Help me get out of a speeding ticket

[Glirk Dient]

Alright I was caught going 53 in a 40. A cop standing next to a light pole clocked me and there must have been a cop car somewhere near by. I was pulled over and didn't say anything except when asked what I thought the speed limit was I responded with 45.

I do not want to pay $150. I am a college student and am broke enough as it is. I figure I might as well try to fight my way out of it.

Here is what I have figured out so far, any advice would be greatful as I am not taking law. I first plan to meet with the officer and simply explain to him my case. Granted I was being a bastard and going over but if I wait 2 weeks and speak to him he will have forgotten everything about that event as I made myself un rememberable. I have heard in the state of MN(where I live) that you can lawfully exceed the speed limit while passing someone. I can simply restate that to him and explain that I was passing someone by when they clocked me. I have yet to verify that law but I will keep searching.

If that doesn't work I have also read that you can submit your plea via mail and theres a chance of the case being dismissed right there due to the extensive costs/time processing this information for a simple speeding ticket.

If that attempt fails then its going to court. At that point I will request as much info from the police department as I can and delay the court date as long as I can in an attempt to persuade the cop to not show due to hs forgetting info and not wanting to deal with all the shit I have been collecting.

If he does appear in court I can cite the law that allows people to lawfully speed in order to pass someone by. I can then read off any holes I have found in their maintenance/certification of radar guns, the patrol cars assignment for the day and any other info I can find. Also I will pay attention to his testimony to see if he skips any critical elements that proves me guilty for speeding and ask for the case to be dismissed if he misses any.

After all of that and I am still found guilty...well worst case I pay the fine. There is a good chance the fine will be reduced or I am found not guilty.

Sounds great and all, but I am no law student and have never been to court before. I am hoping people here will be able to point out flaws in this plan or strengthen it and give me more ideas. I really don't want to pay for this BS.

 

[jondy]

Pay the money man, the time spent arguing your case will exceed the time it takes to make the dough back.

 

[Glirk Dient]

Not really...im pretty broke and my job doesn't give me many hours. If I pay this I probally wont have any spending money for over 2 months and might not even be able to pay my bills.

 

[<RJMC>]

build a time machine and stop yourself

 

[pomegranate]

I really don't want to pay for this BS.

...im pretty broke and my job doesn't give me many hours. If I pay this I probally wont have any spending money for over 2 months and might not even be able to pay my bills.

Aw, boo-hoo. Welcome to responsibility. You did something stupid and you have to live with the consequences. Don't expect any sympathy for breaking the speed limit excessively without good reason.
Go without spending money. Tighten your budget for a few weeks. Stay in a few weekends. If you can't afford to pay the fine, sell your car. Above all, grow up.

 

[Vigilante]

I know how you feel, I am a college student and I very rarely have money. Hell, I just transfered $10 out of my savings so that my checking account wont go negative when a gas transaction clears.

If you plead guilty you may be able to get off with a $60 fine. At least that's how it is in MD. They'll get rid of the points and cut the fine by 2/3 if the infraction wasn't too bad.

 

[hool10]

How about you go to court and nothing happens. I hear that 99% of the time the cop doesn't show up and has better things to do(like eat donuts and fight crime, etc).

 

[Beerdude26]

build a time machine and stop yourself

I like that idea.

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Are you a member of any ethnic minority? Cause that could help.

 

[function9]

I have heard in the state of MN(where I live) that you can lawfully exceed the speed limit while passing someone.

Though it might indeed be a state thing, I know here you absolutely cannot exceed the speed limit to pass. You would have those guys doing 90+mph on the freeway trying to tell a judge they were just passing everyone. So I could be wrong, but that doesn't sound right to me.

The best chance you have going to court or writing in, is that you can get the points waived, and you'll just have to pay the fine.

If that attempt fails then its going to court. At that point I will request as much info from the police department as I can and delay the court date as long as I can in an attempt to persuade the cop to not show due to hs forgetting info and not wanting to deal with all the shit I have been collecting.

