RedLined

A month ago I got a ticket in NC for going 77 in a 65. That was the second ticket I got in NC in the past 6 months (the other was 79 in a 65). Not long after I got the first ticket, I started getting all these letters from lawyers in NC telling me to send them money and they would go to court for me and get the ticket reduced. I'm thinking, yeah right, I'm sure you'll go to court for me. I just thought it was a load of B.S. So then I get the second ticket in NC, the points for which could have cost me my license in VA (12 points in 12 months -- I got another ticket in VA in addition to the 2 in NC). This time I decided to call a few of the lawyers and see what it was all about. They tell me it's common practice for people to hire lawyers for speeding tickets in NC. The lawyer told me it's a way the state helps keep all the lawyers in business, without this little setup most of the lawyers would go under.

So anyway, I paid the lawyer $250 (seems to be the standard rate) which includes the $90 court cost, they go to court and get the charge reduced to a non-moving violation like faulty equipment or something. So I get no points and get to keep my license. As a reference, I used Knox, Kornegaey, Bennett, & Naylor, LLP.

All thing considered, a pretty good setup -- state gets $90, lawyers get $160, and I get away with no points.

BirjuP

I live in NC and i also have multiple tickets. I hire lawyers everytime and they get taken out completely voided or lowered to where they dont count.. My family friend recomended this lawyer to me.. Cecil Whitely in Salisbuy, NC. or Dave Shick in raleigh. I have excellent expiriences with both lawyers.. My family friend being the former Colonel of the State Highway Patrol.

8ball

This is a common practice in most places. In our local county jurisdiction, any lawyer can walk into the prosecutor's office and get pretty much anything except the most egregious speeding ticket reduced to a non-moving violation (defective equipment is the standard, I believe). There's a set fine ($125+court costs last I checked). A lawyer with enough speeding clients can walk in with a stack of tickets and get them all taken care of in a matter of minutes, at $100 to $150 a pop. Some make a nice living doing little else. I've only done them for my wife.

Lesson here - for a simple speeding ticket, you don't need Johnnie Cochran, just someone who knows the routine. If it's something more serious, you want your lawyer to know the prosecutor, and the judge, and the court clerk, and for him or her to be someone that those people trust to be straight with them.

Guest

Anyone know if this type of thing exists in California?

RedLined

What I thought was really odd was all the letters I was getting in the mail after I got the tickets. This definitely isn't common practice in VA, that's why I was so skeptical the first time.

8ball

Sorry, I kind of skipped over that part earlier.

I'm not familiar with VA's ethical rules/code of professional responsibility governing attorneys, but where I come from, direct mail solicitation by lawyers of persons known to be in need of legal services is an ethical violation that can result in disciplinary action.

There is a fine line, however, between what constitutes direct solicitation or is merely random advertisement. If you only got letters after you got a ticket, it sounds more like the former than the latter. But, like I said, I'm not familiar with VA's ethics rules, and states do vary on rules regarding lawyer advertising and solicitation. Maybe it's OK there. Maybe if I have time today, I'll check.

Sorry for straying OT a bit.

Xorg

Every state is a little bit different - the latest trend (and this is what CT has) is to have speeders take mandatory driving classes.

Here is how it now works in this state (and no attorney can help with this - wait til the end to see why.)

If you get a speeding ticket, and contest it, you stand a chance of having it knocked down to traveling unreasonably fast - a one point infraction. Forget any chance of this happening if you're caught 15+ miles over the limit.

If you're 25+ miles over the limit, you may face a charge of reckless driving - which means HUGE fines ($600+), you can also have your license suspended for 30-60 days, and even face some jail time if you're a repeat offender. (i.e. forget any "Fast and Furious" re-enactments in this state!)

If you get a speeding ticket, you get two points on your license and have to take a four-hour class that costs $80. You also take the class if you get two unreasonable fasts at one point each.

After this class, the court system drops two points off your license. Cool! But wait, read the fine print....

If you get another ticket within two years of passing the class, not only do you pay the fine and court costs, you now have to take another class, this time its $160 and its eight hours long.

Once again, they drop two points. Get another ticket within two years, back to class you go.

Now this all sounds well and good and way to keep your points low. Get a good lawyer, they may help the cause (at a cost.)

What they DON'T tell you is that the points come off your court record, NOT your Motor Vehicle record. The points keep adding up at the Motor Vehicle Department and don't drop for SEVEN YEARS.

So yeah, you may save a few hundred bucks in court, but wait until your next insurance bill comes along - one speeding ticket will typically DOUBLE your insurance rates (typically a nice $800-1,200 increase) if your company opts to renew you at all.

Very very nasty, and a big reason why CT is not a state you want to get any speeding or racing tickets in.

kensteele

In many places in Kansas, you don't need a lawyer. Just show up at the court date, pay double the fine....you're fixed.