Boobies?

I always take it to court if I get a ticket from Austin PD. They hardly ever show up. And when they do, the prosecuter comes to you before the trial and gives you a better deal than if you would have just paid the fine. I'm never paying the fine. Screw paying the fine.

vgt:
Boobies?

Indeed.

I beat one this way. One of the Marshal's that was in the cashiers office when I went to pay told me to come back and just go to court since the State Patrol was never showing up.

I beat a ticket like this in Alabama.

I had gotten a few tickets a year ago and the clerks at our municipal court aren't very bright. She misunderstood me when I told her I wanted an extension to get my paperwork so I wont have to pay the $360 fine. Instead, she filed an extension to pay my fines off and now I get to pay surcharges to the state of Texas for the next three years thanks to her.

vgt:Boobies?

Yes, sir.

does it make a difference if you never remember getting the DUI?

Just don't do it in a rural area. If that cop had nothing better to do than pull you over @ 3am for going 15 over with no one on the road, you best be sure he's gonna show up to make sure it sticks.

/just saying
//still breaking the law blah blah blah

The article didn't even show up.

I live in San Diego county, and haven't received a ticket here. However, I did get one a few years back in Orange County, just north of SD. The court appearance date is set based on the officer's schedule; each cop sets aside two work days a month where they're expected to not patrol, but rather appear in court to handle any tickets that are being protested. So in OC at least, the idea is that there won't be ANY tickets dismissed because the officer failed to appear.

Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

Farked? Wow.

testsicles
"I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person."

Zombie Jeffery Dahmer approves of this post!

ravenssettle:Farked? Wow.

No, just took a long ass time to load.

testsicles:Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

"THAT'S RACIST!"

testsicles:Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

I shouldn't have laughed, but you owe me a new key board and all of that business...

But what if the cop died before the court date and you were in the wrong? Is that unethical?

Really?

Man, I hope PA state police don't show up. I'm fighting one on Thursday. Anyone have advice? Advantage me: It's my first ticket. It's a 4-pointer. I'm hoping to at least plea it to 2.

testsicles:Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

The sad thing is that this is true ;-(.

Last ticket I got, and fought was Huntington Beach. I got stuck behind some lost Frisco denizens asking for directions on a scooter rally, cop was fulla b.s. & biatching us out because a buncha people ran a stop sign THAT morning. Cop never showed, but apparently Los Alamitos does in droves. Marin County can suck it.

donnerundblitzz:I had gotten a few tickets a year ago and the clerks at our municipal court aren't very bright.

When it comes to clerks, I find that the reverse of the well-known axim is true... basically, never attribute to stupidity what you can attribute to malice. She did her job and got extra cash out of you to line the state coffers. Isn't it nice being treated like a faceless revenue stream for the state?

FWIW, I've been taking tickets to court for a while now, and the cops always show up. One time, though, the state's computer system was down and the court couldn't figure out who I was, so the judge sent me off with a warning. Every other time I was happy to have my lawyer there so he can work his magic and send me home without paying a dime to the state (he gets paid, sure, but it's less than what the state would take).

I actually had a cop lady who wrote me a red light ticket call me up later and say forget about it. Now that's service.

The best ticket of my life I got out of (110 in a 50). The cop that pulled me over was a friend of a cop I knew and he owed my friend a favor. Went to the courthouse and told the judge he didnt remember pulling me over.
/havent got a speeding ticket since
//from what I understand, that fast was a felony, and he as supposed to arrest me
/// and I was a biatch that night too....

Missouri is a wonderful state. Pay a lawyer $50-$100 and that speeding ticket turns into an "excessive noise" or other non-moving violation.

Granted, the fine is more, but your insurance doesn't go up.

Around these parts, I think It's part of the cop's performance review to show up for traffic court. So you are often better off just paying the fine, because the magistrates here ALWAYS believe the cops.

You'd think that all this strictness would make for better drivers, right?

Not here in Ontario. The roads are full of the most moronic drivers on the planet. It's all about the bucks.

Just ask for court supervision. Costs the same as a ticket but goes off your record after 90 days if you don't get anymore.

fenianfark:Missouri is a wonderful state. Pay a lawyer $50-$100 and that speeding ticket turns into an "excessive noise" or other non-moving violation.

Granted, the fine is more, but your insurance doesn't go up.

yes, the system here works great. I used to think it was bullshiat until I took advantage of it

"We have the discretion to do what is just and right," he said. "People still have a chance in traffic court, but they have to understand that the court is going to put just three times as much credence in the officer's testimony as in their testimony."

If I get a ticket and I know I'm in the wrong I'll pay the fine. I have only fought three tickets. Once was one that said I burned rubber through SIX lanes of traffic at an intersection. One for running a red light even though the car I drove had glass T-tops and I could see the light just turn red as I passed under it. The asshat judge went off the record after I was found guilty and asked the cop if I really did it.

