Speeding Ticket

[artichoke]

They got me last night:

80 in a 55 zone. I saw him on the right shoulder but he'd already scanned me by then, apparently.

I287 just before it goes into I95 in NY, near the CT line.

The officer wouldn't cut me any break, even wouldn't stay to answer questions because he said he had to run off to a nearby accident. Why didn't he go there first then and leave me alone!? Needed revenue at the end of the month?

He said they don't bother you if you go 70 or less.

My record (for past quite-a-few years) is clean. Anyone know how the system in Westchester works, what I should do?

[CplDaugherty]

Yikes, I just got a 71 in a 55 construction zone, I thought it was gonna be bad (16 over plus double the fine) but it was only $135. Mailed it off this morning.

I know if you get the date moved back a few times the officer might lose track. If he does and doesn't show you get off scott free. Also print out your driving record and present it to the judge. I got a ticket in VA but still had my NC drivers license. Everyone in VA was getting off because the judge had their driving record and said that they looked like good drivers. She asked me for mine when it was my turn and I didn't think to bring it so she didn't let me off. I had to pay the ticket and court costs, pretty dumb on my part. Oh well, lesson learned.

Good luck!

[EricG]

With the SRT8 it's only a matter of time. I got a ticket with mine on the second day I owned it!!!

Eric

[haas]

yup , got me going 110 in an 80 KPH ... P***k with an unmarked maurader..

[sjz]

Originally Posted by artichoke

They got me last night:

80 in a 55 zone. I saw him on the right shoulder but he'd already scanned me by then, apparently.

I287 just before it goes into I95 in NY, near the CT line.

The officer wouldn't cut me any break, even wouldn't stay to answer questions because he said he had to run off to a nearby accident. Why didn't he go there first then and leave me alone!? Needed revenue at the end of the month?

He said they don't bother you if you go 70 or less.

My record (for past quite-a-few years) is clean. Anyone know how the system in Westchester works, what I should do?

Sorry to hear that.
I'm not sure about Westchester, but in Nassau County, you are alway better off going to court. They put you in a room with maybe a hundred other "perps", and 4 assistant DAs. one of whom will call your name. If your record is clean, they make you an offer to plea guilty to a lesser offense, usually at 1/2 the points. I'm told they do this because a big % of the speeding fine goes to the state, where as the municipality where the infraction occurs gets the lion's share of $$$ for other infractions.
http://www.nysun.com/article/35993?page_no=1
Good luck.

[DZeckhausen]

Originally Posted by EricG

With the SRT8 it's only a matter of time.

Agreed! I got my first speeding ticket in 21 years in the SRT8, shortly after I crossed over from Maryland into Virginia on I95 South. I was on the way down from NJ to southern VA for a family reunion and had my wife and in-laws in the car. The officer cut me a break by dropping it from 83 in a 55 (mandatory court appearance) to 74 in a 55, which is just under the threshold, allowing me to pay the fine by mail. Only $95. Phew!

Ironically, my last speeding ticket (21 years ago) was also on I95 in Virginia while I was heading up from Duke University to visit my parents in NH. I made the mistake of racing a cop in an unmarked Monte Carlo SS (long story). We "played" for at least 10 miles before he got tired of it, put on his trooper hat and lit up the lights behind his grill. Got me for 90 in a 55, following too close, and reckless. The latter two charges were "automatic" because of the speed, not because I was out of control or actually following anyone closely. There was zero traffic, save the two of us. The fine was not cheap ($180 in 1985 was a lot of money for a grad student), but it was also by mail and I never got dinged by the North Carolina DMV, which technically should have pulled my license for doing more than 15mph over the limit.

I guess one could say the SRT8 has helped get me back in touch with my youth!

[crhemi]

Never pay a fine by mail!
I always plead not guilty, talk to the judge (tell your side of the story) question the officer and it gets reduced or even dropped.

Heck the officer might not even show up!

[DZeckhausen]

Originally Posted by crhemi

Never pay a fine by mail!
I always plead not guilty, talk to the judge (tell your side of the story) question the officer and it gets reduced or even dropped.

Heck the officer might not even show up!

It would cost me much more than $95 to close down my business for a day, drive to Virginia to appear in court, then drive home to NJ again. Perhaps if I had lots of points on my license and was on the edge of getting it revoked or paying big insurance surcharges, it might be worth a long trip. But that's not the case and my insurance company (NJ Manufacturers) doesn't surcharge for points.

[crhemi]

Originally Posted by DZeckhausen

It would cost me much more than $95 to close down my business for a day, drive to Virginia to appear in court, then drive home to NJ again. Perhaps if I had lots of points on my license and was on the edge of getting it revoked or paying big insurance surcharges, it might be worth a long trip. But that's not the case and my insurance company (NJ Manufacturers) doesn't surcharge for points.

My bad, let me rephrase then. If your not from out of town, then it's worth a couple of hours. IMHO!

[DZeckhausen]

Originally Posted by crhemi

My bad, let me refrase then. If your not from out of town, then it's worth a couple of hours. IMHO!

Agreed 100%.