orhanz33

If you can offer any advice for me and don't care for the story just skip to the last paragraph, I really appreciate the help!

It was me, a Caravan, and a Buick heading down Rt.10 (3 lanes), the road was pretty empty we were all going about 10mph over. We weren't "really" speeding because we had just passed someone who had been pulled over about 200ft before we ran into the this patrol car. I had a 10:00 class, it was just me and my friend in the Z, about a mile away from my school. I was in the left lane, the Caravan and Buick were in the middle and the right was empty, the officer was pulling out of a shopping center parking lot and we all began braking at the same time (almost looked liked we didn't even brake because it was so synchronized). Anyway, I switched over to the middle lane and got that feeling when I knew I was getting pulled over, and I did. Officer comes over, I am very polite and don't give him any excuses, not even when he tells me he got me doing 76 in a 50 . He said I was going 76, but he clocked me at 73.. I know I was maybe doing 65 at the most! I have a V1 on the windshield (which didn't go off, not even laser), there were two cars in the middle lane blocking me from his view, and we had just literally passed another patrol car, I'm pretty sure he's BS'ing, but I very politely say 'I'm sorry Sir, I didn't realize I was going that fast'. He starts asking me how I pronounce my name (Orhan, I'm Turkish it's really not even hard to say, anyway), I tell him and he gets it after a couple of tries, although I don't understand why this matters. He looks over at my friend and starts asking him why he's not wearing his belt, he didn't have his license on him so the officer goes to the other side of the car and tells him to write down his name, birthdate, social security number he goes back to his car and comes back about 5-10 min. later and gives me a speeding ticket for doing 64 in a 50 I say ok sir, and drive off..

As I'm walking to class my friend and I are looking at the ticket, the kid walking next to us gets into the conversation because he had a ticket in his hand too he had just gotten on the same road, but it wasn't the guy we originally passed.. When I got out of class I saw another person pulled over, and I saw two other patrol cars, ALL within a mile from the school.. wtf?

***Bottomline, my record is clean, this is my first speeding ticket. I don't care about the fine, but I really do not want the insurance company to find out!! I pay insurance for my parents Windstar, which is more then what my mom pays for the Z. The kid I was talking to on my way to class said I can go to the prosecutor and say I want to pay for an 'Unsafe Driving' and the fine will double, but insurance will not find out. He said he has done it, can I do this?

lemurfart

i dont know the rules in jersey but in cali you just go to traffic school and it gets cleared, but you can only go every 18 months

lol i got on for running a stop sign a while back and a speeding ticket last week, so i checked and its only been 15 months boooo now i have a speeding ticket on my recored for 3 months

but anywho if its the same there sign up for school as fast as humanly possible

05 NISMO

iTrader: (2)

yupp, just go to taffic school... I have been pull over 4 tiimes, just this past 4 months... stop sign, 2 speeding, and one bs ticket (not signaling before 100 fts.). Good Luck.

7744

I live in New Jersey and I'm not sure if the "Unsafe Driving" ticket applies to speeding violations. However, I got a ticket for failure to yeild last year and was able to talk to the prosecuter before hand and have the failure to yeild dropped to the unsafe driving charge. The ticket went from $75 (I think) and two points to $100 (I think) and no points. Plus court fees, etc. It's a good idea to get to court ahead of time and talk to the prosecutor first to see if he/she can drop the charges to unsafe driving or not.

If you want to contact me off the forum, I believe my AIM is in my profile, and I can send you a document called "Pay No Fine" which is more specific to fighting speeding tickets.

TJMAudio

14 over is pretty big. Try for the traffic school... Normally if the ticket is under 9 over you can pay extra money to deferr it, you should go in and ask about this, it may be under 15 over now.

Devrbd

In PA if you plead "not guilty" and show up in court, 80% of the time the judge will knock off the points and just give you a fine. Maybe even a reduced fine. Also, if the cop fails to appear for the trial it gets thrown out. So it can only benefit you to show up in court. I know many people who show up in court, apologize for speeding and ask for the points to be knocked off and just pay the fine. More often then not they get exactly that.

