Damn speeding ticket.

The BBQ Pit
1

Not too long ago, I was victimized with a traffic violation that could’ve and would’ve been easily shrugged off with a simple warning. BTW, I was ticketed for going “approx.” 53mph on a 35mph zone. According to the ticket, the speed estimation was made by LASER, not RADAR. And the moped cop was sitting on the sidewalk facing towards me on the opposing side of the road.

First of all, why would they limit the speed to only a mere 35mph on a street somewhere in the industrial area – with an average of 3-4 cars passing by there every half hour. And the street isn’t even 1/2 mile long, so racing is out of the question. No one’s lives are in danger. And the street is surrounded by a railroad track and some ghost-town of office buildings.

Unless I glue my eyes on the speedometer like bees to honey – with so much isolation on the road, and pretty sporty car that I possess (2001 Toyota Celica GT-S), it’s really hard to tell if you’re going too fast.

And another thing, there was a Toyota Avalon who was going just as fast as I was, covering most of the length of the road. But of course, cops had to pick on the 'Sports Ca’r that was just innocently ‘going with the flow’ of traffic.
Pardon my venting, though. But should I or should I not fight this ticket? Do I have a case at all?

2

I’ll tell you what someone told me when I complained about a parking ticket I got.

Were you breaking the law? And you got caught? Pay the ticket and deal with it.

3

So. How have those Mexican Fat Burners been treatin’ ya?

4

No point in fighting it. You have no case. Pay the fine and suck it up.

5

Think of it as Karma…

Ya know all those times you DIDN’T get caught?

It’s like a bank, the bad karma just keeps compounding, until…

It’s a righteous bust - you could hire a lawyer to try dodging, but, for the sake of your inner balance, DON’T!

6

Unfortunately, the point isn’t if the speed limit is justified, it’s that the speed limit is the speed limit.

What would your defense be? “Sorry your honor - I have a zippy car and should be able to drive faster than mere mortals in regular cars?”

I dunno guy - if I were you I would consider this speeding ticket the way I consider mine (and I get plenty) - it’s a tax for the privilege of driving fast.

7

I feel your pain, but you gotta suck it up.

Last week, I was going over a viaduct in an industrial area of town at about 10:30 PM. I was the only car on the road. I didn’t see the cop car at the end of the bridge until it was too late. Got popped going 50 in a 35.

The shitty thing is, I already knew that they like to hang out in that spot. I’ve been taking that route at least four times a day for the past six years, and I always smirked at the poor mopes who got busted before me. I guess my number was up.

Despite the fact that I was driving the only moving vehicle within a mile, the cop checked the “moderate” box in the “traffic volume” section rather than “light” or “none.” If I thought for a minute that it would get me out of it, I’d go for it, but I wrote the check anyway.

That doesn’t mean that I don’t have every right to rant self righteously about the fact that they never seem to clock anybody during rush hour, when most people blast by that very same spot at more than twice the legal speed. Fuckers.

8

Don’t fight it. It’s a no-win.

Me? I consider speeding tickets “the cost of doing business.” I know I drive over the limit (except when my son’s with me.) If I get caught, I pay.

(I’ve begun to ease off the gas pedal a bit since my last ticket-- $110.00!-- for 53 in a 35. I, too, was driving with the flow of traffic; the cop could’ve grabbed anyone on that road at the time. I just got “lucky.”)

9

“First of all, why would they limit the speed to only a mere 35mph on a street somewhere in the industrial area”

I know what you mean about that one. There are two streets in Morristown NJ that are four lane ONE WAY streets with speed limits of 25 MPH! Going 25 on a four-lane street makes time stop. I’m not normally a really fast driver, but some limits are ridiculous.

-Andrew L

10

Wow. If that amount is normal, I got screwed over. I got ticketed in upstate New York (a town called Adams, if anyone is familiar with it) on an empty highway going 83 in 65. Same MPH amount over.

They don’t tell you the amount of the ticket ON the ticket, just the violation… you have to send it in with a plead to get the amount. I mailed it in with a “not guilty” plead, accompanied by a mournful letter about the 6-hour-drive to Adams, my lack of money due to being a teenager, etc…

They replied offering me a plea bargin. New charge, “Violating a traffic control device.” Amount: $135. I accepted.

So, can anyone tell me if I was screwed over? Rysdad only got $110, but maybe cause mine was on the highway, or in New York State, it’s more. I don’t know. I know there’s nothing I can do to change it now, but anyone know if I got lucky (as I originally thought), or if those cops in Adams are laughing at that fool from Connecticut right now?

11

Here’s a question for the OP:

A couple of weeks ago, I was driving to Davis and was stuck in some serious rush hour traffic on the highway. This guy in a seriously souped up SUV decided he’d pass me and a whole bunch of other folks on the right. Interesting idea since we were already in the right hand lane. Well, about 10 minutes later, we all got to pass the guy in the SUV. Seems that one of the many cars in front of us happened to be a CHP vehicle. Yep, the guy got pulled over during rush hour traffic in a double fine zone. Of course, his SUV was equipped to be driving off-road. So what say you, SuperNova; should the guy pay the ticket or fight it? After all, there was no traffic (vehicle or pedestrian) coming at him from that direction.

12

You remind me of a guy from my high school who got busted for DUI, and tried to justify why he was drunk to the judge. (He had been “celebrating” his brother getting out of jail.)

If you can’t tell the difference between 35 and 53 mph without looking at the speedometer, then you shouldn’t be driving. I have to wonder how you had the cognitive ability to start the fucking car.

Did it occur to you that roads with light traffic can be more dangerous because there’s light traffic, and therefore speed limits on these roads are more vigorously enforced?