Also, don't count on the cop "not showing up" either and getting the ticket thrown out. The courts have specific days where cops know they might have to appear in court. And you will only be scheduled a court date on those days. You can't say, "Well next Thursday at 2:30PM is good for me." Doesn't work like that. So calling and getting an extension to a court date is not going to work. Basically if a cop writes a citation, you're going to have to pay the fine. Unless by chance you have quite a few witnesses that state the cop was grossly negligent, even then it's not a for sure thing.

If he does appear in court I can cite the law that allows people to lawfully speed in order to pass someone by. I can then read off any holes I have found in their maintenance/certification of radar guns, the patrol cars assignment for the day and any other info I can find.

I would be 100% sure that that is in fact the law before I get up infront of 2 men that know the laws a lot better than myself. Judges don't like wasting their time.

I can then read off any holes I have found in their maintenance/certification of radar guns, the patrol cars assignment for the day and any other info I can find.

Will you have access to their equipment to be able to check if it's up to spec? And are you licensed to do a maintenance check on their equipment? Again, you're going to make yourself look awfully foolish making a statement about something you have little knowledge of.

There is a good chance the fine will be reduced or I am found not guilty.

They don't reduce fines, at least any judge that is sober. Citations are cities, counties, states money makers. They're not about to give discounts.

The few cops I know are pretty intelligent guys. I don't know where you get the impression he's going to be some bumbling idiot that wouldn't even know something as basic as jotting down a few notes about a citation he wrote at the time. It might very well be a surprise, but you're not the first person to think of trying to fight a traffic ticket.

How about you go to court and nothing happens. I hear that 99% of the time the cop doesn't show up and has better things to do(like eat donuts and fight crime, etc).

Yes, I always love the, "Oh I hear...", "Oh a buddy of my friend's...". Just like all the things to get out of jury duty still work (IF they ever did at all).

 

[Baserape>]

Jump off a cliff, hang yourself, throw a live electric toaster into the bath tub followed by yourself.

=No fine=you win

 

[Krynn72]

Set off some explosives somewhere on your court date and that will fire up the whole police department. Then your guy will likely be too busy looking for the bomber (you) to come to your court date.

 

[CyberPitz]

"My speedometer doesn't work....."
That should have been your first saying with the cop. "Man, it said I was only going 37..." Then they would give you a ticket to fix it, and when you did, ticket removed. It's how it was with my tags..they were expired and he gave me one of those tickets, and I had a month to fix it.

 

[Baal]

"My speedometer doesn't work....."
That should have been your first saying with the cop. "Man, it said I was only going 37..." Then they would give you a ticket to fix it, and when you did, ticket removed. It's how it was with my tags..they were expired and he gave me one of those tickets, and I had a month to fix it.

I've only excessively sped once (last Friday night, there was a reason), and that's a great excuse for me because I drive a 1990 Mazda Protege with 375,000 KM on it :|

I still don't plan to speed (5-10 KM over at most) often, but if I do... :cheers:

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Tell them you were drunk at the time.

 

[DreamThrall]

Aw, boo-hoo. Welcome to responsibility. You did something stupid and you have to live with the consequences. Don't expect any sympathy for breaking the speed limit excessively without good reason.
Go without spending money. Tighten your budget for a few weeks. Stay in a few weekends. If you can't afford to pay the fine, sell your car. Above all, grow up.

...

What they said. But mostly:

Aw, boo-hoo. Welcome to responsibility.

 

[CyberPitz]

I've only excessively sped once (last Friday night, there was a reason), and that's a great excuse for me because I drive a 1990 Mazda Protege with 375,000 KM on it :|

I still don't plan to speed (5-10 KM over at most) often, but if I do... :cheers:

I've done it a few times, but never where there was alot of cars around to where I could wreck...Only on either the highway or an empty patch of road.

Hell I don't do it often, due to my car having 240k miles on it.

 

[Qonfused]

Aw, boo-hoo. Welcome to responsibility. You did something stupid and you have to live with the consequences. Don't expect any sympathy for breaking the speed limit excessively without good reason.
Go without spending money. Tighten your budget for a few weeks. Stay in a few weekends. If you can't afford to pay the fine, sell your car. Above all, grow up.

Exactly.

You were speeding. Pay the fine.

