Just got my first ticket
 

I was doing 75 in a 55 while driving to school (Binghamton) and did not see the cop at all. Got a ticket but I mailed in pleading not guilty because alot of my friends have done that and get the case dismissed because the cop didn't show up or somebody else gives you a lesser charge if it's your first offense. Does anyone have any experience with this or tips on how to do go about my court date? I live in NY by the way.

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

heh srry to hear about the first ticket...i have been lucky so far (but now that i say that i will probably get one!) my friend has had like 3 in the last couple of months and i think he got all of them dismissed...Good luck!

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

i have to clear up a speeding ticket before the end of this week. i was thinking about doing the "not guilty" thing and hope to get lucky, but i kinda want this stuff finished with asap (i might just do the traffic school).

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

one of my friends uses a lawyer to fight his tickets, he usually gets him out of it, or at the least, he gets them to let him take traffic school even though it had been less than 18 months since he last took it. find a lawyer that specializes in traffic tickets. i think it usually runs around 150 bucks. cheaper than my last couple of tickets.

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

My first and only ticket was a 55 in a 45. But I went to court and they said plead guilty to a faulty headlight charge and they would drop it. So i got one point, and $0 in fines. Not bad.

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RE: Just got my first ticket
 

Sound good to me - definitely worth a try.

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

or jsut pay the ticket, take the class, and get a good radar detector

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

but i did know a kid in school that got a ticket. at the time his car was blue. he had it repainted it cause he had some body work done. when he went to court he got the ticket dismissed because the car was a different color that it said on the ticket.

RE: Just got my first ticket
 

I Live in NY too (near Albany).

The cop-not-showing-up thing is called a request for a supporting deposition. The cop has to come in and give an account of what happened...the thing is that I believe they get paid overtime to show up if it's after their regular shift hours. I know this technique worked a few years ago for some friends of mine but it really cannot be counted on as a sure thing.

75 in a 55 is 20 over and it's right past the borderline of being a big deal. If you'd been radared at 18 over the points scheme is different, etc (IIRC).

I'm surprised they didn't spot-reduce it to something less like disobeying a traffic signalling device, etc. If you get one of those just plead guilty and pay the fine via the mail (they just want the money and it usually isn't worth fighting).

I'd contact a lawyer about it and I'd be a little leery about asking for the supporitng dep... ..you can piss 'em off with that and it may backfire on you. A good lawyer should get that first offense down to something small points-wise but you'll wind up paying a bunch of money to do it. You might wind up paying a lot of money AND a bunch of extra insurance premiums if you go it alone.

Another thing to consider: there is a big fight going on right now in NY over who gets the revenue from speeding violations. In the past the town got most or all of the money and now it is all supposed to go to the state govt; it's a hot issue and you should expect the cops to be more unpredictable out there...I've seen it up here already.

BTW was it one of the Trooper Camaros that nailed you? I got pulled by one the last time I went through Binghamton on business :P