I’m 45 and male, if that is significant. (Actually, I’m 45 and male even if it’s not significant)
Should I
I tried Ticket Clinic once before for a speeding ticket, maybe 15 years or so ago, and it did not turn out well. I ended up having to attend 8-hour traffic school, which I’m pretty sure was worse than if I just attended the traffic school to begin with, plus whatever fees they charged me.
Did you actually run the stop sign? If so, then just pay it. If not, then challenge it in court.
Yes, I actually ran the stop sign.
Also, the cop himself actually recommended using a ticket attorney to clear the ticket, surprisingly. Without me even asking or anything.
Pay the ticket and stop at stop signs in the future.
As a practical matter, it may come down to a question of whether you can afford the points on your license, which will escalate your insurance rates for a half a decade.
There is an online “traffic school” that is widely accepted by the courts to mitigate the penalty for such infractions. It cost about $35, as I recall, and it will waste about an hour or two of your time, because if you answer an obvious duh question in less than several minutes, you get a screen that says that you have answered too soon and you couldn’t have possibly researched the training manual fast enough to have answered that quickly. My wife did it, it is actually more expensive to do it online, because then you’ll also have to replace the computer that you smash in frustration.
This is a perfect example of the rampaging “justice/industrial complex”.
Why, do you think, the cop himself actually recommended a ticket attorney, which I took to mean using TicketClinic.com or the like? I did not deny running the stop sign, nor offer any questions or even comments during the stop. I was practically mute.
If you can take the hit on points, go to court. Tell the judge “Guilty with an explanation” and then tell him you’re an idiot. He will probably laugh a bit, then lower your fine. If you can’t take the hit on points, do the same thing and ask for traffic school. Whatever you do, don’t just pay the fine they ask for without a little CBA. If it will cost you $200 to miss work to fight a $100 traffic ticket, pay it. If it won’t cost you much to show up in court, then do so. Just don’t try to get off scot-free.
His brother-in-law is a ticket attorney?
Virginia here, and never run a stop sign, but I have sped on occasion. Traffic school has worked well for me. Take it online (the course I took was from California). Shop around as some are very cheap. They usually require you to be online for 8 hours, but only have 2 hours of material at most even if you read every word. They will occasionally check that you are still there with a pop up. I suggest having two windows, taking the class in one, and reading the dope in the other after you have finished reading the class material and are waiting for time to expire.
You can take these classes for: 1) your own edification, 2) per judge’s order, 3) to reduce points on your license, 4) once a year to reduce insurance rates, or 5) proactively to show the judge at court. When they ask you online you want to mark the option for number 5.
No guarantees, but it has worked for me.
What is the penalty for running a stop sign in Florida?
If traffic school is an option, do it. You can take it online from home.
Sometimes you can call the traffic court clerk and ask if there’s any way to keep the points off your license. Sometimes they’ll let you pay the fine plus court costs ($50 or $75 or however much you have to pay to contest the ticket) and change the moving violation to a non-moving violation. Doesn’t hurt to ask.
Where I live, if you plead “Not Guilty”, you get to meet with the DA first. He tries to bully you, then tries to cut a deal with a reduced fine or something (usually a bad deal). Anything to prevent going to court over a stupid traffic ticket.
The last 3 moving violations I’ve been issued, because I had a clean record, I got offered a “deferred something”, where if I don’t get a ticket for another 6 months or something, the ticket magically disappears!
And since there is no conviction, you can do it every year if you want to because your record is always clean! First ever “Catch-22” that works in your favor! 