I hate speeding tickets!! :(

xstarx05x

(then stop speeding) ugggghhh 

Apparently it was 50 in a 25!!! And I have to go to court... I was certain it was 45 but apparently that's the road I was about to turn onto, and I was rushing cuz there was a detour and I was running late, and I was driving the 2010 which is a lot quicker than the '96 I've normally been driving...

 Wah wah wah... 

Has anyone had to go to court for a speeding violation before? It was double the limit... I know that's not good... Can they suspend my license?? 

ETA it looks like it might be at least $196 or $216... Maybe more... And now I'm at work and my eyes are all sore, my face is blotchy, and I feel sick. I went to the bathroom downstairs to avoid my colleagues and of course the girl next to me was there.

cutiepie12702

Chances are you will just have to pay a fine and plead guilty, possibly points...not sure. I don't think they would suspend your license at this point if you have a clean record.

peaches178

I feel your pain!  I had to go to court for two separate speeding violations within a year of getting my license.

The first was a week after I got my Cinderella license (I was the first group they started doing it with) because I was sick as a dog and late for work... 40 or so in a 25.  Went to court, got my points removed completely, and just had to pay the fines.

The second was on my way to school (I went to private school and had to drive about 35 minutes down Route 78).  78 was jammed up like crazy during rush hour (worse than usual) and I was worried I'd be late, so I got off at an exit where I saw a couple other cars getting off and made the decision to just follow them wherever they went because I assumed they'd be getting back on the highway.  The guy I was following was going fast, but I had to keep up with him because I had no idea where I was and then the cop lights came on behind me.  I pulled over, but the cop pulled in front of me and stopped the other guy.  I, being a young and stupid driver, then pulled up to the cop car and asked if he wanted me to pull over too.  In my defense, I knew that I was speeding and I was worried that if I pulled away the cop would wind up getting me in even more trouble for leaving and evading the cops (yeah, I was a nutball).  Anyway, of course the cop said he wanted me to pull over, too (must have been one of the greatest days of his life).

I had to go to court, got 6 or 4 points reduced to 2, paid some hefty fines, got yelled at by the judge, and then to add insult to injury when the judge and the cop who pulled me over took me into a room to talk with me the cop basically laughed in my face and said he wasn't going to pull me over but once I asked he HAD to.  I call bullsh*t, but whatever. 

And thus began my dislike for cops in New Jersey as I have never had a good experience with them since.

Oh, and to answer your question... based on my two speeding cases (and one in which my husband was going 90 in a 65), I don't think there's any way you'll get your license suspended.  Just plead guilty, apologize profusely, and hopefully you won't get any points.

xstarx05x

Thanks girls I hate having no idea what's going on, and I didn't really want to bring it up with my mom (partially bc my brother just got a ticket too) I was so glad DH was home too so I could call him. He's always so calm, reasonable and comforting. Hopefully the fine doesn't set me back too much... I only just started working again last week and am still trying to catch up on bills and rebuild savings. And of course I just dropped $50 on getting my nails done! (as seen in a recent post lol) ETA- DH made a good point: at least I didn't get on an accident

USER876

You need 12 points to lose your license, this violation is probably 4 points.  Try and plead guilty, pay the fine in  return for reduced points.  Your insurance will probably go up.

xstarx05x

The court called me back but weren't able to tell me much cuz the ticket hasn't been processed yet. She said my license could be suspended. But then she said for +35 and I said no it was +25 so I don't know if that still applies....

TripleJTobe

I have been to traffic court a few times over the years for bullsh*t tickets. I always make it a point to appear and talk to the prosecuter, They typically drop all of the points- I've never had any points on my license. The tickets I've gotten were usually like 1 or 2 points. I think If it was something like a 5 point ticket they'd reduce it to 2 or 3 but the prosecturer does work with you, especially if you have no points to begin with. Never been "yelled at" by a judge, but did have one ask me my GPA once when he found out I went to Rutgers and told me to keep up the good work lol

