NWR traffic court trial

xstarx05x

Yeah it's me again with the traffic court... When will this end?

So, back in August...

I had to take a detour to work (road A) and I was just about to turn onto the road that I normally take (road and I was going 50. Road A and Road B for like 1/2 mile before Road A are 45mph (yes that's still speeding), but I was pulled over just before that point where I learned that it is apparently 25mph. NOT GOOD.

Got a ticket that required me to go to court...

September court date...

I went into the court room, the judge did a roll call to see who was here and to ask some people if they wanted to talk to the prosecutor (including me), I talked to the prosecutor and he was like "oh you're fine, you didn't do any harm, here's a plea agreement for you to give the judge so you'll only get 2 points (which go away after a year of a clean record) and like $200," so I was like ok sounds great! went back to the court room, gave the thing to the judge, and he was like "nope unacceptable, i'm going to suspend your license for 30 days, unless you'd like to change your plea to not guilty and have a trial," and my jaw literally dropped and I decided i'd better change my plea...

FINALLY got the letter for the trial, November 2nd...

I spoke with a lawyer who said the lowest fee she could offer is $750 and she can't guarantee that the charges will be cleared. So if she at least reduces my penalty, I'll still have to pay a fine on top of her fee. Or the judge could still take my license away and that $750 was pointless. But do I have any chance of getting my penalty reduced without a lawyer? Or will I definitely lose my license... (DH thinks I'd get a "work license" that allows me to drive to work anyway, but i'm not sure...)

Basically, I really don't want to lose my licence or pay $1000... Help please! (Again! ....ugh)

futuremrsdavies

Unfortunately, your hubby is incorrect.  There is no such thing as a "conditional" or "work license" in NJ according to NJ DMV.  In PA, there are Occupational Limited Licenses that serve that purpose but its only for suspensions over 6 months.  No attorney, myself included can gaurantee you any outcome.  There is always a chance that you could do the hearing yourself and get the charges/fines/penalty reduced, but if the prosecutor's offer wasn't accepted by that judge, I am hardpressed to believe that you will be successful on your own.  That said, talk to another attorney and get another quote.

futuremrsdavies

Just in case you are the type that needs to see things to believe them...
http://www.nj.gov/mvc/About/FAQ.htm

cindyn9178

Ridiculous.. you were speeding yes, but you don't have all these prior issues where your license should be suspended.. and yes, people have to drive to work to make a living.. its just ridiculous that this is the law, yet criminals get away with god knows what every day.

dramaz

That is insane. Best of luck dealing with this.

odonnellalys

I am not in the same situation as you, but had a similar cout incident last month - didn't see a sign, turned down a one way street....cop caught me. Gave me a ticket for "Unsafe Operation of a Vehicle." Was told that it was a no point ticket, which I was so relieved for, but it was my first offense and the judge of course slapped the maximum surcharge on my ticket. Slap on a court fee and tada! I lost $500. Yet there were people there for hit and run accidents, multiple offenses for driving while licenses were suspended, and tons of other offenses, and were leaving there in better shape than me. I walked away from the incident really seeing how broken our judicial system truly is. I am sorry that you are dealing with this kind of stress over something so silly. I could see if you had multiple violations, but you don't. I hope everything works out for you.

adrenalina19

this is terrible...tomorrow im going to traffic court in newark for two bullsh** tickets i didn't deserve. FI is an attorney and he's going to be my lawyer. if you want to talk to him let me know and I'll PM you his info.

cindyn9178

Paying some ridiculous fine for a ticket is one thing, but having your license suspended for this, especially if a first time offense, is absurd.

JennyP84

OMG this sounds absolutely crazy that you would lose your license over this one ticket.  Good luck with everything. Sorry I can't provide any other support or knowledge on this.

xstarx05x

Thank you so much for all your support, advice & sympathy! 

This really sucks. Like I said, I'm fine with recieving SOME sort of penalty, I can accept the fact that I did something wrong, but why so extreme?? I probably will have to get a lawyer to try to avoid getting too many points. It'll probably work out better in the long run, because even though they can get deducted from my license after a year, it'll affect my insurance FOREVER! (from what I understand)

I'm just scared as to how much it'll all cost right now! My parents offered to help pay, but I don't want to make them do that. I should be responsible enough to take care of my own stuff... But it's nice to know and I'm really fortunate to have their support if I'm truly stuck...