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There's nothing quite like getting pulled over on your way
to work or on an outing with your family for making an illegal turn or
running a stop sign and being handcuffed and arrested for ignoring
previous tickets. And more than a few drivers have been dismayed to return
to their parked cars only to find that the car has a "boot" on its wheel,
a device that that prevents it from being driven away.
If you think you've received a ticket you didn't deserve,
it's useless to argue with the officer who issued it, and doing so may
even work against you when it comes time for your day in court, since
police officers usually have a much greater recall of uncooperative
motorists than those who just take the ticket and go on their way. If you
want to fight a ticket, the proper place to do so is in traffic court. The
ticket will indicate the time and place where you can appear to contest
it.
While it can be frustrating and time consuming to go to
traffic court, and you may be tempted to simply pay the fine and be done
with the matter, there are some times when fighting a traffic ticket makes
sense. Speeding and traffic tickets can lead to increased insurance rates,
and repeated offenses can lead to the suspension or loss of your driver's
license. So if you got a parking ticket while you were legally parked, or
if you can show that the police officer who issued the ticket made a
mistake, you should seriously consider going to court.
In most cases, you don't need a lawyer's help to fight a
traffic ticket. Although the procedures may vary a bit from court to
court, generally you simply appear in court on the day scheduled. In many
communities, you can meet with the prosecuting attorney before your case
is called and attempt to work out a reduction or dismissal of the charges.
If this proves impossible, or if it isn't the procedure in your community,
you will then wait for your case to be called. The traffic court judge
will ask for your plea, at which point you say "Not Guilty."
The court will then ask the prosecuting attorney to present
his case, which will usually consist entirely of the testimony of the
officer who wrote the ticket. The attorney will ask the officer to
identify himself, give an account of the events leading up to the ticket
and identify you as the driver to whom the ticket was issued. You then get
a chance to cross-examine the officer, and present any evidence you may
have in your defense, such as your own testimony and the testimony of
other witnesses. The prosecutor gets to cross-examine you and your
witnesses, and that's about it. The judge then renders his decision.
While it's not necessary to get a fresh haircut and wear
your Sunday best to traffic court, being neatly dressed and treating the
judge, the police officer and the prosecuting attorney with courtesy won't
hurt your case. And if you spend a little time preparing your case before
you get to court, rehearsing your questions and organizing your thoughts,
you can present your case more clearly and more importantly, more quickly.
Traffic court judges have crowded courtroom schedules, and they tend to
appreciate brevity and clarity.
In some cases, simply showing up to contest the ticket may
be enough to lead to a dismissal. In order to proceed with its case, the
government will almost always need the testimony of the officer who wrote
the ticket. Occasionally, because of a scheduling conflict, the officer
won't be in court when he's supposed to be. If he's not there, you can ask
the court to dismiss your case for lack of prosecution.
Finally, if the offense you've been charged with is a
serious one, you may want to at least talk to an attorney beforehand, and
you might even want to have one represent you if you are facing suspension
or loss of your license, or if you think being found guilty will cause a
big jump in your insurance rates. While there are plenty of times when a
lawyer's help isn't necessary, it may be a false economy to save a few
hundred dollars in legal fees only to pay that and more in increased
insurance rates and added inconvenience.
Fines, License Suspensions and Traffic
School
A routine ticket for speeding, failure to yield, or failure
to stop at a stop sign will normally cost you between $75 and $300,
depending on your state law and sometimes your driving record. If the fine
isn't written or printed on the ticket, it's easy to learn the amount by
calling the traffic court. States normally have standard fines for
particular violations, based on the type of offense. In speeding cases,
the fine can be based on how much you exceeded the posted speed limit.
Some states can also set the fine based, at least in part, on whether you
have other recent violations.
Because it's expensive for the state if you fight your
ticket, courts place hurdles in the way of people who insist on a court
hearing, while establishing "no muss, no fuss" options to pay your fine
(often called "forfeiting bail"). But while paying up may be easy, it can
have lasting negative consequences since the violation will appear on your
driving record, normally for about three years. The big exception to this
rule is if you pay the fine in conjunction with going to traffic school.
Completion of traffic school normally means the ticket will not appear on
your record.
Insurance Rates
Depending on your state law and your insurance company
policies, your auto insurance rates will normally not increase if you
receive one ordinary moving violation over three to five years. But two or
more moving violations -- or a moving violation combined with an at-fault
accident -- during the same time period might result in an increase in
your insurance bill. Unfortunately, because insurance companies follow
different rules when it comes to raising the rates of policyholders who
pay fines or are found guilty of a traffic violation, it's not always easy
to know whether it makes sense to fight a ticket.