Don't get nervous about losing your license ) Even if that is a possibility- that's usually for someone who already has a cr*ppy driving record and they see that the person is habitually misusing the roads. I know it's scary, but when you go to traffic court you'll see that there are people there with craaaazy stuff that they are being seen for. I've seen lots of DWI's which the judges get super p*ssed about, hit and runs, open containers, speeding (like goibg 120mph in a 45-yeah, nuts!) Illegals who oviously don't have a license and were pulled etc. So don't get freaked out )

cindyn9178

Just make sure you talk to the prosecutor when you go to court, they can usually drop points and just increase the fine. I think you'll be ok.

and Peaches, what is a Cinderella license??

xstarx05x

Cindy- I believe peaches is referring to the provisional license teens first get. I had one. You can't drive betwee certain hours at night and can only have certain people in the car. Do I see the prosecutor the day of the hearing? How do I meet them? I've never even been to court for jry duty so I'm clueless. I've only seen those trashy shows but I know not to base my perception off of that lol

USER876

If you have any fear that they may suspend the license your best bet is to hire a traffic court attorney to represent you in court.

cindyn9178

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_new-jersey_hate-speeding-tickets?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:90Discussion:c4944f65-0268-4615-8150-336e53b6f6a5Post:93e291a2-0f60-4f72-8a29-fe0caa41c43e">Re: I hate speeding tickets!! :(</a>:
[QUOTE]Cindy- I believe peaches is referring to the provisional license teens first get. I had one. You can't drive betwee certain hours at night and can only have certain people in the car. Do I see the prosecutor the day of the hearing? How do I meet them? I've never even been to court for jry duty so I'm clueless. I've only seen those trashy shows but I know not to base my perception off of that lol
Posted by xstarx05x[/QUOTE]

Oooh ok, I had heard about those licenses, but never heard it called that before.

Yes, when you go to court, the prosecutor should be there, available to speak with if you wish. Explain the situation to them, apologize, and they will more than likely work with you on it.

jcg98

I completely sympathize, I have gotten caught more than once in 25mph zones that were not marked as such, most recently on an access road to the Parkway (I would think that a road leading to the friggin' Parkway would be more than 25.)   Apparently state law is that if there is no speed limit sign, the speed limit is 25.   Going to court is standard for a 50 in a 25 and I seriously doubt your license is in jeopardy.  Definitely talk to the prosecutor, there is a lesser charge you can plead to (I forget what it is called) that will increase your fine but incur zero points. 

So sorry you had to go through that today!  Glad you have a supportive H to make you feel better.  :-)

Pharo47

I may be mistaken but wasn't there a serious fine for doubling the speed limit? I believe when you double it, they can suspend your license because they will consider it reckless driving. However, usually reckless driving is either a 4 or 6 point ticket ( leaning toward 6). You probably won't lose your license ( depending if you're a repeat offender) but you will have to cover some nasty fines and it isn't going to be $200. I'm leaning more in the $600+ range and the cost of court ( $44 bucks i believe).

peaches178

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_new-jersey_hate-speeding-tickets?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:90Discussion:c4944f65-0268-4615-8150-336e53b6f6a5Post:eb148db4-c01d-4878-aa4b-e599664761d1">Re: I hate speeding tickets!! :(</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: I hate speeding tickets!! :( : Oooh ok, I had heard about those licenses, but never heard it called that before. Yes, when you go to court, the prosecutor should be there, available to speak with if you wish. Explain the situation to them, apologize, and they will more than likely work with you on it.
Posted by cindyn9178[/QUOTE]
Yeah, xstarx is right.  They started it with my birth year (I missed the cut-off by 19 days and was pissed because a lot of my friends didn't have to deal with it).  It's basically like a provisional license after your permit but before your real license and it required that you have no more than 1 person with you under the age of 18 and you couldn't drive between certain hours of the night.  I think they may have changed the rules or the age for it a bit since it first started because when it started we only had to have it for 6 months (I think) and now you have to have it for a year... I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's how it works now.

