Well, I really think the cop is going to show up. The original court date was for June but he changed it, I guess he couldn't make it on that date. So the first court appearance isn't really a trail, just for a plea? Has anyone been to court with the officer there and actually was let off or the judge dismissed it? Thanks.

So there is a possibility of a heavy court fees?

 

ok, i feel like i can lend some decent advice because i've had 8 speeding tickets, 4 warnings and had my license revoked for 5 months. just recently i was pulled over by an undercover cop after running a stop sign at 30+mph. when he ran my license it came back revoked and i had a court date. the charges were failure to stop at a stop sign, driving without a license, and reckless driving or something like that.

anyway, i thought i was basically screwed because i was in north carolina at the time (i have a connecticut license) and i was only staying for another few days...as school had ended and i was coming home.

to make a long story short, i hired a lawyer and he was somehow able to get everything thrown out of court. none of these charges ever reached the connecticut dmv and i was never penalized any points or forced to pay any fines.

if i had represented myself i would have probably lost my license, paid over 1000 dollars to the state of north carolina and possibly spent a week or so in prison.

my advice, hire a lawyer.

 

I believe if you chose a not-guilty plea and the cop does not show you are correct. I chose a not-guilty plea once but the cop showed and the case did not work out in my favor (passing in a no passing zone).

Now specie, when you requested a court date did they also ask you for a plea? If they didn't then the first appearance should work out as I mentioned above. I have been to traffic court about a dozen times and have gotten out a lot of tickets by doing so, but all that was over a decade ago so my information may be out of date. I got out of my first racing ticket by doing what I have suggested to you, but my second ticket stuck since the judge didn't care much for me when he read my 2 page driving history (even adjudicated tickets are on your permanant record, only the points are withheld).

If you have the money (it will be several hundred dollars at the least) chethewitt has a point that getting a lawyer never hurts, though for a misdemeanor its usually a bit much.

Then again, the one time I was charged with a felony I immediately hired a lawyer, fought it and won.

My advice to anyone charged with a felony or a serious traffic incident that results in injuries or property damage is to hire a lawyer ASAP.

 

FYI - While my driving history is a little older than yours I'm a little ahead of you with over 20 tickets (though some of them are for things like driving around with open headers and such) but I have been fortunate in the fact that I have never had my licence suspended even once.

 

I don't think I'll get a lawyer. It's too much money for the violation. Not plea was made when I elected court. Thanks.

I went to a website before and it gave a few advice. I lost the link though. I think it mentioned something about asking for a letter of discovery two weeks before court date and if it's not presented, the charge get dismissed. Any other things I can do to have a little advantage? Thanks.

 

Not too sure...but if you opt to contest it in court and you loose, don't they make you pay the court costs?

 

Are you that fucking stupid? Way to go, maybe next time you can hit and kill an innocent bystander or maybe even better, kill yourself. You know, if you didn't act like such an immature moron, you wouldn't have all those tickets and you're insurance company wouldn't be assfucking you dry. *sigh*

 

If you plead no contest here in florida, you will get screwed, they do NOT like street racers, you should have just taken the driving school and bit the bullet with the fines, good luck to you.

 

in defense of my self, running the stop sign wasn't a blatant move by any means. yes, i was wrong to do so, but in western north carolina most roads go through flat fields where visibility is excellent and traffic is minimal. therefore, it wasn't that dangerous because i could see in both directions and only saw (what turned out to be the undercover cop) like a 1/10 of a mile away. and, being in a rush, i pulled out in front of him because i wanted to get home...

and my mom pays my insurance, its 700 a year as none of my tickets have ever reached my insurance company.

hiring a lawyers really does make sense.

 

in defense of my self, running the stop sign wasn't a blatant move by any means. yes, i was wrong to do so, but in western north carolina most roads go through flat fields where visibility is excellent and traffic is minimal. therefore, it wasn't that dangerous because i could see in both directions and only saw (what turned out to be the undercover cop) like a 1/10 of a mile away. and, being in a rush, i pulled out in front of him because i wanted to get home...

and my mom pays my insurance, its 700 a year as none of my tickets have ever reached my insurance company.

hiring a lawyers really does make sense.