[QUOTE=Racer X 11,Oct 29 2004, 06:17 PM] Bro, you're F'd.

 

All you guys should come live in MD. I was pulled over doing 93 on the highway which is 55 and got a warning.

 

Never plead guilty. It makes a huge difference if it was a state trooper, sheriff or city cop and the place is important also. Big city is great. Small town your screwed.

Got a ticket for too fast for conditions.
Everyone was going so slow so I blew around them to discovery the cop in front of all the SUV's blocking my view. He was in such a hurry to chase me down before I was gone he couldn't get the radar on so too fast for conditions. Anyway he failed to show up in court so I walked.
In Fulton County GA, Atlanta city police have to show up in traffic court Mondays on thier own time, ie not getting paid so they almost never do unless your a real ahole. Motorcycle cops are the exception as they are traffic control and always show up.

Next time cop did show up in court_(motorcycle cop) so I requested a jury trial and got a court date 8 months from that day. Cop was a national guardsman and got shipped to Iraq and missed court so I walked again but not before they tried to get me to plea to a lesser charge which I declined cause I knew he was gone from his 2nd job as bouncer at titty bar.

Find out how long it takes to get a jury trial, usually months in a metropolotian area, then show up and exercise your right to one but do it politely so as not to make yourself memorable. You don't need a lawyer for this but will need one come trial day.

If everyone did this tickets wouldn't be nearly as profitable for the government.
You may lose but you can make it a real pain , lawyers that use delay tactics are the best. Make the cop show up in court 2 or 3 times over your little ticket and waste some court time as well. In Atlanta we have real crime if you clog up the courts enough they will at least offer you a deal that might be worth taking, remember it not just the ticket cost but the additional insurance cost that your fighting.

 

Hey KVU3,

I had the same exact situation happen to me years ago. I was getting off the exit ramp on 66 west in my 95 single turbo Supra. I gunned it coming on to traffic and finally looked in the rear view mirror. I saw a car coming up fast and realized it was a state trooper. I started to slow down and then he hit the lights. Pulled me over and walked around the car. My supra was heavily modified inside out with a 3.5 straight pipe, so the car was loud. He asked me if I knew why I had been pulled over. I said yes and gave him a bs story. Told him I just got the car back from the performance shop and am trying to sell my car to the passenger. I didn't realize how fast the car boosted up and that's when I slowed down. He started talking to me about how he has a mustang and blah blah blah. He gave me a reckless ticket and then left with "you know, if you didn't stop, I wouldn't have caught you.". Duh!!! Anyways went to court with reckless of 92 or so over. As I was sitting in court, I noticed that everyone over 95, I think, received some jail time and 6 months suspension. So I told the Judge that I was guilty with an explanation. Told him the same story and that I was only going 80 mphs because I actually looked. I also said that the officer could not know how fast I was going because he paced me at 80 and no radar. So in the end, I got a reckless. But I do believe that a lawyer is needed in your case.

 

eh.. good luck man.

 

For all of those people who are saying to just pay the ticket and forget about it ... DONT listen to them. This is not a normal speeding ticket. This is considered a criminal offense, and it will not only go on your driving record but it will also go on your criminal record as well. Some job applications only ask if you've been convicted of a felony or higher, but some just ask if you've been convicted of a criminal offense. You don't want to have to answer yes to that, especially with the job market being so shitty today.

This is the kindof thing where you WANT a lawyer. The fine may only cost $200 if you're lucky, but you could also be facing jail time. In addition, if you consider that your insurance rates will skyrocket from a wreckless ticket ... Isn't it worth paying a lawyer $500 and getting off with nothing versus paying a ticket for $200 and then having to eat a $1000 insurance hike per year for the next 3 years?

If you need a good lawyer, PM me. I know of a guy in the Springfield area that is good and has gotten a lot of my friends off the hook for wrecklesses.

You guys are all well and good sitting there being self-righteous saying "if you do the crime, you do the time" and stupid stuff like that ... but if you were put in the same situation, I can guarantee you'd be hiring a lawyer and trying to get out of jail time versus eating it and saying you deserve it.

With multiple teenagers recently dying from street racing in this area, judges are gonna be looking to make examples out of speeders.

 

My point EXACTLY!!!!!!

Do the crime......pay the time........

 

So if you were caught speeding, you would just say "I'm guilty" and goto jail? When you went for a job interview and were denied because you now have a criminal record, you wouldn't regret not fighting the ticket? I'd really love to see that.

The driver didn't kill anyone here, he was driving on an off-ramp fast. Also, unless you're a lawyer or have a clear understanding of Virginia state law, I would always recommend hiring a lawyer for a serious case like this. Again, this isn't a speeding ticket. This is a wreckless. You want a lawyer to defend you and advise you. A lawyer will give you the advantage of knowing your rights, and knowing if something the prosecution is doing is against the law. Yeah it sucks that lawyers are expensive and not all of them are honest ... but lawyers are there for a reason.

Your clear cut "do the crime, pay the time" system would most likely have half of America in jail. With your attitude, we dont even need a judge or jury, we could just lock them all up. After all, they're all guilty right?