Depending on the time of day of the ticket, it might be worth fighting those too. If you got a ticket in a school zone at 9pm or so, or on a weekend, or during summer vacation, you'd have some validity since school wasn't in session. Don't most school zones have times listed where the limit drops?

 

None of the school zones here in Carroll County seem to have times listed, Edge. But yes, that's a good point. If ticketed on a date/time when school kids obviously aren't out and about, it would be worth fighting.

 

Here in IL, school zone speeds are only valid when schools in session and kids are present.

 

I dont know about there, but here in NC it is cheaper to pay a lawyer who will most definitely get it reduced if not completely removed from your record. The impact that a ticket of that size will have on your insurance premiums will cost you way more over the next three years than a lawyer will.

 

Do not plead guilty to a speeding ticket. It will only cost you time and the upside is a reduction or beating it. I commute 100 miles a day to work for the last 10+ years and the first 2 years I got 3 speeding tickets on the NYS Thruway and beat all 3 tickets.

My experience is that a cop will try to line up all of his court appearance on the same night(I am sure there are some cops on here that can confirm if this is the case). I always cancel the first appearance and all 3 times the cop never showed on the second court date and the ticket was dismissed.

Not sure if it will work but it has for me in the past.

 

Motoring is not a right. It's a priveledge.

If it's not going to cost you more money in time to go to court than it would the cost of the ticket. Go to court and tell the judge this is your first ticket in 20 years. Most likely he'll drop the fine down considerably.

I like how you came here and said you were actually speeding. It's good to see some people still around that accept responsibility for their actions.

 

What I've heard for California is that when you fight a ticket, you lose the option of going to traffic school. It still goes on your record if the judge reduces the ticket (doesn't dismiss it entirely). The traffic school option keeps it completely off your record.

 

This is assuming you live in a State that is still in the stone age and the judge doesn't have a computer in front of him so he can read your Motor Vehicle Record while he's determining your fate.

Can you tell I speak from experience ?

 

Very true, our licenses are a privilege. However, once we are licensed, we still are entitled to fair treatment as Americans, and if the "system" is going to abuse drivers by deliberately doing things to increase the size of their coffers (in the name of safety, even if safety actually has very little to do with it), then we should be trying to fight that system to change into a more reasonable form.

Motoring is treated more as a "right" here in the USA (whether true or not) than it is in other countries (have you heard how hard it is to get a license in Germany?), yet our traffic enforcement, laws & kangaroo courts here are too often focused on the wrong reasons.

They take driving much more seriously over there... yet their stringent requirements allow roads like the Autobahn to exist.

 

How hard is it? I don't know and would like to know.

Do we have some German licensed drivers on NAM? From reading here http://www.howtogermany.com/pages/driving.html it looks pretty simple. If you got a license from a bunch of states (including VA) and Canada, you just trade it in. Sounds pretty simple. Another batch of states, you need to take the written test. I assume the rest require a written and road test. Even the road test says your not treated like "beginner" but take the cheap way out. And ... the license is good for life.

So, do we have any German licensed drivers here? How hard is it?

 

I lived in Germany for seven years. The last time was in 1999. At that time, it was pretty tough for Germans to get a license. They had to be at least 21 years old. They had to have one year of driver's training. They had to pass a difficult written test and a practical exam.

One of the reasons I loved driving in Germany was because they actually know how to drive. You don't see nearly the number of idiots on the roads there as you do here.

Now, that's been 8 years ago. Things may well have changed regarding licensing. And it may have varied even then from state to state.

 

I just got a 77 in a 55 here in NC in July. First one since 1995. It was a fluke. I was on cruise control running 61 in a 55. This clown in a Chevy truck was riding my bumper real hard for 2 miles....as we entered the four lane I dropped a gear or 2 and accelerated around the car in front that was holding me in the middle of a mess. As I did I hit 77 MPH and the trooper clocked me. He turned around and ran me down. He asked me what I was doing and I explained....he kept saying..man that car is fast...I was nice but he wrote the thing for 77.

I have legal insurance so I hired a lawyer. He went to the front of the 300 plus people in line at court he told me...cause he is a lawyer...anyway...he said the DA had a spreadsheet. Mine was 77 in a 55 so the best he could do was a reduction to 64 in a 55...I wanted an improper equipment but I was just going too fast....bummer....

Now I really have to watch my speed. Last week I installed my new Valentine One. I still plan to watch my speed but at least I will know where the bogeys are.....

 

I have a German driver's license. I'm licensed to drive manual transmission, as well as, automatic transmission autos; medium sized tractors; and all sizes of motorcycles. The process is not cheap (auf Deustch: "nicht billig"). You register with the Department of Motor Vehicles. You take some documents to a driver's school (Fahrschule). The school is responsible for providing class room and practical training. You get a lot of class room time and quite a bit of driving experience. When they think you are ready, usually a year or more, they give you a document to bring back to the DMV. This allows you to schedule your written and driving tests. Of course, there are many fees along the way. The average amount a German will pay to obtain a license when learning to drive is 3,000 Euro (about $4000 US).

There is a really cool short cut for people from the US. Because BMW and Mercedes have large operations in Alabama and Georgia, the German DMW trades these licenses out evenly for a German license. Of course, there is a fee, but it is nothing like all the training the natives have to pay. The US DMV does the same thing in reverse for the Germans that go to AL or GA to work for these companies.

