This is my first violation. I did take a PJC when I was 17 but that was 9 years ago and have never had a violation since.

I was doing 85 in a 65.


If I do get a lawyer, nothing will be on record correct?



I know I could go to court and get it reduced but I don't have anything on my file.


how much would it cost me to get a lawyer?

 

I got a ticket for the same violation once. Maybe 4 years back. I think I got 4 points besides the fine. I was new to this country at that time. Didn't know what to do when the cop was following me with blinkers on. I kept driving on for a while before coming to a stop because my friend asked me to. I was also trying to make a u-turn through an exit on the highway because I had to return home to pick something up that I had just remembered. The cop got real suspicious. He was following me while making the u-turn. I hope the 4 points are gone now. I have no idea about how much it would cost to hire a lawyer for this.

 

I've gotten 2 speeding tickets in my life. Each time I went to court and payed double and had it changed to a non-moving violation. Most states allow you to do that 3-4 times a year. I've never involved a lawyer because I don't feel like paying for the lawyer on top of paying double the fine. It's a waste of money.

 

I do not know about your state, but I ALWAYS retain an attorney for traffic tickets in Texas. At least 75% of mine have been dismissed for whatever reason. The outcome in Texas depends on who (state, local, etc) and what city issued the ticket.

I agree with you do the crime, pay the fine, or do the time ... whatever, but I make that fine as small as possible. At least attempt to make the Municipality work at collecting their revenue.



After saying all that, I will probably get nailed on the commute home.

 

Yeah...I'm looking for a lawyer now...


The mail coming in, in the next few days should help too....

 

You guys needs lawyers for speeding tickets? I'm glad I don't live in those states.

 

what the hell is the lawyer going to say that you cant? you broke the law, how did the officer clock you? radar? laser? if it's either of those, you're pretty much fecked.

in PA, if you get a ticket and fight it, if the cop doesnt show up, you get off scotch free. often, you can at least argue down the points. give a sob story about how you've never had any violations before, etc etc, or you were on your way to the hospital. they'll drop the points, maybe increase the fine. the points is what you need to care about though.

 

True, but my time is worth more than the $40-60 an attorney costs.

 

you still have to go, and what lawyer do you know that costs $40-60?

he aint getting you shit

 

Scotch Free?

I want to move to PA.

Honestly, as an attorney, in most cases youre better off without an attorney. It's just unecessary cost. Tickets, unless completely bullsh-t don;t usually just go away.

Of course, if you can find an attorney who does traffic court a lot (i.e., the ones that graduated at the top of their class ), knows the officers, sherrifs, etc., and could work out a deal, it may be a good deal for you. Frankly, with no prior tickets and a relatively minor offense, it may be a good idea to call the officer at the police station, explain your prior history and see if you can work something out. Maybe get it changed to a non-moving violation that carries no points.

Otherwise, fight it. Show up to court with a shitload of books (traffic/law related, borrow them from a law school library or regaular library) and make it seem like you're ready to kick some ass.

Failing that, balance the cost of the ticket, increased insurance with what an attorney would charge. I've never represented clients in traffic court. I've been twice on my own behalf, got one ticket lowered, one thrown out. (no tickets in the TSX yet- just a matter of time) I dont know what an attorney would charge, but for one court appaerance or a cuople fo phone calls, $500.00 ($250-$750) seems about right.

Finally, the officers always show up. At least in my cases.

Good luck!

 

I'd love to meet the attorney that charges $40.00-$60.00 to defend a traffic ticket.

Please send me his/her number.

Anyone remember Lionel Hutz (Simpsons)

 

Do you have to go to court? In Ohio, no court unless 3 violations within 24 months, or something ridiculous over the limit, 35 over or something like that. If you don't have to go to court, I'd just pay it and move on. If you've got a scotch free record, it's not like you have to worry about suspended license unless you plan to keep getting more. Just my opinion.

 

why get a lawyer? just pay your fine.

