whiteflash

Without sounding like a dick... why do you have 2 s2000's without insurance?

cbr2krr

can't help on the insurance one but here's one tactic for speeding that worked multiple times for me.
when you get the courtesy notice call the number and say you want a trial by written declaration. They send some forms, which you fill out to explain your case. I would suggest pleading not guilty, saying that you were obeying the basic speed law since traffic was light, the road was well maintained, etc.

Generally, your case will be dropped. This is because while the cop gets OT for going to court, he doesn't get paid to write out his side of the story. Again, generally, this means that the case will be dropped due to 'failure to prosecute'.

Anyhow, it's worked for me and it's basically the method perscribed by ticketassassin.com. YMMV.

lman

I totally forgot about the insurance because i dont have a car for like 6 months now. and it was such a rush for me to go to portland and back so many thing was forgotten. anyhow thanks for the tip cbr2krr.

whiteflash

Ah ok, like I said I wasn't trying to be a dick

that sucks.

Written method works but can be a gamble. I usually go to court and plead no contest and the fines get dropped dramatically (Went from a 980$ ticket to ~250$)

hellspare

Don't bother with written trial by declaration on a ticket like this. When the cop says you went over the maximum speed limit he most likely had you on radar. So it's your word vs the cop's. Imo just get insurance, go to court, and get it reduced.

jasonw

How do you think it is a gamble?

If you lose a trial by declaration, you have the right to a retrial in person, at which point you can change your plea... If you plead guilty/no contest, you have 0% chance of beating the ticket. So yeah, there is no risk that the court will lose that way...

jasonw

I have saved over $1,000 in fines and many $1,000s in avoided insurance increases by fighting speeding tickets over the years. It doesn't matter if the cop used radar or paced you. There is a high probability that they will be too lazy to file their response to a trial by declaration. Beyond that, you can file a discovery request that they probably won't respond to, and issue a motion to dismiss the case because of that. Try to delay the ticket so that the cop's response will be due right around a holiday, when he is probably busy working overtime...

http://www.amazon.com/Fight-Your-Ticket-Wi...73025814&sr=8-1

Once you've done it once, it is very easy to do the next time. Either for yourself, or your friends.

lman

yeah... totally suck... i was in such high spirit last night after a long time with out an s2000. it put a smile on me the whole day until the moment the police got me. anyway thnx for all the tips and opinions guys. just gotta sit here and hope for the best.

Does anyone know what kind of charge i am looking for ? ~$1000ish ?

hellspare

Yes, and if they DO write back you will most likely lose, and waive your right for traffic school. Then you have to go to court and beg the judge to let you go to traffic school. I suppose if you are already ineligible for traffic school it doesn't matter.

jasonw

That is not in any way true that you have to waive your right to traffic school.

I have lost a TBD where my only defense was, "I am not guilty, but if the court disagrees, please reduce my fine and allow me to take traffic school". Traffic school was not even an option when I got the courtesy notice. The judge cut my fine in 1/2 and allowed me to take traffic school.

So you can include a request for traffic school if you lose, but it is better not to. You are better off waiting for the results to the TBD, then you have ample opportunity to take traffic school, if necessary.

Do every one a favor and do not post misinformation. You recommended going to court anyways, so there is nothing to lose by doing a TBD first. That way you get two chances to beat the ticket instead of 1, and the cop is more likely to go to court than fill out a TBD response.