If you have a driver's license from the 0ther 48 states (not AL or GA), then different rules apply about how much classroom and driving training you must have. You'll go to the German DMV and register with a driving school like a native. The German DMV determines how much training you need and it varies with the State. If you are from California, you will only need something like 6 hours driving training with an instructor from the school. If you are from another state you will have to take class room and driving training. It is humorous to me that they have this kind of system.

If you are from another country, say China, Brazil, or whatever, you go through the range of training options like licensed drivers from the US. Some foreigners have to go through the entire system like a young German driver. Others are somewhere in the middle of the process.

One good thing: A German driver's license never expires. Although, there has been some discussion in the government recently about changing this.

Another good thing: the new licenses issued in Germany are little plastic cards like in the US. They started using these about 2005. Prior to this, the licenses looked like little passport books.

 

Forgot another funny thing: If you come into Germany with a license and want one of theirs, you'll physically trade with the German DMV during the process described above. They keep your original license in a little drawer for as long as you are in the country. So they have all these cabinets with little drawers full of licenses. When you leave the country, you give them back the German one and they give you your original one back - even if it is 3 years, 5 years, 15 years (you get the picture). It is the funniest thing to me. In the US, the surrendered license would be destroyed. In some other place it would be sold on the black market.

 

...and miss out on that juicy OT for getting called-back to court? I think not. You just got lucky IMO. Most cops, if they're not on-shift at the time, get call-back pay for court. Usually at least 2-3 hous of OT. So $120+ to come in and explain why you got that-there ticket.

But that's if you subpoena him, or the depatment allows for it. Now as I said before, they don't HAVE TO appear (but I guarentee they WANT to. That's a chunk of change for what usually amounts to about an hour's worth of time). They can submit an affidavit and it's usually just as good. Submit an affidavit for the first appearence... I guarentee it'll be there waiting for you on the 2nd or 3rd.

Again: 1st ticket in a while... more than 15-over... Repeat after me: De-Fer-ral.

 

Is that for those Harley riders who refuse to wear a helmet? How ridiculous!

Why did you think it was a 50 zone? Is the sign posted very close to where you were stopped? Was it changed recently? Were you keeping up with traffic? I'm with Edge. I'll stay tuned.

And I thought it was Massivetwoshits.

 

Thank you Billie, very informative. Sounds exactly like what i said here http://www.howtogermany.com/pages/driving.html

Some states a straight trades, some states some classwork at reduced fees, etc. Also sounds like the fees are sunk costs as you never have to pay a fee again to renew.

 

75th Anniversay of the Autobahn. CNN Video from today

http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video...y.autobahn.cnn

 

fight the ticket i got 2 speeding tickets in 2 days and i won both cases. i used http://www.ticketassassin.com/fight.html its wroth it cuz u dont get points, dont need to go to school, get your money back and save a bucket load on insurance. dont pay for it without a fight.

my sugesstion is ask for extensions from dmv as long as possible, for paying your tickets, say you dont have any money, then when u cant get anymore, send in your plea for written declaration. as time passes by the cop remembers less about you or if he written things down about your ciatation, he might have lost the paper. ticketassassin has everything you need to know. PM if you got questions. ticket assassin ask for like 25 bucks but i won both classes so it worked for me

 

Looks like great info if you live in California... but unfortunately not applicable elsewhere.

 

Thanks for posting this.
Of course it's not so easy getting a driver's license in Germany.

 

The people of the city of Conroe have requested the pleasure of my company on 11/20. It was 57 in a 40. The street is 4 lane, and is always empty. I saw a green coming up and I sped up to make it (I did--I don't run lights). Unfortunately, I didn't see the guy coming across the intersection the other way.

So, my question is--if I request a trial, and the cop shows, what do I do? Accept my fate? Say something--what? I'm eligible for traffic school, although that is still a bundle. Would it be worse if he does show up?

Help. I haven't been pulled over in years, and a conviction in at least 10--long enough that I can't remember when.

 

Just your presence in court will likely result in PBJ (probation before judgment) due to your clean record.

Don't even make an excuse for the speeding, just tell the judge you were driving at a speed you felt reasonable for the conditions and didn't realize your actual speed.

If you get convicted, I'll be shocked !

 

Okay, update. I pled not guilty and requested a jury trial. I can change to not guilty--appear before judge, or guilty, any time before the trial date. The date is 4/30! I can't believe it would be so far away.

So, do I keep the trial date? And if I keep it, what do I say? Or do I just pray the guy retires before then?

Also, I've gotten a ticket twice in 10 years, but pled not guilty both times. On one the cop didn't show; on the other they misspelled my name. Will they show up since they weren't convictions (and were in another county)?

Traffic school is still an option since I haven't taken it in many years. Time spent on the trial is not a factor, neither is insurance or points. The fine, as it is, is $207.

 

~ 4 years ago, I also didn't have my MINI for long when I also got my first ticket (of any sort) after 25 years of driving! Very early Saturday morning; no one around; my brother in law shouts "Italian Job!" on an on-ramp and we zoom on to the highway. I got nabbed for 75 in a 60. Crazy thing is many people are doing 80 in the fast lane on this stretch during rush hour!

As soon as I got the ticket, I called my AAA agent and explained the situation. She said she wouldn't be raising my rate. In fact, I think my rate went down the following year!