 

the officers don't always show up in PA, if they did, they'd have no time to do their real job. some states probably use traffic tickets as revenue, some use them as deterrant. if you got caught and were written a ticket, it most likely will deter you (at least for a short time). if you argue, a lot of cops don't see it as a valuable use of their time to go meet you in court just for a stupid speeding ticket, unless it was a big ticket. it also depends on the cop.

but either way, if you show up and fight a speeding ticket in PA, you'll usually get points reduced at the very least, which in my book, is worth the hour or 2 you spend arguing it.

just make sure you have some knowledge when you show up. i really don't think showing up with a stack of books for a simple law is worth it, just do you research online. did the cop fill out the ticket? did you admit to speeding? maybe you were in a pack of cars, and he actually clocked someone else, but pulled you over. does he have the readout from the radar/laser detector? just google speeding ticket and your state, i'm sure you can find out some info.

 

I am currently fighting my first ticket in my TSX as well

Why get a lawyer?

They know the system and have a better chance of beating it. They can actually beat it about 75% of the time. How much? $250-350 and your ticket just disappears. Nothing sent to your insurance company and your rates don't go up. I have 3 vehicles, so my insurance would go up on all 3. For me it's worth the attorney fee's.

Ask Uncald4 (TL), he has a wall of tickets in his office. He has beat every single one of them.

If yo can afford it, an attorney will clear it for you and keep your record clean.

 

so it depends how your insurance works. if you have 3 cars and all are in your name (which in most cases is not likely), then yes it would be worth it. but to pay someone $300-500 to fight a ticket that is probably around $200, and a slight insurance increase in most cases isn't worth it. especially when if you fight it yourself, at least in PA and NJ, you can usually argue down the points, insurance doesn't go up, and you just pay the fine.

if you're gonna be going 20mph over the speed limit, you should probably invest in a radar detector. i generally try not to go more than 10 over, but we'll see what happens when i'm driving the TSX.

 

I said the cops always show up when I request the court to convene a hearing on my traffic tickets. I don't practice in PA, nor do I hold myself out to be an expert in any area of Pennsylvania law or court procedure.

Now, I have to go back to work and earn my $40-60.00

 

Ok. Retards. Nothing to do with arguing, lawyers, points, any of that crap. Just go in, say you want to pay double to have it changed to a non-moving violation. Then you get NO points and you just walk out of there. Easy. Or go with a lawyer or arguing which is the equivalent to pissing in the wind.

 

you don't always have to pay more just to get the points reduced. at least that's the case in PA. i think in jersey you usually pay a higher fine and get no points.

 

You don't have to, but it's the easiest way. And you get NO points after you double the fine. That's a hell of a reduction.

 

in PA, you don't pay a higher fine, you just argue the points down. in my opinion (and i'm no lawyer) it should be illegal to offer to pay a higher fine in return for no points. think about the corruption that exists in that scenario. but NJ allows that i believe. but in PA, all you can do is argue and have the penalties reduced. possibly to 0 points, but that doesnt mean your fine goes up.

 

In this case it they are all 3 in my name.




On another note, In Wa there isn't a "points" issue. Insurance companies could care less who gets high score with points. They look at the driving record and say oh he was speeding? He's a liability! Raise his rates! If your attoney beats the ticket, your insurance company never finds out about the ticket. There is no points system up here.

 

as CJams illustrates, every state is unique. Although there is no official points system, the insurance company still weighs in speeding tickets on the record.

In PA, the way they eliminate the points is by reclassifying the offense. So say you're speeding and you get a speeding ticket. You argue because there's a $150 fine and 2 points. The judge may decide in your favor to reduce the "offense" to a "moving violation" which would carry the same fine but no points. so the insurance company would never be aware of you speeding, as far as the insurance company is concerned, you coulda be on the shoulder without your 4-way flashers on.

 

Insurance companies don't always figure out you got a ticket either. I had a bad couple months couple winters ago and picked up 3 in 6 weeks. Two speeding, one failure to come to a complete stop at a stop sign when I was making a right turn (yeah, that's right). 6 points on the license. Insurance NEVER went up, has continued to go down. I even switched companies in last Feb when we picked up our Mazda and had to report them all, still even lower than previous company. So in my experience, one ticket, ain't gonna do shit. So I still say, pay it and move on.

 

people cant count on this happening, obviously, your case slipped through the cracks and for some reason, the state didn't notify your insurance of the points, which is a huge mistake on their part. so if you call the state, you have 6 points on your license?

you're friggin lucky if that's not affecting your insurnace.

 

My lawyer got it reduced to 70 in a 65....