court today at 6pm for speeding

[faenix]

I know this road is packed with cops (near my university) so I try to never go above 35 here. However, I was in a rush, and didn't want to be held in traffic so I sped up to beat a yellow light. There was a cop right there with his radar and he wrote me up for 45 above 30.


The fine is $81.50 and I know that isn't that much compared to some other tickets, but I'm a poor college student and was wondering what exactly could I do?

I'm definitely going to court today (even if its not required) and hoping to get some leniency. Do you guys have any tips? Is it possible to get written off? What do I say?

Do I say I'm sorry I know I sped but please let me off this once? (it is my first ever ticket for something)

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Soundmanred]

They are usually lenient on first tickets.
I had my first 5-6 dropped just by going to court and pleading instead of paying it. You'll have to pay court costs, so you won't get off totally free, but it's worth a shot.
Don't make lame excuses, they've heard them all.
As long as it wasn't in a school or construction zone, you should be ok.
My old neighbor was a traffic court judge and I used to talk to him all the time.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

I have gone with no excuse and just asked for reduced. They have done it.

 

[rudeguy]

Yep. Just be honest with them. You would be surprised how far it will get you.

 

[faenix]

To the above posters, does this mean pleading guilty with a more lenient sentence? How does this work?

 

[Capt Caveman]

Possibly ask if you can take a drivers education class in place of the ticket.

 

[rudeguy]

Originally posted by: faenix
To the above posters, does this mean pleading guilty with a more lenient sentence? How does this work?

Just ask the judge for leniency. Tell him you know you messed up and have learned your lesson.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

If you feel the speed you were going is safe then fight the ticket. The law states that you cannot go faster then a speed that was safe to do so at the time, in simple terms the officer has to prove the speed was a danger to pedestrians, if the area was clear and no lives were in danger you can beat the ticket. The bad part is you have to enter your plea then go back again. I am assuming you were written up for unsafe speed of course.

 

[bignateyk]

Unless they drop the ticket altogether it is still gonna be just about as much of a fine. The minimum moving violation ticket in PA is $25. On top of that is another $100 in processing fees that won't go away if they reduce the ticket. The only thing you really gain by reducing the ticket is getting less points and less chance of an insurance hike.

Tickets i've gotten:

86 in 55: reduced in court to 65 in 55 (3 pts)
46 in 25: reduced in court to 35 in 25 (3 pts)
71 in 55: reduced to "failure to obey traffic devices" at the scene (0 pts)
72 in 55: reduced to 61 in 55 at the scene (2 pts)

 

[darkxshade]

Originally posted by: rudeguy

Originally posted by: faenix
To the above posters, does this mean pleading guilty with a more lenient sentence? How does this work?

Just ask the judge for leniency. Tell him you know you messed up and have learned your lesson.

I'm no judge but if I were one and supposedly heard of *every* excuse, wouldn't I too have heard a lot of times of people pleading guilty/telling the truth just to get leniency? That's what I'm confused about... Because if I were a judge, I'd eventually feel that people are just doing it to get a lower fine and not actually pleading guilty because they actually feel guilty.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

just say that you REALLY LIKE MONEY and don't want them to take it from you

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
Possibly ask if you can take a drivers education class in place of the ticket.

My last ticket, I had to pay the full price, but had the option of taking the class to get it off my insurance.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

Here is a bit of advice for anyone, if a cop pulls you over and asks how fast you were going dont say I dont know, or I was in a hurry etc etc. You say yes I know how fast I was going, I was watching my area I felt that it was safe to go the speed I was going based on the amount of traffic and the pedestrians in the area. Show him you understand the law in regards to speeding and that you were indeed making a decision based on the safety of others, you have a much better chance to not even get a ticket in the first place. This can prevent a ticket for unsafe speed, it cant however prvent a ticket for exceeding the maximum speed limit, which is a totally different ticket.

 

[faenix]

Last call for advice. All comments were appreciated!

 

[Savij]

Were you driving 75 or 45? If 75 then get a lawyer and pray if 45 then just go with what you've been told.

 

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
Possibly ask if you can take a drivers education class in place of the ticket.

in az this is the best thing to do. you can do it once every couple (2 or 3) years in each city. no points and just the cost of the school. of course, the tickets here are 150+ and the school is 125.

 

[faenix]

Originally posted by: Savij
Were you driving 75 or 45? If 75 then get a lawyer and pray if 45 then just go with what you've been told.

I was going 45 in a 30 zone