The last time I had to run a stop sign because the double trailer semi cut the corner. When I asked the cop if he saw the semi he said No. I was still found guilty.

So my advice is NEVER fight a ticket. What you do is what I do now.
There is a law firm that will take on your tickets for FREE. You don't have to appear AT ALL. The tickets are changed to non-moving violations and all you do is pay the fine. NO increase in points. NO record on your license.

Seigneur:So my advice is NEVER fight a ticket. What you do is what I do now.
There is a law firm that will take on your tickets for FREE. You don't have to appear AT ALL. The tickets are changed to non-moving violations and all you do is pay the fine. NO increase in points. NO record on your license.

I would like to subscribe to this firm's newsletter.

FishyFredMan, I hope PA state police don't show up. I'm fighting one on Thursday. Anyone have advice? Advantage me: It's my first ticket. It's a 4-pointer. I'm hoping to at least plea it to 2.

first things first - I am not a lwayer and don't live in PA so really I know nothing and any advice i give should be digested slowly or ignored.

That said - I always take the ticket to court.

Rule 1) when you get pulled over, don't say anything to the cop except yessir nosir and never admit guilt if you say anything. do you know why I pulled you over? nosir. Do you know how fast you were going - yessir. How fast were you going? the speed limit is 55 sir.
rule 2)Make notes about the weather, traffic, your clothing, the officers badge, wether or not he was wearing a hat - has a mustache, whatever details you can remember before you pull away from the traffic stop.
rule 3) if you can afford it, get a lawyer (its worth it even if you can't)
rule 4) If you have to defend yourself - plea not guilty and Always subpeona the officer and get discovery within few days of recieving your summons -
rule 5) call you insurance agent and find out what sorts of charges will cause increases in your insurance payments - you may find an acceptable plea bargain. Your insurance is what really costs you for 3 years or more - not the ticket. a reduction in the fine is chump change - you need it off your record or reduced to an inconsequential charge.
rule 6) Don't try to fabricate clever defense questions that lead to a dramatic AHA! - it won't work - stick to the facts - if you have to question the officer get as many "i don't recall"s and "I don't know"s as you can to prove the officer doesn't have independant recollection of the events - s/he probably doesn't. This is why you take the notes...
rule 7) say a prayer each evening to whatever divinity you pray to that the officer will have better things to do than show up for court.

For you particularily - since it is your first ticket, you can probably get a supsended sentence - plead guilty and go to traffic school or some such thing and it sits on the books for a year before dismissal depending on your good behavior. there may be court costs associated with that that may even exceed the cost of the ticket - take it and be happy that you don't see a spike in your insurance.

I showed up in court to contest a ticket, and the judge was letting everyone go.

Even people I could see were flat-ass guilty.

My case was dismissed, and out the way home, I saw a big billboard that said: RE-ELECT JUDGE WHATCHAMADOODLE, Remember to vote next Tuesday."

I have beaten eleven tickets on technicalities, in my opinion most tickets are beatable.

Doesn't cost anything to try, and it isn't any more expensive if you lose.

testsicles: Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

YMMV depending on the size of the ticket.

IE, If the ticket is below a certain amount, it's better to just pay the damn thing than waste time in court fighting it.

IE, instead of wasting a few hours in court, I could work a few hours of overtime, and end up with more money than the fine. Then I just work overtime and pay the damn thing.

Seigneur: So my advice is NEVER fight a ticket. What you do is what I do now. There is a law firm that will take on your tickets for FREE. You don't have to appear AT ALL. The tickets are changed to non-moving violations and all you do is pay the fine. NO increase in points. NO record on your license.

Proof positive that tickets are all about the money and nothing about safety.

/as if anybody doubted that

Also, they increased speeding tickets to ~$300 in this state.

/But in VA, they're $1000 now, jeez.

testsicles: Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

Not if the clerk flat out tells you that if you challenge your ticket you will be put in jail, so you better just go ahead and pay it.

I got out of a $381 ticket in California thanks to this site.

Best $25 I spent all last year.

My first speeding ticket was issued by Officer Gross (seriously). I was guilty, but I went to court anyway, hoping the officer was too busy to show up or something like that.

No such luck, I see her in the hallway at the court house. I asked her if she knew where we were supposed to go, because it wasn't clear which room (or even which floor) of the court house the hearing would take place. She laughs and says, "No, this is my first time in court."

Just my luck, a rookie cop who wouldn't have missed her first court date for anything in the world. We found the courtroom, judge calls the case, sees us both and says to me, "I assume you want to plead guilty?"

/ayup

I happened to live in a town whose income was largely based on traffic tickets and DUI fines.

