So I got my first ticket this morning. I was on my way to school, traffic/pedestrians are nonexistent, residential area. Long story short, got pulled over for running a stop sign at 20 mph >_<

Question: The 'ticket' he gave me is labeled as a 'notice to appear' and there is no price written on the form. I need to appear at the court hub (or whatever it is) on or before a date 2 months from now. So, what does this mean? 1.Will they assign a ticket value apon my appearance? 2.Is my insurance monthly gauranteed to rise? 3.Also, should I try to take traffic school before my appearance, or does it not matter if it is after my appearance date?

Conclusion:The gas money I have saved over the past 2 months by traveling that route twice a day, running the same 3 stop signs within a mile of each other, will probably be more than the cost of the ticket. However, the rise in insurance will definately kill me.


Will I need a lawyer for my appearance?

 

As for the cost of the ticket, sorry, I don't know. As for traffic school, you will go to court, plead guilty (if you are inclined to do so), and then you will have the option to take traffic school instead of having the points stay on your licenses. As for your insurance rates, ?????????. Depends on your carrier and type of coverage.

Traffic school is not that bad anymore. I remember having to go set in a class room for hours. Now you can take it on-line and from what I hear (haven't had a ticket in a while), its easy.

Sorry I couldn't be more help.

P.S. No lawyer needed unless you plan to fight it.

 

[1] You can usually call anytime after the issuance of the citation to get the cost of the ticket.
[2] Your insurance will probably go up - but MAYBE NOT if you don't actually get any points (i.e. traffic school)
[3] Traffic school before hand may be a nice touch for a sympathetic judge. It could also look like a kiss-a$$ to surly judge (and only **** him off). Tough call.

The question about having a lawyer is similar to #3 above. Some judges despise them and may make your sentence harder. I guess if you can afford a GOOD lawyer, go for it. Any two-bit ambulance chaser probably won't help your situation (and could make things more uncomfortable).

Good luck either way.

 

That's what you get from running stop signs, and don't expect any traffic judge to have sympathy on you. Having worked on an ambulance I can tell you that some pretty horrific collisions occur when someone runs a stop sign in the middle of no where thinking that no one is around. Just plead guilty or no contest and go to traffic school. It'd be one thing if you ran a stop sign at a location that didn't have a stop sign that you drove through for years, and now it does and you're not used to it, it's another to just blatently run them because you think no one is around

 

Hiring an attorney usually costs you more than both the traffic fine and the court costs (if assessed). Don't **** away your $ unless you intend on fighting it. It sounds like you admit to the offense?

If it was me and I committed the offense, I'd dress in a suit and tie (not flashy but a conservative suit - think Washington, D.C politician), go to court and wait for my name to be called. Approach the bench and inform the judge that I am representing myself. If I did not have a justified defense, I would plead guilty when asked and act contrite. Be very polite and answer yes sir or no sir (or yes ma'am and no ma'am).

That's what I would do. You can do what you want - this is not legal advice.

 

call the court and se what your options are. every state / county is different.

 

I agree every state and county is different. Here is Virginia, you can not take the traffic school unless the Judge allows you to. Actually you can take it any time you want, but it will not help unless the Judge approves it before hand. Last time I went through this, the better dressed people and those who were friendly to the Judge got off easier. It did not effect my insurance rates, but I did not recieve points because I was allowed to take the traffic school.

Larry.

 

Bummer. Let us know how it turns out.

 

Yea, I didn't try to act stupid to the cop. He asked if I didn't see the sign, I said I saw it. I know I deserved it. After he gave me the ticket I said 'thank you'. Luckily, he didn't write the speed I was going on the ticket, even though he had pointed it out to me.

 

NEVER admit guilt to a police officer. My dad is a lawyer and a law abiding citizen (unlike myself) and that is one piece of advice he always gave me. The best response would have been to say that you did not see the stop sign.

BUT whats done is done. I have done the same thing as you but admitted to worse (DUI) and I dont think it would have affected my outcome since there was no way I was going to pass field sobriety tests.... And maybe it would not have affected the outcome (i.e. you would still have gotten a ticket) but it could certainly have helped you gain favor in the eyes of the judge. When he sees that you ran the stop sign because you didnt want to stop, he will give you the maximum...which will probably only be a fine of less than $300.

As far as insurance goes, do not tell them. You may be obligated to tell them but your coverage will not be affected by this if they do not look into your driving record periodically. Depending on your age, other risk factors and prior driving history, they may or may not look into your record periodically.

I would recommend that you do what I did and change your driving habits. I know it is a hassle to stop at all the stop signs and whatnot but just imagine the guilt you will feel if some little girl just happens to ride her bike into the intersection because she assumes you will see her and stop. You do not want that on your conscience. The money comes and goes but the guilt of seriously injuring or killing someone will follow you forever. Trust me, I know a few people in this boat and they hurt every day.

Good luck. I agree with mustdoc. Wear a suit, be yessir/nosir and take the punishment. What else can you do?