Speeding Ticket Options

Superman · 03-23-2003, 05:14 PM

Okay, Superman's got his first ticket in over ten years and wants to know his options. It varies by state, but perhaps with a clean record could I pay the fine and have the ticket not appear on my record? 70 in a 60.

And for all you W WA guys, this state trooper was driving a car with ordinary (non-WSP, non-XMT) plates, no distinguishing lights, etc. Darkened windows. Impossible to recognize as a police car. He was speeding, too. 6:30 am, no traffic. I'm not sure this is fair play, and it seems clear that our local SP is out for revenue. Sad, since its mission used to be public safety and they were good at it. Another fine organization has forgotten its mission.

Doug Zielke · 03-23-2003, 05:20 PM

Jim,
When I was down a few weeks ago for our little romp through the backroads, I remarked to Glenn and Randy, that I had never seen so much cop presence in WA.

I hope we can keep these tax collectors at bay for Round-Up weekend!

GB83SC · 03-23-2003, 05:26 PM

I guess the Police officer did not know that Superman can fly as fast and low as he wants. Did you have suit on ?
Here in Florida you pay the fine ask for driving school and the ticket never shows up on your driving record. My lead foot wife has done it twice.
Regards.

LawRand · 03-23-2003, 05:26 PM

If you have a clean record it may be worth while to talk to the Prosecuting Attorney about a reduction to a non-moving, non-point violation such as defective muffler. Many PA's will do this for a driver with a clean record. The down side is they usually want a little more fine money. It is generally worth it to avoid insurance problems. Good luck.

Harlan Chinn · Harlan Chinn's Garage

Superman, I bet you were north of Olympia? WSP has been using several regular sedans as well as a couple of unmarked Suburbans. WSP often has morning radar where a half dozen units are parked ready to pursue as a single unit is parked on the left shoulder "lighting up" cars as they approach. You might request a mitigated hearing where they are more likely to reduce the infraction to a warning provided they see that you have a clean record. You could explain that you thought the unmarked car looked like a gang bangers car and feared for your life. Good Luck!!

pwd72s · 06:57 PM

Super? Sad to say, but these days it's all about the money when it comes to traffic citations. Public safety has nothing to do with it. You can be a pain in the ass of the system or you can just pay the fine. That's the way it is. I have a friend who decided to go the pain in the ass route. This for a ticket for not wearing a seat belt. He has a medical dispensation from wearing a seat belt. He had the additional problem of not having any seat belts in his 70's car, and got cited for that. But once the Judge decided he'd be a pain in the ass, cost the court more than it could gain, the case was dismissed. As far as I'm concerned, my friend was wrong, as as the law reads. As far as the Judge was concerned, this case could cost the government more $ than it could gain. Therefore, case dismissed. So, do you choose to be a pain in the ass, or do you choose to just pay the fine, as most do? Your decision...

Superman · 03-23-2003, 05:55 PM

Thanks for the tips. No, I'm not a 'pain in the ass' kinda guy, although I can considering writing a letter with my thoughts about the deterioration of a once-proud organization (WSP). No kidding, I have sung these guys' praises for quite a while. They were good at the public safety thing. They're losing my respect and support. Not just because I got a ticket, but because they're not thinking anymore. Later in the day of my ticket, we were returning from the Bremerton AX and a pickup truck that had been following by less than a car length, swerved around two cars right in front of a SP car he couldn't see because of his tailgating. The trooper was behind some bushes looking for speeders going the other way, but he could have done the right thing and nailed this dangerous driver. I guess he thought speeders are easier prey. Sad.

At any rate, I kinda don't care about the fine. I just care about the driving record, and insurance costs. Perhaps I'll talk to the PA.

pwd72s · 03-23-2003, 06:04 PM

"I guess he thought speeders are easier prey. Sad." Prey didn't matter, revenue did. Super? These guys follow instructions.

Superman · 03-23-2003, 06:18 PM

They used to use their brains and focus on safety. Maybe the trial route would be fun. If they're not willing to play ball with the traffic record thing (again, I'll pay the fine no problem), then I won't have much to lose. And I do like to argue. Calmly. Might be fun.

pwd72s · 03-23-2003, 06:25 PM

Super? I believe that 99.9% of the cops out there ARE concerned about public safety, I really do. But there also is the quota system. It's just the way things are.

Doug Zielke · 03-23-2003, 06:51 PM

Hey Super...
Were you wearing your cape when the cop nabbed you?
If so, why not show up in court as Clark Kent, and they'll probably throw out the case on a technicality.

