Last month about 2 weeks after I got my new car, I got a speeding ticket. I was driving down a road that looked like a highway but it was only a 45. I was going somewhere unfamiliar and had the GPS on. It was early in the day and there was nobody on the road. I was not really paying attention to my speed bc I was worried about making a wrong turn.
All of a sudden I saw a cop with his lights on. He told me I was going 70. I really had no idea, and it was a total accident. He gave me a ticket and told me to appear in court on Feb 1 bc I could try to talk it down. I waited a whole month and today was my court date.
I drive 30 min to the town court. I get on line to show my ticket to the clerk. The room is full of people so I am thinking I will be here awhile. I brought papers to correct just in case. She sees my ticket and tells me that if I plead guilty I will get 6pts on my license and have to pay court fees on top. Since they suspend your license at 11pts, this is a large number of pts. It turns out they do not assign pts on first offense etc. They just assign it based on the crime. She tells me if I plead not guilty then I can come back another day to talk it down. I must have had a really dumb look on my face. I told her that the officer said to come tonight to speak to the judge. She said nope, tonight is just to chose guilty or not. So I got really mad, but I had to keep my cool. I said so, I could have just mailed this in.....
I was also confused bc I was guilty, I did speed, but if I admit that then I do not get a chance to explain and ask for leniency I think she caught on bc then she says, if this is your first offense just plead not guilty. I really had no choice bc the penalty of 6ts is too high. I would also have to pay court fees, and then the DMV gets you for $300 for the driver responsibility program when you get 6pts in 18 months. REALLY??? So for my first offense this is what I could get....ughhhhhhhhh
So I had no choice, I plead not guilty took the paper she gave me and left. Then I read that I have to come back NEXT month for a pre-trial meeting with the ADA. If we agree to something then I do not have to go to court. If we do not agree then I have to go back to court. OMG so I am not sure what will happen. This is my first offense but I was driving 25 miles over the limit. That number sounds outrageous to me but the road was empty and my new car has a super quick acceleartaion. I barely tap it and I am going 40.
I am going to tell the truth. I am going to bring my car receipt and tell them that I just got a new car two weeks prior, so I was not used to the acceleration since my former car was 14 years old. We will see what happens. Even if they reduce it one point I will not have to pay the stupid responsibility fee. It is crazy that I drive without issue for 18 years and I never get any reward but I screw up once and I get hit hard. By the time this gets settled it will be months later.
Ugh! So much to go through, but hopefully it will all be worth it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a hassle! I hope that it all works out in your favour!
ReplyDeleteWhat! Do they think you have all the time in the world. I like your strategy of showing them you had just bought the car.
ReplyDeleteLittle JoAnn
I agree with Little JoAnn .... they should give you leniency as you have a great record and a new car. Of course, the gov't will make you jump through hoops for anything! How frustrating! I hope you win. Keep us posted!
ReplyDeleteI, on the other hand, have a lead foot. I got a speeding ticket driving to my parents' house for Christmas. :-(
It's important to tell the truth but this procedure is really stupid.
ReplyDeleteI recommend you to hire a lawyer specialized in such cases if you want to avoid the 6 pts penalty.
That's how I canceled my last speeding ticket Toronto....I hired a lawyer that somehow found a legal bug and forced the court to cancel my ticket:)
If not they will give you the penalty and you'll have to be very careful not to get other tickets.
Good luck!!!