Speeding ticket - need advice

[rfuerst911sc]

Earlier this week on a nice sunny day I was in a Porsche enjoying a mountain drive . Windows down just enjoying the day . On a downhill section I lost my reference to speed and was nailed for 74 in a 45 😡.

It's a two lane road and I was the only car on that section of road . So I was not racing I honestly just lost track of speed . I am 64 years old with a clean driving record.

I contacted a lawyers office that was recommended. They suggested go to my court date , plead no contest and see what happens . If the no contest plea is rejected ask for a continuance and get back with the lawyer for consultation.

Has anyone here used a online service like " offtherecord " ? You apply online , answer some questions and send a pic of the citation . They hook you up with a lawyer.

Yes I made a mistake but I want to try and maintain a clean record. At the very least I want to reduce or eliminate the points for insurance protection . Any advice is appreciated . Thanks

[cabmandone]

Not to mention you're probably at what would be considered reckless op being 30 over the posted speed limit. You might call a lawyer better than the first one you called and get an in person consultation or at least find out if you'd be at risk of being hit with a reckless op charge by the judge.

[rfuerst911sc]

I contacted a different lawyer a few minutes ago via their website . She has very positive reviews for traffic violations. Hopefully she can help me out . In Georgia a ticket for 30+ over the limit is considered a super speeder . That tacks on a additional $200.00 fine . Being @ 29 over I just missed that so lucky in that regard.

[cabmandone]

As long as there isn't any sort of reckless op involved, I'd pay the fine, take my lumps, and move on. The attorney will cost you more than the ticket.

That or go into the courtroom and tell the judge you were distracted by your phone ringing while you were trying to text someone and lost track of how fast you were going. That should fix things!

[rfuerst911sc]

I want to hear what this lawyer has to say . I am hopeful that due to my clean record the speed/points can be reduced or eliminated. Accepting the fine " as is " is a last resort .

[Arizona_928]

Good legal advice

[stomachmonkey]

Cop did you a favor by writing it for 29 over.

In NY 25 over posted is automatic revocation.

Go to court, depending on how traffic court works where you are there may be an ADA handling the States side of things.

Speak to the ADA before court starts and negotiate a plea. They have a lot on their plate for the day and are generally open to making their day easier.

Since you’ve never received a ticket it may benefit you to go to traffic court and watch the system in action.

In TX they have Deferred Adjudication.

You go to court, see a clerk at a window, they’ll offer a couple of things like online school to make it go away and even plead guilty, pay the fine and if you keep your nose clean in that jurisdiction for 30 days it goes away as if it had never happened.

[Seahawk]

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I'll be brief. The issue here is not whether we broke a few rules, or took a few liberties with the roads around Dahlonega. We did."

The real issue is that how this will be settled is so local and often random it is very hard to handicap.

I would do exactly what you are doing - the lawyer should know the local personalities and probabilities.

Good luck.

[cabmandone]

At a minimum of $100 per hour, how many hours are you willing to have them spend for something that isn't going to increase your insurance premium and will be off your record in a few years?

[hcoles]

I'd be more concerned with "lost my reference to speed".

[ted]

I had a speeding ticket on the freeway for towing 60 in a 55.
The fine was $400.
Hired Mr Ticket to take care of it.
Since it was out of town it was not the normal $100 but instead $200 Mr Ticket fee to represent.
Mr Ticket went to court and got the $400 reduced to $200.
So after all that my out of pocket was same, $200 for the court and $200 for Mr Ticket.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by cabmando

As long as there isn't any sort of reckless op involved, I'd pay the fine, take my lumps, and move on. The attorney will cost you more than the ticket.

That or go into the courtroom and tell the judge you were distracted by your phone ringing while you were trying to text someone and lost track of how fast you were going. That should fix things!

It isn't the fine. It is the insurance cost that goes up for YEARS.

Get a good lawyer. Not a friend or a friendly lawyer. But one who can get you to pay the fine but on "something else", like "Failure to observe a traffic control device. One without points.