 

[Krynn72]

I've done it a few times, but never where there was alot of cars around to where I could wreck...Only on either the highway or an empty patch of road.

Hell I don't do it often, due to my car having 240k miles on it.

In Orlando if you dont speed you die. Around here its usually a 40-45 mph speed limit. If your not going 60-70 then everyone gets pissed and starts swerving into other lanes or tailgating you hardcore. It sucks because the streets are usually packed in all 3 lanes, so every accident is a multiple car accident. During the weekends or at late hours though, roads arnt very busy so you can go however fast you want (ie: slower, since thats also when cops are out).

 

[hool10]

Yes, I always love the, "Oh I hear...", "Oh a buddy of my friend's...". Just like all the things to get out of jury duty still work (IF they ever did at all).

Nope everybody I know has said this, even my driving teacher. The cop is expected to be in court at a certain time but most of the time they don't show up. If they don't show up then you get off the ticket. Seriously cops have much more on their plate than some stupid ticket.

 

[Cole]

In Orlando if you dont speed you die. Around here its usually a 40-45 mph speed limit. If your not going 60-70 then everyone gets pissed and starts swerving into other lanes or tailgating you hardcore. It sucks because the streets are usually packed in all 3 lanes, so every accident is a multiple car accident. During the weekends or at late hours though, roads arnt very busy so you can go however fast you want (ie: slower, since thats also when cops are out).

If I was a cop i'd turn on my sirens and pick one guy just out of the whole mess of cars going 60 - 70. Go up to him and tell him he's getting a speeding ticket. Then right before i'd hand the ticket to him i'd be like "Just messin" and walk away.

 

[CyberPitz]

If I was a cop i'd turn on my sirens and pick one guy just out of the whole mess of cars going 60 - 70. Go up to him and tell him he's getting a speeding ticket. Then right before i'd hand the ticket to him i'd be like "Just messin" and walk away.

Meow see here!!

I've always wanted to be a cop and do the whole Super Troopers thing...would be funny...until you pull over a guy that does meth, and shoots you.

D:

 

[<RJMC>]

here in my city people havent discovered the brakes yet

 

[function9]

Nope everybody I know has said this, even my driving teacher. The cop is expected to be in court at a certain time but most of the time they don't show up. If they don't show up then you get off the ticket. Seriously cops have much more on their plate than some stupid ticket.

Yes you proved my point. It's never "I had to go to court, the cop never showed.", "I was called for jury duty but called for a different date, I never had to serve." No it's always, "I heard", "So and so said", "Everybody says", etc. Maybe at one point in time those tactics worked, but aside from some backwoods outfit, I don't think you can pull that stuff with many departments. Like I said, cops are ASSIGNED certain dates that they will be in court, that's all they're doing on those days. And you will only be scheduled a court date ON ONE OF THOSE DAYS. Funny I always thought writing citations and maybe even having to defend them was part of the job. It's too bad not all of us can take hearsay as gospel.

 

[Anthraxxx]

Lol. The cop who wrote you the ticket probably put down a court date on a day on which he is scheduled to be in court, so good luck hoping that he won't be there. Eithe way, you're going to have to pay court fees. If this is your first ticket, just show up to court. Most times, the district attorney will be lenient and change your ticket to a nonmoving violation and just cite you for mechanical failure.

 

[Glirk Dient]

here in my city people havent discovered the brakes yet

Same, people typically drive 10-20 over and I got nailed for going 13 over. I was in the middle of a pack of cars and was the only one pulled over. It really pisses me off. I can't afford to let my parents find out or I most likely won't have a place to live. Things aren't looking too great.

 

[Seppo]

I'm sorry man but I believe there's no way you can get out of that. And if you're THAT broke, why not just ask your parents so you can at least buy some food and stuff?

 

[Lucid]

You ****ed up, deal with it.

Try to explain to them your financial situation, how you're a student with a shit job.
It might get sympathy, it might not.

 

[Cormeh]

build a time machine and stop yourself

Nah. See, you have to travel at a speed of 88 mph to succeed in time travel, so he'll just get another ticket.

Here's a novel approach, pay the man and in future, slow down.