“No one’s lives are in danger?” :wally

And I’m glad if the cop singled you out because of your chillin’ dope-ass ride, and I hope your insurance is higher, too. A lot of people with sports cars seem to think they’re entitled to add 50 percent to the posted speed limit, and then bitch and complain how “victimized” they are when they get caught breaking the law. “Waaah! The cop was using one of them high-falootin’ laser thingies! And he was on the other side of the road! And that other guy was speeding too!”

May your car somehow find its way shoved up your ass.

13

I used to be a habitual speeder (I still fudge by 5-10 mph, though) and I used to dismiss my speeding tickets (about one every 3-4 months) as a “cost of doing business” without considering any of the long-term consequences. I figured that I could just expect to get busted every now and then, but just go on driving the way I had been doing it all along. All this caught up to me in the form of higher insurance rates and the fact that I had racked up enough points on my driving record to be on the verge of losing my license. My last ticket was 3 years ago (knock on wood). It was almost midnight and I was on a straight road way the hell out in the middle of nowhere. The speed limit was 35, but there were no houses or intersecting roads where I was. I was doing 70 through there. In the distance I saw a pair of headlights. I didn’t expect a cop to be out where I was at such an hour, but I slowed down anyway, just in case. It turned out my gut instinct was correct, but I didn’t get my car slowed down fast enough before he nailed me. I was still clocked at 55. I don’t remember what the fine was, but I think it was in the $50-$60 range.

14

Speeding tickets suck, but, if you know you’re exceeding the limit the least you can do is recognize that you’re speeding i.e. breaking the “law” and do everything in your power not to get caught.

Most people driving on the highway at any given time are exceeding the limit and doing so blissfully. They don’t look to see what’s coming up behind them, nor do they look up ahead further that a few car lengths. Being aware goes a long way to reducing your being caught speeding.

Lately I’ve been driving over a bridge and every time I come over it someone is pulled over by an unmarked radar/lasar police unit. I take this very seriously and assume that this car is going to be there because you can’t see until you crest the hill what’s on the other side. Just today I was driving over the bridge and sure enough, that unmarked unit was right there looking to take money out of someone’s pocket and put it into the state and insurance company coffers.

I’m still a habitual speeder(sportbike owner) and my license has been clean for more than 4 years.

15

How far away was the cop that nabbed you? How far did you have left to go before the end of the street?

16

Speeding fines seem to be way lax in the US. In the UK you only have to get a few before you are in serious danger of a very large fine and/or losing your licence. Quite apart from the effect on your insurance premiums.

I got my first speeding ticket a few months back. From one of those speed cameras that are all over the place now. Apparently speeding-ticket convictions in the UK have rocketed in the last few years, not because everyone is driving faster, but because of the proliferation of the cameras. This is chiefly due to a change in the law that now diverts the money from the tickets straight back to the local police who invest it in more cameras…

Anyway, was I annoyed about the ticket? Yes I was. Am I a habitual speeder? No I’m not. Did I have an ‘excuse’? Yes I did. Did I feel I was driving safely? Yes I was. Would it make the slightest difference if I complained or appealed? Not in the slightest. I broke the speed limit. End of story.

You’re not encouraged to appeal in the UK. The fixed fine and penalty points you automatically get is usually the minimum. If you appeal and take it to court, and lose, you are more than likely to get the maximum.

So quite whining and face up to it. You sped, you got caught, suck it up.

17

That’s pretty much the standard speed limit in these parts for an industrial area. 25 mph in a residential area, & 45-65 mph on the various stretches of highway, depending on the geography of the highway.

18

Jeezus, you are a weaselly little fucking whiner, aren’t you? It’s a half-mile stretch of road. If you can’t pull your head out and ease off the gas, you deserve the ticket, and every other one you ever get.

19

I’ve been pulled over a number of times, all for speeding. 7 or 8 times in total. I’ve only ever gotten two speeding tickets. The other times I was let off with a warning. Only once was I going less than 20 MPH over the limit. How did I accomplish this?

Simple really: I told the TRUTH.

The first time I got stopped was also my first ticket. I tried to BS my way through it. “87 mph? I had no idea!” (I had been doing 135 only 5 minutes earlier.)

The most recent ticket was at 2 am and I had just driven 1000 miles in a single day from Indiana to Vermont, through a snow storm. 21 hours in a car will make you a little cranky, so I really had no hope of being pleasent enough to weasel out of it.

The other times however, the conversation went something like this:

OFFICER: Do you know why I pulled you over?

Me: Sorrowful sigh Yes officer, I… Nervous breath I was speeding.

OFFICER: Do you know how fast you were going?

Me: hangs head in shame breifly. Last time I looked… {accurate speed}

OFFICER: Uh… yeah, that’s right. Uh, care to tell me why you were going that fast?

Me: Shamefully Well, I could make up some story, but I don’t think that would help me any and would probably just waste your time. The truth is that I was just being impatient and driving like an idiot. sorrowful sigh

OFFICER: could I have your license and proof of insurance please?
looks at the cards, then looks at my license for a bit, pondering
Am I going to find an convictions on this?

Me: No sir.

OFFICER: Well, I don’t usually do this, but you’ve just been so honest. I’m going to go back to my car to run your license, but as long as you’re telling the truth I’m just going to give you a warning.

Me: Thank you, thank you so very much officer.
I have even gotten advice from cops to aviod getting caught in that town/area again!
There are several keys to making this work:

  1. Tell the whole truth.
  2. Be extremely repectful, you’re dealling with “The Law” here.
  3. Be sorry for breaking the law. Or at least convincingly act that way :wink:

This has consistantly worked for me every time I have tried it.
However, from friends who have tried it: if you don’t appear sorry your chances of success greatly diminish.

– Anaximenes

20

Was this in La La Land, USA?