In Texas, you can apply for "Deferred adjudication". You pay the fine, take traffic school and they now hold this over your head for 18 months. No stops in 18 months and "Poof - Gone!"

[Roswell]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

I would do exactly what you are doing - the lawyer should know the local personalities and probabilities.

Good luck.

Seahawk nailed this. No way would I attempt to handle this myself.

Best of Luck!

[matthewb0051]

Not offered as legal advice. Sorry but have to say it.

I'd take my lumps. The cost isn't worth it for an attorney, unless it is me back in the day doing tickets for my BMW mechanics for $150.

As someone else said, go and speak with the ADA (remembering that these may not be the brightest bulbs since they are at traffic court). Plea it down or ask to take defensive driving in return for a dismissal. They probably have a solution that will work for you without having to pay an attorney and possibly keep your record clean.

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by red-beard

It isn't the fine. It is the insurance cost that goes up for YEARS.

Fair enough, call your insurance agent and ask them if your insurance will go up due to your first speeding ticket. If they say yes, look for a better insurance company.

Ultimately, the only person that is going to win in this situation is the attorney. It's a speeding ticket, not reckless op (if he's correct about that) pay the fine and move on. It's what? 2 points on your license? OH NO! I had 6 before I turned 18. Sh.t happens.

[911 Rod]

Here a ticket is a ticket as far as insurance goes.

[masraum]

"No contest" doesn't really benefit you at all. At least, that didn't work for me when I was young. IME, you still have to pay the full fine amount and you still get all of the points. I would NEVER use that option. If you were going to do that, you'd be far better off just taking defensive driving. Here, if you take defensive driving, your record still shows the ticket, but it shows "0" points.

It sounds to me like you need to talk to a different lawyer. Around here there are usually several lawyers that specialize in tickets and will usually work whatever magic to make the ticket go away.

Another option here is to ask for "deferred adjudication" or "deferred disposition." The way that works, they usually make you pay a sum similar to the ticket. Then they say "if you don't have any other tickets during then this ticket goes away like it never happened." When I was younger I used that option. The time was usually 60 or 90 days. And once you're done, it's not even possible to see that you had a ticket.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cabmando

As long as there isn't any sort of reckless op involved, I'd pay the fine, take my lumps, and move on. The attorney will cost you more than the ticket.

That or go into the courtroom and tell the judge you were distracted by your phone ringing while you were trying to text someone and lost track of how fast you were going. That should fix things!

Not around here. THere are lawyers that are inexpensive. It will cost more because you pay for the lawyer, and there's usually some money to pay to the court still, but not always. Sometimes the ticket just goes away.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Cop did you a favor by writing it for 29 over.

Yep, that's my guess too. It was probably higher, but the cop was trying to keep it to a reasonable speed.

Go to court, depending on how traffic court works where you are there may be an ADA handling the States side of things.

Speak to the ADA before court starts and negotiate a plea. They have a lot on their plate for the day and are generally open to making their day easier.

Since you’ve never received a ticket it may benefit you to go to traffic court and watch the system in action.

In TX they have Deferred Adjudication.

You go to court, see a clerk at a window, they’ll offer a couple of things like online school to make it go away and even plead guilty, pay the fine and if you keep your nose clean in that jurisdiction for 30 days it goes away as if it had never happened.

I've had it anywhere from 30-90 days, but it's a good option.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cabmando

At a minimum of $100 per hour, how many hours are you willing to have them spend for something that isn't going to increase your insurance premium and will be off your record in a few years?

Around here there are lawyers that specialize in tickets, and the charge is usually a flat fee. I haven't used one in many years, but when I did, it was very reasonable $50-100. I think that worked for them because they would often have many clients in each court. I was there once years ago. In Houston, there were a bunch of court rooms. Our lawyer came in before everything started and asked "who's using Kubosh here" and at least 75% of the people in the room raised their hands (at least 15-20 people). Before we were done, the same guy left the room to go to another court room because he had clients there too. In my courtroom every one of his clients except one got off. THe reason that one didn't get off was because the guy was a dick to the cop and the cop remembered that and wouldn't play ball.