KH 2012

os it ur first speedning tcoket?  might be 2 points? they will probably lower the points but the fine will be higher cause u will also have to pay court fee-o maybe paying 400ish but will get half the points

xstarx05x

I've had one, maybe 2. But last one was at least 2.5 years ago

TripleJTobe

Wreckless driving is def over $200 b/c careless is $200 and under. To talk to the prosectuter all you do is go to court. They will do a roll call to make sure everyone is there and then the judge will announce to the room that if anyone would like to meet with the prosecuter to please form a line and he'll tell you where to line up. Just hop on the line and he'll get to you ) Dont worry about being called before yu're done with your meeting! The prosecuter doesn't turn over your form lettig the judge know that you're all set until after he talks to you. After he meets with you, you'll have to sit for a little bit in the court room, basically just waiting your turn for the judge to cal you up. Dont be nervous about being called up, people who are waiting their turn are probably there for worse stuff and are busy worrying about their own tickets. lol You have to speak into a microphone as they record everything, but it's really not a scary thing. The judge is right in front of you and basically reads your ticket, paraphrases the prosectuters suggestion and then asks if you agree. Then he just lets you know what the fine is. When you talk to him, it's literally like a minute maybe 2. It goes insanely fast. Be prepared to pay a portion if not all of your ticket that evening and be sure that you never talk in the courtroom! Judges HATE that and I've seen many people thrown out of court for that over the years.
You'll be fine!!!!!! Just wanted to give you some details so you have the run down of how it works. You can always bring a friend with you for support. I brought my mom with me twice lol

bereasonable2

FYI, DMV points and insurance points are two different things.  When the prosecutor offers you "no points" he means only on your driver's license.  This doesn't matter to most people who don't speed or have points on their license to begin with.

You ALWAYS get insurance points... which is what causes your premium to go up.

So, don't go to court unless you're in jeapardy of getting your license suspended due to points.  Otherwise, you just pay more money and court fees for your insurance to go up, which it would have anyways.

peaches178

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_new-jersey_hate-speeding-tickets?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:90Discussion:c4944f65-0268-4615-8150-336e53b6f6a5Post:759d3ba4-881a-4832-9bf6-d490e6389476">Re: I hate speeding tickets!! :(</a>:
[QUOTE]FYI, DMV points and insurance points are two different things.  When the prosecutor offers you "no points" he means only on your driver's license.  This doesn't matter to most people who don't speed or have points on their license to begin with. You ALWAYS get insurance points... which is what causes your premium to go up. So, don't go to court unless you're in jeapardy of getting your license suspended due to points.  Otherwise, you just pay more money and court fees for your insurance to go up, which it would have anyways.
Posted by bereasonable2[/QUOTE]
I actually always thought that the points on your license directly corresponded to your insurance and then it was up to your insurance company whether or not they were going to increase your premium and by how much. 

xstarx05x

TripleJ - thank you so much! Really helps with what to expect. Bereasonable - I was under the impression from the cop that I HAVE TO go to court in this case. I think there's even a date on the ticket. Is that normal?

peaches178

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_new-jersey_hate-speeding-tickets?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:90Discussion:c4944f65-0268-4615-8150-336e53b6f6a5Post:8913a2ea-4d88-423a-8250-e09681ae7384">Re: I hate speeding tickets!! :(</a>:
[QUOTE]TripleJ - thank you so much! Really helps with what to expect. Bereasonable - I was under the impression from the cop that I HAVE TO go to court in this case. I think there's even a date on the ticket. Is that normal?
Posted by xstarx05x[/QUOTE]
Read the back (or maybe front) of the ticket.  Sometimes court isn't required (you only have to go if you're pleading not guilty) and sometimes it is required.  If you have to go to court and you don't show up, they'll put out a warrant for your arrest (not as big a deal as it sounds as long as you call and explain what happened to cause you to miss the appointment, haha).  From what I've been told, it's best to go to court when it's a moving violation because you have more of a chance of them knocking off points.

blueboxblues

When I was in high school I got pulled over going 20mph over...which was 4 point. The next 'speeding tier' down from that was like, 10-19mph over and was only 2 points, so I went to court and I only had two points on my record and paid $100something. It washed off after a few years and now it looks like it never happened.

I think the court date might be if you WANT to go to court and argue it, but I doubt it's mandatory for something like speeding. Like Peaches said, read everything on the ticket, it offers pretty decent explanations.

xstarx05x

It says I'm required to. I wonder why? Cuz its 25+ over the limit (sooo glad it wasn't a construction zone or safe corridor)