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That Guy · 04-18-2012, 02:47 PM

okay, here's the deal with tickets - this is mainly experience with fairfax co, but i imagine its about the same most places.

the officer's word is fact in the eyes of the judge. you can't talk to the officer, but if you have a lawyer, he can talk to the officer on your behalf (and normally they're pretty decent people).

show up (WITH a lawyer if at all possible) - best case, the cop doesn't show (it happens, but it's one day a month for all their tickets, so it's really bad on them if they miss court). your lawyer can probably talk to the cop and getting it down to if he's reasonably well liked... i've seen 15mph over go down to failure to obey a sign. judges also tend to get the lawyered defendants in and out of the courthouse a lot quicker.

second best case (and likely without a lawyer) - if you've got a clean record, you'll likely be told you have the option to take an online class ($60 and 4 hours or so) and the charge will disappear. even though this takes the time for court and the class, it's just as good as getting it dismissed basically.

worst case you get stuck with it. arguing wagainst the cops word won't work, appealing won't get you anywhere, so it's not worth bothering with that. you can ask if the radar was calibrated (that CAN get the ticket kicked) but in fairfax co, they keep their stuff updated and on hand from everything i've seen.

have certified driving records btw... the dmv can print them out, ask for the one used for court (there are 3 different versions, personal being 10 years, then like a 2 and 5 year one or something for court or employment or whatever). It cost almost nothing.

you can also have an auto shop check your speedometer, that's usually good for knocking 2-3mph off.

04-18-2012, 02:47 PM	#3
That Guy Living Legend Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: VA Age: 42 Posts: 17,620	Re: I have a question about speeding tickets okay, here's the deal with tickets - this is mainly experience with fairfax co, but i imagine its about the same most places. the officer's word is fact in the eyes of the judge. you can't talk to the officer, but if you have a lawyer, he can talk to the officer on your behalf (and normally they're pretty decent people). show up (WITH a lawyer if at all possible) - best case, the cop doesn't show (it happens, but it's one day a month for all their tickets, so it's really bad on them if they miss court). your lawyer can probably talk to the cop and getting it down to if he's reasonably well liked... i've seen 15mph over go down to failure to obey a sign. judges also tend to get the lawyered defendants in and out of the courthouse a lot quicker. second best case (and likely without a lawyer) - if you've got a clean record, you'll likely be told you have the option to take an online class ($60 and 4 hours or so) and the charge will disappear. even though this takes the time for court and the class, it's just as good as getting it dismissed basically. worst case you get stuck with it. arguing wagainst the cops word won't work, appealing won't get you anywhere, so it's not worth bothering with that. you can ask if the radar was calibrated (that CAN get the ticket kicked) but in fairfax co, they keep their stuff updated and on hand from everything i've seen. have certified driving records btw... the dmv can print them out, ask for the one used for court (there are 3 different versions, personal being 10 years, then like a 2 and 5 year one or something for court or employment or whatever). It cost almost nothing. you can also have an auto shop check your speedometer, that's usually good for knocking 2-3mph off.