Unfair speeding ticket... advice??

[Russkafin]

My girlfriend got her first speeding ticket today, for doing a 79 in a 65. The only problem is, she had her cruise control set at 70, and she knows there is no way she could have been doing 79. I have ridden in her van before, if you get it much at all above 70 it starts to shake and make a weird noise. A truck sped past her just moments before the cop pulled her over, so she's pretty sure that the cop tagged the truck but pulled her over by mistake.

What can one do in this situation? Just plead "not guilty"? Neither of us has much experience in this area. My friend said to hire a lawyer, but wouldn't that most likely end up costing a lot of money anyway? Any advice from the crowd?

[Sue]

Taking it to traffic court is the first step. You might want to shop around to see what a lawyer might charge. If you can't afford one, you could defend yourself. My friend did it when he was wrongfully ticketed, and I think the judge ruled in his favor.

Good luck :)

[Reed Richards]

contest the ticket, tell hte judge what happened. if it looks like he or she wont rule in your favor, ask for a continuance and get a traffic attny to get it pled down to a non-moving violation. youll still pay a fine, but no points, see?

[True Noir]

Taking it to traffic court is the first step. You might want to shop around to see what a lawyer might charge. If you can't afford one, you could defend yourself. My friend did it when he was wrongfully ticketed, and I think the judge ruled in his favor.

Good luck :)
Yeh, but be careful. When she's in court, make sure she doesn't spend more money in court than she would if she had to pay the ticket. ;)

[Boomhauer]

Damn man. Pleading guilty saves the day. Pleading not guilty drags another court date what not, that means the defendant's officer gotta show up talkin' about he gave her the ticket. In that case, if there are two different stories, your sister will be FINED.
Talk nice n' calm with the judge, man I seen the Simpsons just the other day and wasn't so happy about this mean witch who lashed such harsh punishment to the Simpson family. Don't wanna go there big boy.
Fight your ticket right. :)
Ok, she sets the cruise to 70. but she was flying down a hill, check it- flying down a hill increases the speed. You can be doing more speed without using gas.;)

[Russkafin]

In that case, if there are two different stories, your sister will be FINED.Thank you for your input but I do feel compelled to correct you and say that it is my girlfriend that we're talking about, not my sister! ;)

[Boomhauer]

Oh my, sorry Russkafin. :anime: Dang.

So, tell your g/f and goodluck to the both of you.

[cross blues]

1. do you trust your girlfriend? maybe she didn't want to get in trouble with her parents and it was easier just to lie to you too. just trying to cover all the possiblilties.

2. you didn't mention how much the fine is. I've been fined between $90 and $200 for my speeding tickets. if it's not too expensive, I'd suggest paying it. I don't think she'd get more than two points anyway. BUT pleading guilty would definitely raise car insurance too.

3. you could plead not guilty and wait until the last day to change the date of her hearing. if you can do that, the cop might not be able to make it. then the judge has no choice but to rule in your favor. it's risky though. if the cop shows up and it's her vs. the cop, she's screwed. when they put those uniforms on, for some reason everybody thinks they're perfect...

4. one more thing. check on her copy of the ticket to see what the cop used to find out her speed. if it's vascar or radar, you probably can't argue. but if he only followed her, you might be able to argue it.

I've had quite a few speeding tickets, but I never challenged one because I was always guilty. sorry I couldn't help more.

[Russkafin]

1. do you trust your girlfriend? I absolutely do. The most frustrating thing about this situation is she is the type who NEVER speeds, in fact if she is riding with someone who is speeding she'll tell them to slow down! She is the last person in the world who you would expect to get a ticket. That's what makes this such an absolute slap in the face.

[Psycho Fox]

3. you could plead not guilty and wait until the last day to change the date of her hearing. if you can do that, the cop might not be able to make it. then the judge has no choice but to rule in your favor. it's risky though. if the cop shows up and it's her vs. the cop, she's screwed. when they put those uniforms on, for some reason everybody thinks they're perfect...

4. one more thing. check on her copy of the ticket to see what the cop used to find out her speed. if it's vascar or radar, you probably can't argue. but if he only followed her, you might be able to argue it.

If the car has a black box (A computer that logs the cars speed) it can be used in court and usally will defeat a cops word even for radar (as it becomes the cars word vs the cops). Of course the box has to still have the log of the day in question and cars with black boxes go from only keeping logs 15 mins in a cycle to keeping them for years.

[Mynd Hed]

Since your girlfriend admits to speeding anyway-- you say the cruise control was set to seventy and the speed limit was sixty-five-- the most contesting the ticket is going to get her is a reduced fine, so you've got to ask yourself, is it really worth it?