BigMoeTaki42

+1. My brother got off with one of those "no fine as long as you don't get any tickets within 1 year" deals and he was going almost 15 or 20 over (40 or 45 in a school zone), and one of my friends didn't have to pay anything cause the police officer didn't show.

woodie

Go to traffic school. I don't about NJ but in TX, if the ticket is not over 15 mph over the limit, you can go to traffic school and it won't go on your record and on the plus side tell your insurance you went to traffic school and get a deduction on your insurance.

shiva

I got tagged for doing 39 in a 25 on an exit ramp in Wayne, but was able to nix the ticket through this (strange) statute. Assuming it was a first time offense, your prosecutor may be willing to write you up for unsafe driving, which entails a heavier fine but no points on your license. Good luck.

bamyi

iTrader: (2)

traffic school if they offer it or fight the ticket. I recommend fighting the ticket. Here are questions to ask in court. but first, was it radar or laser that he clock you with?

Keep in mind that if they can't PROVE BEYOND A RESONABLE DOUBT that its you, they must drop the charge!

So its easy, all you have to do is show ANY DOUBT NO MATTER HOW SLIGHT that it might not be you.

1. if its radar, he CAN NOT be positive it is you he got since you were surounded by other cars. Especially when the other cars were larger, it is more likely he got them. (I'm positive he picked you cause you change lanes AND you drive a sports car) So bring this point up, and ask the officer why is he positive it is you and not the other cars. (BRING IN YOUR PASSENGER AS A WITNESS. IF THE OFFICER DID NOT NOTE IN THE TRAFFIC TICKET THAT THERE WAS A PASSENGER, YOU HAVE THE EDGE.)

2. Asked if he tested the radar BEFORE and AFTER he gave you the ticket. If he didn't, than how does he know beyond a resonable doubt that the radar was working correctly? Remember, get the judge to second guess the ticket.

If he did, ask him if there was any error. If so, how did he correct them. Also, ask him HOW he tested the radar. The secret here is that he MUST TEST THE RADAR STEP BY STEP IN (INCLUDING HOW TO FIX ERRORS) order according to the manufacturer or else the ticket MUST be drop. The judge should know these testing steps but if i were you, find out what the make of the radar is, contact the maker and find their testing procedures. Remember that the officer !!!!MUST!!!! follow those steps EXACTLY!

Also keep in mind that MOST court will plea bargin with you if you want to fight the ticket. Tell the judge you are more than happy to pay the fine as long as there are no point penalty. They will likely agree because they don't have the time, manpower, or money to take you to court. Remember that the pay for judge alone will be more than the ticket itself! Due to these reasons alone, ALWAYS FIGHT A TICKET!!!!

If he clocked you with a laser, let me know and i will adivise you on that too. My adivse also is that you slow down around that area. Sounds to me there is a problem there and they are stepping up traffic enforcement. Sounds good to me.

My credentials for giving you advice: Police officer.

orhanz33

on the bottom of the ticket marked "equipment", these are listed w/ checkmark boxes next to them: Helicopter, Pace, VASCAR, Radar, Breathalyzer.. none of them are checked off

Destiny350Z

I was doing 83 in a 70 and the police man told me if I paid a extra $93.00 and didn't get a ticket for a month, that it wouldn't go on my record!! The cop was so busy checking out my Z that he didn't notice my DL was expired!!!

cehome

iTrader: (7)

In Nj you can go to court and plead down to a 0 points violation. The convenience will cost you a $250 surcharge on top of the the price of the ticket you plead down to. I believe the lesser offense is called operating a vehicle unsafely. You can only use this option 2 times for your entire driving life. Is the surcharge a rip off? Hell yes, but we both know in NJ the price of auto insurance is sky hi. So in the long run it's worth the $250 surcharge fee.

ryce4u

Wow i feel you man.I got a ticket back in AUg for careless operation but it was dropped with defense driving. THen in Oct i got another ticket for speeding in a school zone, went 17 over. For that ticket, I got an attoney to move that ticket to a non-driving violation so my inurance never found out. Hiring a lawyer to do that will cost around $110 + plus ticket cost

Panda350z

iTrader: (11)

Go to traffic school. ONLINE traffic school that is. It's alot easier, and less boring.

bamyi

iTrader: (2)

In your state, that may not be a mandatory filed to fill out. I wouldn't put to much thought into it. let me what you decide to do and the outcome.

z_drifto

'Unsafe Driving'? I have never heard of it. Do they have anything like that in California?

orhanz33

how do i go and talk to the prosecutor ahead of time? do i just call up the courthouse and scheduale an appointment sometime earlier in the week? also, should i get a lawyer? i'm willing to pay the extra $250 i don't want insurance to find out!!