well liked... i've seen 15mph over go down to failure to obey a sign. judges also tend to get the lawyered defendants in and out of the courthouse a lot quicker.

second best case (and likely without a lawyer) - if you've got a clean record, you'll likely be told you have the option to take an online class ($60 and 4 hours or so) and the charge will disappear. even though this takes the time for court and the class, it's just as good as getting it dismissed basically.

worst case you get stuck with it. arguing wagainst the cops word won't work, appealing won't get you anywhere, so it's not worth bothering with that. you can ask if the radar was calibrated (that CAN get the ticket kicked) but in fairfax co, they keep their stuff updated and on hand from everything i've seen.

have certified driving records btw... the dmv can print them out, ask for the one used for court (there are 3 different versions, personal being 10 years, then like a 2 and 5 year one or something for court or employment or whatever). It cost almost nothing.

you can also have an auto shop check your speedometer, that's usually good for knocking 2-3mph off.

[DynamiteRave]

I've gotten out of 2 tickets so far.

One, being on my cell phone in DC and 2, going 85+ in a 65 (I-270)

My family is notorious for getting speeding tickets in Dinwiddie county VA (I-85, Virginia heading into NC) and I'm heading down to NC this weekend.

*knocks on wood*

[mredskins]

Originally Posted by los panda

it wasn't unusual to see a dozen cops a day in howard county. i see about a dozen a month out here. i don't drive like an animal anymore anyway, i have 1 speeding ticket in the last 4 years

i have never got out of a ticket in court, i've always had the fine cut in half. i did get out of a ticket once on the way back from funtime. i think i was 17 or 18. my eyes were so red he had to have known i had sinned, it was almost 2am i told him my mom didn't know i took the car out, had to have it back before 2am. he checked my record, which was clean a whistle, and let me go

I moved from Fairfax to Columbia; it was a dream in comparison.

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by DynamiteRave

I've gotten out of 2 tickets so far.

One, being on my cell phone in DC and 2, going 85+ in a 65 (I-270)

My family is notorious for getting speeding tickets in Dinwiddie county VA (I-85, Virginia heading into NC) and I'm heading down to NC this weekend.

*knocks on wood*

25YO female on a phone behind the wheel of a car?




I get scared every time I see it.

[mooby]

Last time I went to court for my last speeding ticket, about a year and a half ago, one of the cops (not mine) didn't show up to court and the judge simply postponed all his cases to the cop's next available date. There was a lot of angry people leaving the courtroom lol. Naturally it was Fairfax County too.

[tryfuhl]

What do you mean is it legal? You were going over the speed limit... how is it not legal to ticket you?

[Monkeydad]

Originally Posted by tryfuhl

What do you mean is it legal? You were going over the speed limit... how is it not legal to ticket you?

BWHAHA...what a question. I also just realized he said the limit was 60 and he was going 11 over, not a 65 zone...so yeah, the ticket was well-earned.

Reminds me of the kids who steal a candy bar from the store and claim it's OK because it only cost a dollar.

[Ruhskins]

Originally Posted by DynamiteRave

I've gotten out of 2 tickets so far.

One, being on my cell phone in DC and 2, going 85+ in a 65 (I-270)

My family is notorious for getting speeding tickets in Dinwiddie county VA (I-85, Virginia heading into NC) and I'm heading down to NC this weekend.

*knocks on wood*

*Note to self, avoid being on the road at the same time as DynamiteRave*

[Monkeydad]

Rave is the reason I always park outside of DC and take the metro in...so I'm not on the road with her!

[mlmpetert]

Tryful & Monleydad - are you guys talking about me? When did i say it was legal or something about a 60 zone? Also i bump this thread from 2007 (didnt realize it was that old until now) when i added my question about speeding tickets to it so that may be adding to the confusion.

And regardless if im guilty or not id prefer to get out of this ticket, even though i doubt that will happen. I never admitted to speeding or anything, but i dont think it really matters much anyways. Also i very much realize trying to fight it will only get me nowhere but with a bigger headache.

Ruskins and FPRLG - im pretty much set on going off of your advice. I went to DMV yesterday to title a new car so I also got my driving record run off of your advice. In VA you have 3 options at DMV:

Employment - 3 years of your driving history
Insurance - 7 years of your driving history
Personal - 11 years

I opted for the 7 years because i had a few zero tolerance type license suspensions (not driving related) when i was a rebellious adolescent. It costs 8 dollars to run your record regardless of the time period you pick and I may still get the 11 year check run just in case it looks better then I think. Oddly the Illegal Lane Change ticket I got 2-3 years ago wasn’t on it. I double checked it on this VA court check system and nothing!

http://epwsgdp1.courts.state.va.us/g...anding=landing

Somehow I got lucky and it never got recorded! The guy at the DMV was really cool and I talked to him for a while and explained what I was trying to do and he thought the 7 year was probably the smartest route. He also told me I have 5 good points which is the best you can have and from what he could tell my record looked spotless. The most amount of bad points you can have is 1000 or maybe 999. Not sure how you can get that bad maybe a few duis and a couple reckless drivings.

Also the best time to go to the DMV is about an hour before they close, my wait was less than 2 minutes.

[That Guy]

if its clean and +5, you should be able to get out of it with an online driving class and a small court fee.

[mlmpetert]

Originally Posted by That Guy

if its clean and +5, you should be able to get out of it with an online driving class and a small court fee.

Kind of what im hoping for. Id rather pay a fine than do online driving class, but well see what happens.

[mlmpetert]

Originally Posted by mooby

Last time I went to court for my last speeding ticket, about a year and a half ago, one of the cops (not mine) didn't show up to court and the judge simply postponed all his cases to the cop's next available date. There was a lot of angry people leaving the courtroom lol. Naturally it was Fairfax County too.

Id be pissed. I had court for something else once and the cop had to leave right after he got there. I had a letter from my lawyer requesting a continuance but when i got called up i told the judge id like to proceed with the case right now. The judge just smiled at me and said i dont think so. I was like 18 and thought they had to try you at your request, i was sooooo excited for a couple minutes.....

[Monkeydad]

I did not realize this was 5 years old, mlmpetert. I was responding to the OP's situation but my stance on speeding applies to all!

Don't bump 5 YO threads!