Just a thought.

Superman · 03-23-2003, 07:22 PM

Now that's the Doug I know. The problem is I was dressed as Clark. Had I been dressed as a superhero the encounter would probably have been different. Perhaps if I go to court as Superman.....

47silver · 47silver's Garage

Appeal it he may not show up and you win. at worst you pay the fine and court costs. appeal again if you lose. you dont want the points and 10 mph doesnt seem that high.

slater · 03-23-2003, 07:35 PM

I have gotten out of 2 speeding tickets this way- go to the court house that it lists on the front of the ticket. If it was a trooper, it would probably be a county courthouse. Go to the office where you would pay, tell them that about how you havent had a ticket in 10 years, and they should offer (or you could just ask) traffic saftey class. It is usually a saturday class that you take one time. It only lasted about 4 hours when i did it. Anyway, you go there, watch some stupid videos on road rage, and go home. It usually cost as much or a little more than the ticket, but the ticket doesnt go on your record. They only allow it once every 7 years in Washington. It has worked for me and my friends, too. Good luck!

code7rpd · 03-23-2003, 07:37 PM

Okay, as a police officer I can tell you that there is no quota on ticket writing and there are some cops that write tickets and there are some that don't. I, for example, don't write speeding tickets unless someone is reckless and if they are, I am more inclined to arrest them. I can't justify writing one when I speed myself. I also don't write tickets for not having a front license plate as I don't have one. I work in a busy crime ridden city and most of us out there don't have the time to write alot of tickets. There are some officer's because of their experiences that look at traffic violations as felonies and will write you up in a heartbeat. If you get stopped by the CHP in CA., you will more than likely get a ticket because that is their main function - traffic enforcement. If you get stopped by a city cop on a motorcycle you will more than likely get a ticket too as traffic enforcement is their focus. Most cops that I work with write tickets in areas based upon complaints. If people complain about stop sign runners or speeders in a certain area, them we write tickets to alleviate the problem. If I have to work stop sign, everyone I stop will get a ticket because I have to be fair. Sorry for rambling but getting a ticket doesn't mean that cops are bad and that they are the enemy. When you go to a traffic crash caused by excessive speed and see a light pole impaled in the stomach of a dead pregnant woman killing her and her fetus, you may have a different spin on speeders. And incidently you may drive fast and be able to control your car with no problem but the knucklehead in the lane next to you or in front of you may not and their mistake can put you in a position that may cause you to crash - it may not be your fault but F=MA and believe me, sometimes the end result is not pretty.

Superman · 03-23-2003, 08:12 PM

Codeman, I hear you. My impression of WSP had been sky high, because of what I saw as professionalism and good judgement. I have been warned more than I've been ticketed. And I do respect and appreciate the tough job it can be. My hat's been off to the folks in blue. But WSP I seem to be noticing a change, and others too. WSP used to watch for unsafe drivers. The "aggressive driver unit" guy in the white Volvo wagon paced me at 85 in a 60 at one car length and just verbally warned me. I'm actually a good driver. LONG following distances. I like to cruise in pockets, away from traffic. Saturday morning there was no traffic on four lanes of new asphalt. Again, his car was indistinguishable from an ordinary car, dark tinted windows. Had rolled slowly past him, and we were going mid-seventies in a 70-mph zone. Coming into the Seattle-Metro 60 mph zone, I wanted and expected him to slow a little and I planned to give him and myself a little room by waiting longer to slow down. For that decision he gave me a ticket. And that seems to be the WSP's approach these days. What a waste of good officers. Catching dangerous 75-mph speeders.

So yeah. I appreciate good cops making tough and usually effective decisions. I don't think Saturday was an example of that. Heck, if they want revenue, they could just sit at the Black Lake onramp. Every 1.5 minutes, some rude, impatient motorist is gonna cut across the core point trying to get in front of everyone else.

Oh, and thanks, Slater. That's good information.

RSBob · RSBob's Garage

You should have an excellent chance of beating that ticket if you arm yourself with the proper information. Go to: http://www.motorists.com/and get their legal defense kit.

MMARSH · MMARSH's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by code7rpd
Sorry for rambling but getting a ticket doesn't mean that cops are bad and that they are the enemy

Yes it does.

Tyson Schmidt · 03-23-2003, 11:25 PM

Heh heh, jeez Mike. I'm not quite sure how to take that post. But I think it's funny either way!

RoninLB · 03-24-2003, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tyson Schmidt
I think it's funny either way!

LOL