[Russkafin]

Just in case anyone was wondering how this all worked out, she pled not guilty, and then the officer didn't show up to the court date, so her case was thrown out and she did not have to pay a fine. All's well that ends well. :)

Thanks, everyone, for your advice.

[Conekiller]

good to hear it ^_^

[HumanoidTyphoon]

Just in case anyone was wondering how this all worked out, she pled not guilty, and then the officer didn't show up to the court date, so her case was thrown out and she did not have to pay a fine. All's well that ends well. :)Nice, I knew the officer won't show up if you run a stop sign. I guess it works for speeding tickets too.

[SSJPabs]

Well if the cruise was at 70 wasn't she still breaking the law?

Anyhow, here's one way to beat the speeding ticket:

While at the stop.
1.Don't act like a jerk. This will make you stand out to the cop.
2.Corollary: Don't act too smart about it. This will also make you stand out.
3.Don't admit guilt to the cop at all. Say nothing if you can possibly avoid it.
4.Just say "Yes, Officer" to whatever they say.
5.Act scared and ignorant of what you did.
6.Don't ever argue at the stop itself. You will not win.
7.Remember the conditions and situation at the stop.

After the stop.
8.Always plead "not-guilty" at the pre-trial appearance.
9.The most important part: DELAY DELAY DELAY!! Your whole goal here is not to go to court at all. To make it so far in the past, the cop won't even CARE about attending. I've heard of people putting it off for over a year. (Bird flu, death in the family you have to fly out for, traveling in to Europe etc.)
10. After Delaying as long as humanly possible look nice when you go to court. After checking in with the clerk, see if the officer who stopped you arrives. If you have successfully delayed long enough, they won't show up and most of the time the case will be dismissed.

If they DO show up, remember that the officer has to prove your girlfriend is guilty. Make sure you know when the radar gun was last checked, if the officer is well versed in its use, what model it is and ask the officer this.

If you lose, or plead guilty because you don't feel you want to go through the trouble you can also usually plead guilty with an explanation. This is where you explain to the judge that you are sorry, that there were extenuating circumstances, that you generally are law-abiding. It helps if you don't have any prior stops. Maybe ask if you can go to traffic school instead of paying for the ticket as this doesn't cost your insurance (at least not that I am aware of). In this case I'd say your girlfriend, being a cute girl, is more likely to get off easier from the judge (if its a male).

For instance, when I got a speeding ticket before, I plead guilty with an explanation and as I had no record before this, the judge said if I stayed ticket free for 6 months I wouldn't have to pay a fine, and the ticket itself would be removed from the records. I was able to make these conditions.

Now I'm not a lawyer (yet) and these are only possibilities. If you really want to fight this you might do better consulting an attorney. Of course, sometimes it might be easier to just eat the ticket.

[ZorBrak]

My girlfriend got her first speeding ticket today, for doing a 79 in a 65. The only problem is, she had her cruise control set at 70, and she knows there is no way she could have been doing 79. I have ridden in her van before, if you get it much at all above 70 it starts to shake and make a weird noise. A truck sped past her just moments before the cop pulled her over, so she's pretty sure that the cop tagged the truck but pulled her over by mistake.

What can one do in this situation? Just plead "not guilty"? Neither of us has much experience in this area. My friend said to hire a lawyer, but wouldn't that most likely end up costing a lot of money anyway? Any advice from the crowd? She should have demanded to see the radar. Those bastards can be crooks. I got pulled going 25 in a 25 at the beach last weekend. Was I furious? Absolutely. Panicing? Nope. My dad had told me a thing or two about dealing with the thieves. I told the officer he was legally required to show me his radar and as soon as he realized what was going on he handed my things back and said "okay well slow down from now on and you can go". Punk. If they lie about your speed and you catch them doing it you can have them fired. I had 3 witnesses in the car so my cop put his tail between his legs...but definitely remember to ask to see the radar from now on. A lot of times that will scare them back under their rocks.

[Dogbert]

Russkafin, do you know if the cop used radar or something else? If it was anything other than radar, your girlfriend can argue human error, as most non-radar speed measurements require the police officer to flip a switch two times (once when the car enters the speed zone and once as it leaves). Here in PA only the state police can use radar, leaving the local police to use these other devices. I doubt NY is the same, but maybe...

[cross blues]

Just in case anyone was wondering how this all worked out, she pled not guilty, and then the officer didn't show up to the court date, so her case was thrown out and she did not have to pay a fine. All's well that ends well. :)

Thanks, everyone, for your advice.
congrats! stupid cops... uh.. I mean... he must have been too busy serving and protecting to make it to court. any plans for the money you saved?