Hi, tonight I was on my way home and I was pulled over because the jerk cop said I ran a red light. Now, I know for sure that my entire car was well into the intersection before the light turned yellow. or else why would I be posting this forum?? Now, I know that in the American Justice System for traffic violations, the cop's word is always right when compared to the citizen, which would be me, whether I am innocent or not. Is there any way that I can get a fair trial for this ticket? Or should I just pay the ticket, which I really don't want to do becasue I didn't do anything wrong and I shouldn't have to pay a fine. What should I do? There's nothing that I can prove my innocense with. I had one witness with me in the car. This was in Oakbrook, Illinois. thanks

I use a lawyer to fight all traffic tickets. It usually costs me about $250-300 but I don't have any tickets on my record and I want to keep it that way.

In your case, you either fight it with a lawyer or pay it. You'll have no case against a cop, but the lawyers seem to get the tickets dismissed anyway.

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- Brian


1989 500SEL Euro
1966 250SE Cabriolet
1958 BMW Isetta 600

how much was the ticket?

fight it

If your record is clean so far, a possible alternative you might wish to contemplate is Traffic School, (if it's available in your State) which is a painless way to keep the ticket off your rate and avoid rises in your car insurance rates.

Don't blow it off though, you could get a warrant for failure to appear: Here's an amusing tale of someone on this forum who did, and the comments he got.....

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=168484&highlight=warrant

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Mine was 300 dollars, that was for not stopping before turning right on a red light. No oncoming cars were there, i wish i had seen that cop way back there behind me.

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1985 CA 300D Turbo , 213K mi

I would rather pay the ticket than a lawyer.

Get a lawyer and you risk paying both the ticket and
the lawyer. Traffic school seems like a good idea. A PITA
but so is going to court.

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cult plus time equals religion

I did the traffic school for my "speeding ticket". lowestpricetrafficschool.com is what I used... but all I did was open it... read the page and let the timer count down, next section etc.. then at the end it has an open book test.. so its pointless to even read.. 30$ plus my 120$ ticket and I have no points


But why even do the school, you can only do it 5 times in your life according to FL law, your points are refreshed every 6 months IIRC and the cop didnt even ask for my insurance or registration so whats the big deal. Wish I had known

This is an easy ticket to beat, and you won't need a lawyer. Go to court and calmly state that you were alert, doing the speed limit, and that you are absolutely certain the light was green as you entered the intersection, although it did turn yellow as you were going through. Since you are under oath, the judge is duty bound to accept your word in the absence of more convincing evidence from the ticketing officer (such as a photo). Just be calm and credible, and you'll win.

Uh Uh, not quite correct... you've stated the standard is "clear and conv incing" evidence. That's the standard in CIVIL lawsuits (51% to 49%)

The ticket he got was CRIMINAL charge. The standard (and rightly so) for those is "beyond a reasonable doubt" (about 99% to 1%).
Our resident criminal prosecutor in California (Ernesto, "BENZ-LGB") can probably clarify if he's inclined to do so.

You'll win automatically if the ticketing officer DOESN'T SHOW UP for Court, AND the prosecutor doesn't ask for a continuance so he can try and convince the officer to come back to Court for a later date.

Since the officer gets paid his salary for the time he spends in Court, there's a decent chance he will show up for Court, though.

Some people like to be meanies and cross examine the cop in Court, too.
After asking the cop if he is an expert in gauging speed and distance, and he says "Yes, I am" you withdraw the hardboiled egg you had in your pocket, and drop it on the Courtroom floor, and ask, "Officer, how many MPH was that egg traveling?" and pointing to the Courtroom door, (the distance to which you've already measured with a tape measure before Court started), you then ask, "Officer, what's the distance from me to the Courtroom door?":fork_off:

(But some Judges don't like perceived smart asses in Court either, so proceed at your own risk).

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

If you can't do the time, don't do the crime.

240Joe

If it were me I'd just check the "No lo contendere" (No contest) box and pay the money. Unless you really want/need a sqeaky clean driving record it's probably not worth it. I've done it the few times I've received tickets but I don't know if it the points always get put on your record because I've never checked.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

That makes for a real nice bumper sticker, but it's a moot point here. He's ALREADY been charged with a crime, and stated he DIDN'T commit one.

He's asked for responses to that scenario!

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Then don't run yellow lights. Pretty simple. Why would anyone put themselves in a position where a $35k/year civil servant can screw them?

I rest my case.

240Joe

Don't run yellow lights? What kind of advice is that? If his initial post was truthful, there was absolutely nothing he could have done to prevent getting the ticket.

In Illinois, we have what's called "court supervision," which you basically ask for and automatically get, as long as you're not currently under said supervision. Complete the term without an additional infraction, and your record is clean. You can do this without hiring an attorney, but the price to have this job handled for you is pretty cheap. In most cases less than $100, and you do not have to go to court. That last clause is what makes me hire them.

It is beyond a doubt vastly superior to pay to keep the points off of your record. Otherwise, your insurance carrier may find out and increase your rates for the next three to five years.

You seem to be awful quick on the trigger.....Look:

He said in post #1 "My entire car was well into the intersection BEFORE the light turned yellow"

How clear do you need to be!!!????.....He is claiming he NEVER EVEN ran the yellow light AT ALL!

__________________
1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)