 

[hool10]

Yes you proved my point. It's never "I had to go to court, the cop never showed.", "I was called for jury duty but called for a different date, I never had to serve." No it's always, "I heard", "So and so said", "Everybody says", etc. Maybe at one point in time those tactics worked, but aside from some backwoods outfit, I don't think you can pull that stuff with many departments. Like I said, cops are ASSIGNED certain dates that they will be in court, that's all they're doing on those days. And you will only be scheduled a court date ON ONE OF THOSE DAYS. Funny I always thought writing citations and maybe even having to defend them was part of the job. It's too bad not all of us can take hearsay as gospel.

Even if the cop showed up I think he would still turn down the ticket. If this is his first time, or he hasn't got a ticket in a long time, then I think the judge would turn it down. They arn't that loony jeez.

 

[CyberPitz]

Even if the cop showed up I think he would still turn down the ticket. If this is his first time, or he hasn't got a ticket in a long time, then I think the judge would turn it down. They arn't that loony jeez.

I would like you to take that back, under the principle that it's wrong.

 

[hool10]

I would like you to take that back, under the principle that it's wrong.

I'm not gonna do another rant on why must cops suck. Most cops not all though.

 

[The Monkey]

You only have yourself to blame. You were a hazard to yourself and other people in the traffic and you're lucky they didn't take your licence. Learn to follow the rules before getting behind the wheel next time.

But now that you've been cought, the best thing to do is not to bother turning up in court. If you can avoid it long enough they'll probably let if go. If they don't you've only made it worse, though...

 

[Solaris]

Probably better to spend the time you would spend in court and studing the laws and whatnot in a secound job?

 

[RakuraiTenjin]

just go to court half the time they wont even bother to show up as it's not worth their time to lose writing other tickets and if they don't then you win the case

 

[CptStern]

just tell them you were in a hurry because you had a "female emergency" and had to change your pad ....it's even more effective if you're not female

 

[Glirk Dient]

just go to court half the time they wont even bother to show up as it's not worth their time to lose writing other tickets and if they don't then you win the case

I am thinking I may take my chance on this. I have read up and they usually schedule court on a day the officer works. If not then I am screwed as he gets a lot of money to show up. He may not show up on a day he works because he has better things to do than argue about a speeding ticket.

You only have yourself to blame. You were a hazard to yourself and other people in the traffic and you're lucky they didn't take your licence. Learn to follow the rules before getting behind the wheel next time.

Are you 12? Take my liscnese because I was driving just as fast as other people around me? A hazard to myself and those around me? Driving in your comfort zone is often advised. Drive the minimum speed limit on 1 lane roads and see how safe it is.

You don't seem in much of a position to talk, do you even drive? I know the rules well and I am positive that no one here has NEVER gone over the speed limit especially when going down hills or driving with the flow of traffic. In my area people usually drive 10-20 over all speed limits and 20-30 over on the highways. Don't talk so condescendingly when your going to be that ignorant.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I haven't read the thread nor do I know much about US law.

But in UK law driving offences are 'strict liability' which means only the AR needs to be proved - there's no MR.

AR = prohibited act
MR = guilty mind

All defences I can think of focus on MR. Duress = no guilty mind because you were forced. Insanity = no guilty mind because you were barmy. Intoxication = no guilty mind because you were off your tits on something someone spiked your drink with.

When the MR isn't even considered, I can't imagine any possible way you could get out of this.

 

[Solaris]

I haven't read the thread nor do I know much about US law.

But in UK law driving offences are 'strict liability' which means only the AR needs to be proved - there's no MR.

AR = prohibited act
MR = guilty mind

All defences I can think of focus on MR. Duress = no guilty mind because you were forced. Insanity = no guilty mind because you were barmy. Intoxication = no guilty mind because you were off your tits on something someone spiked your drink with.

When the MR isn't even considered, I can't imagine any possible way you could get out of this.

Aha, Glirk djeint said in court, as a spark of genius flashed, his eyes lit up and a smile growing on his face. "Speed is relative to the observer!"

 

[Glirk Dient]

No actually I was planning on throwing a pencil and asking the officer how fast it was moving.

I am more so hoping he doesn't show up.