Before you can make an informed choice as to whether to pay,
go to traffic school or fight, it makes sense to find out whether having
the ticket on your record will result in your insurance rates being upped.
The most direct approach is to call your insurance company and ask. The
problem with this approach is that it risks alerting your insurer that you
have been ticketed (something you don't want to do if you hope to
successfully fight it or go to traffic school). One approach is to call
your insurer anonymously and suggest you are considering switching
insurance companies and want to gather information on a range of key
issues, such as their criteria for good driver discounts and premium
increases when covered drivers get ticketed.
License Suspensions
You won't lose your license for one or usually even two
tickets for a routine moving violation like speeding, running a stoplight
or stop sign, or many other garden-variety traffic scrapes. That is unless
you are under 18 years of age, where you could lose your driving
privileges in some states.
If you are over 18 years of age and have had at least three
previous convictions for moving violations in the past three to five
years, you could lose your license (parking violations don't count). If
you are charged with drunk, reckless or hit-and-run driving, and have
several previous convictions for moving violations, you can be pretty sure
your right to continue to hold your license is in jeopardy.
In most states, suspensions are handled on a point system
with a license at risk of being pulled if a driver gets three or more
tickets in a short period. Check exact rules with your state's Department
of Motor Vehicles. Obviously, if you face losing your license, your
incentive to fight a ticket goes way up no matter what your chances of
winning.
No matter what type of point system is used, you are
typically entitled to a hearing in front of a Motor Vehicle Bureau hearing
officer before your license can be revoked. At that hearing it is often a
good idea to explain why at least some of the violations were the result
of mistakes by the ticketing officer, but for some good reason you didn't
fight the ticket. It also helps to explain the specific steps you've taken
to drive more carefully and safely since the violations.
In states that assess points for accidents, this may be your
first opportunity to show the accident wasn't your fault, was difficult to
avoid or was not part of an ongoing pattern of bad driving. Be prepared to
do just that. Also, tell the hearing officers if it is essential that you
commute to work or actually drive for your job, particularly if you will
lose your job if you lose your license. Finally, if you drive 15,000 miles
a year or more, you should mention this as well. Argue that since you
drive more than average, your chances of getting tickets or having an
accident are also above average.
The Traffic School Option
Almost every state allows a person ticketed for some types
of moving violations to attend a 6-to-8 hour course in traffic safety in
exchange for having the ticket officially wiped from their record. Often
attending traffic school is your best choice, even if you think you have a
watertight defense. After all, while a trial is always something of a
gamble, traffic school is 100% reliable in keeping the violation off your
record. (As long as you remember to set your alarm clock, of course, and
make it to the class.)
Policies on allowing you to eliminate a ticket from your
record by going to traffic school vary from state to state. (They can also
occasionally vary within a state, where local courts have some discretion
to set their own policies.) For example, in some states you can attend
traffic school once a year, while in others you must wait 18 to 24 months
before you can eliminate a new ticket with a new trip to traffic school.
And in some states, you aren't eligible for traffic school if you're
ticketed for exceeding the speed limit by more than 15 or 20 miles per
hour.
Procedures for getting into traffic school also vary from
place to place. Most courts allow you to sign up through the court clerk,
but a few require that you appear before a judge to make your request. How
a traffic school attendee's ticket is handled is also different in
different areas. For example, in some states, courts dismiss your case
when proof is received that you've completed traffic school. In other
states, courts require you to pay your fine (forfeit bail) with the
understanding that the conviction will not be placed on your record if you
complete traffic school by a prearranged deadline. Under this system you
must pay twice -- once for the fine and again for the school.
In brief outline, for those who are eligible, the advantages
of attending traffic school are as follows:
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As long as you show up, it's normally a 100% sure way to
keep a violation off your record.
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It reduces the possibility of your license being lifted
or your insurance rates going up if you get new tickets, and
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If you pay attention, your driving skills may improve.
(Or you may be so bored that you will drive more safely to avoid another
day in traffic school.)
The disadvantages of traffic school include:
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It typically lasts six to eight hours.
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In many areas it is expensive. This is especially true
if you are in a state where you must pay for traffic school plus the
fine for the ticket.
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In some states, you can go to traffic school only once
every 12 to 18 months. If you can beat this ticket, you can save the
school option just in case you get a tougher ticket later on.
In some states, erasing a ticket through traffic school may
be accomplished while sitting at home. For example, California is just one
of a number of states where traffic courts authorize Internet-based
traffic schools (they use tests and other devices to be sure you are
paying attention). This trend is almost sure to spread. But be sure to
check with the court in your particular area to make sure that an
Internet-based program is acceptable. Do not pay any money to the traffic
school unless you are sure that the court accepts that particular school's
program.
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