The police officers would ALWAYS show up, and sometimes would lie to the judge and STILL win the case (my old roommate spun circles around a police officer in defense of his traffic ticket, and caught him in a lie about where he actually "shot" the radar gun... which, legally, shouldn't have been valid for a couple of reasons that were agreed upon in court... high traffic flow and an impossible sight angle are two I can remember off the top of my head... the judge said my roommate gave a great argument, but he was still paying the fine because, well, it was a cop). That officer was later fired for having sex with a college student in his cop car while on duty.

My life's speeding ticket came at the hands of another officer in that department, who was fired for systematically arresting drivers late at night for DUI, whether or not they'd consumed alcohol. He did this over the course of 6 or 7 years, and finally he arrested the wrong person.
Note: in my state, a DUI ARREST (even if the case is dropped because you had 0.00 BAC) stays on your driving record.

testsicles:Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

This isn't true in all places. In Aurora, IL you are more likely to be pulled over for being white than Latino/Hispanic or African American. Mostly because of the "Sanctuary City" policy, where if certain people/groups get stopped, the "You're racist!" or "You're profiling me by my race" and all the illegal alien supporters gangs come out. The police have an unwritten rule that they need to pull 2x more whites than blacks and 3-4x more whites than latinos in Aurora. Of course they deny it, just like their ticket quota...

Similar experience, sped up through yellow, got ticketed. Cop never showed. Judge Reeb through out the ticket.

Even cooler, Reeb spelled backward is beeR.

All in all, I learned to look before leaping.

/oblig
//can't believe this wasn't pointed out yet

My first and only time in traffic court the cop not only showed up, he testified as if he had taken pages of notes on the event. You'd have thought he was testifying in a murder case.

Of course he was also lying his ass off, and made one statement that proved that.

/didn't matter, the judge basically tole me that she always believed cops over citizens
//meanwhile, she developed a reputation for being lenient on young female drivers who appeared before her

FishyFred:Seigneur:So my advice is NEVER fight a ticket. What you do is what I do now.
There is a law firm that will take on your tickets for FREE. You don't have to appear AT ALL. The tickets are changed to non-moving violations and all you do is pay the fine. NO increase in points. NO record on your license.

I would like to subscribe to this firm's newsletter.

http://www.cpklaw.com/

vgt:Boobies?

Fake boobies. And you know it vgt.

hyperflame:testsicles:Isn't the rule that you should ALWAYS take the ticket to court?

I've never had a traffic ticket. I purposely look for brown people and drive behind them because there's no way I get pulled over if I give the cop a choice between a clean cut white guy and a brown or yellow person.

The sad thing is that this is true ;-(.

The really sad thing is that people think that this is true.

Sofa King Awesome:But what if the cop died before the court date and you were in the wrong? Is that unethical?

That happened to a friend of mine. Case dismissed.

My Court Story:

I ran a red light. Not on purpose, just having a shiatty day, wasn't paying attention. The cop says, "You've had your license for over 10 years with no tickets - take it to court".

At the time, my kids are 2 - 3 years old and I have to take them with me to court (and I was hoping to get a bit of sympathy from the judge). I get there, and it is packed. Traffic tickets, father-rapers on the Group W bench shackled together, you name it. We were assigned numbers, and mine wasn't good, so I'm thinking, I'm going to be here forever!

Now my kids were like little ducklings. They were well-behaved and generally followed me quietly. But that day, they were antsy. One of them crawled over the chairs; another ran up and down the aisles. Quieting my mothering instinct but keeping my eye on them, I ignored the behavior and let them run loose.

After the judge heard the first case, he snapped at the baliff: "Get the woman with the kids OUT OF HERE". I was the second case called, got an "advisement" (paid the fine, but no points unless I screwed up again in six months, no report to the insurance company) and was out in 10 minutes.

So, if you do have to go to court on Arraignment Day, it's best to rent a couple of toddlers and fill them with Mountain Dew and Snickers first.

Lizzabette:/oblig
//can't believe this wasn't pointed out yet

Yep, that's what I came here for.

Oh, the best part is that either a) the judge lied to my face, or b) the county I was in has different rules than just about every other county in the state regarding first-time tickets. I'm unsure which...I had thought there was a state law that took precedent over county/municipal rules, but that could be wrong.

The judge was a worthless prick though... if you ride your bike down a main highway in the middle of the street with no lights... you get to take a free biking class and pay a $10 fine. If you're speeding 10 miles per hour over the speed limit with no cars around, that's $100... no chance for diversion.

I am glad to be out of that area. Though, minus the anti-college old citizens, the money-hungry yuppy new citizens, the corrupt police and judges, and the complete farkups their voters pull (electing an inexperienced beat cop as sheriff, because she was a woman and the area hadn't had a female sheriff before, as opposed to an experienced sheriff with friends all over the place... pretty much broke the city AND county police relationships in that area), it was a good place to be.