Can I beat this ticket?
 

OK, I bought my Honda from Carmax about 18 months ago. I do the speedy registration where they have the tags there & I just fill out the forms and drive home in my Accord, no muss, no fuss, no need to visit DMV. On Friday I get stopped for expired registration, basically because I never got a renewal in the mail and didn't notice it was expired. DMV says the tags aren't even in their system anymore. My guess is the jokers at Carmax never forwarded my forms to DMV. Do you think the Judge will have pity on me?

Similar thing happened to me. BMW dealer said they'd take care of it all for me. A few mos. later I got tired of waiting and asked them where my decals were. Turns out they had not had an emissions inspection done and so couldn't register it for me. In VA if you get pulled over for this, they tow your car. I was irate. Dealer took care of it when I made a stink and they did it for free. I'd get Carmax to admit fault and write you a letter to take to the judge.

Your best bet (IMO) is to get the registration taken care of before you show up for court. Tell your story, say you took care of it ASAP, and hope for the best.

Just be careful, you may have problems if Carfax didn't forward the paperwork.

Get carmax to fix it pronto, get documentation to that, and with it fixed already, hope the judge is in a good mood...

Just remember, the judge and city are out to make money. They don't give a sht about your or anyone else.

I'd agree with that. If you can show that you've tried to comply with the spirit and intent of the law and aren't trying to slide anything by, you'll probably be fine. Judges look at all manners of redneck dirtbags, scam artists, lowlifes, criminals and the like all day long. If you show up as a decent, clean-cut articulate guy that simply got caught in a goofed-up situation you're likely to get the "dismissed, this guy's not a problem, let's get to the 15 schitheads with DUIs and multiple suspensions and hit & runs" reaction. . .

But yes, I'd expect to pay $$$ - and a good amount of it.

Clean, articulate, don't mean sht. They want the money, and consequently ANYONE will lose, no matter what their argument. Unfortunate, but true, just like the movies depict the old time deep south, your screwed. Why? Because its EXACTLY like the old time south.

The system and all in it are CORRUPT!

If your a cop or judge who thinks otherwise, think again, your part of it, and nothing you can do will change it. Get the money out of tickets and the system will change. Just Orange CO CA took in over 300 MILLION last year in tickets from what I have been told. Now thats almost real money.

The next question is exactly WHERE did all this money go?? Corruption at its best. Just say hello to Sheriff John P Coltrain. Americas finest. Or is it Boss Hog? Or WTF happened to all this money???

300 MILLION!!! and no one knows where it is, every single year. Even the communist couldn't be so brazen.

Should be an easy rap to beat, but get a lawyer and my guess is 100% chance.

Don't expect to play the courts game without following their rules; get a lawyer.

I don't know how it is in VA, but in NC, for citations like this, one needs only to comply (i.e. get the tags, registrations, etc.), show up in court, and the DA (asst. DA or whomever), will dismiss the charge. Good luck.

I got pulled for an expired tag back in August.

It expired 6 months earlier and I did not realize it.

Fine was $25 plus the $130 court fee.

The day I got the ticket I renewed the registration on-line and showed up in Court & plead not guilty.

I mentioned to the DA it was an oversight and he dismissed all the charges & fees:)

It is their job after all.

May get any fine reduced if it is taken care of, it is your responsibility to make sure the registration gets handled, when it comes right down to it.