Today I got a ticket for going 32 in a school zone (20, normally 30) I didn't realize the school zone went 4 blocks away from the school because of a crosswalk >.<

I drive a Flint Mica (grey..) tC (that's 2 doors)
Well, the officer put on the ticket that I was in a 4-door, Green Scion.

My question is; Will this hold up in court? Should I just pay and take a defensive driving class, or is it worth fighting?

 

if you are going to fight make sure to put as much time in between the time of the ticket and the court date. and make sure that you try to remember evrything that was happening while you got the ticket makes you seem more informed.

 

IMO, you should just suck it up, pay the file and consider it a lesson learned. No matter what the guy put on the ticket, you know you were speeding.

It's like taking out a loan and then saying you don't want to pay it back because you didn't realize there were so many payments. Just not right.

Too many people just not wanting to take responsibility for their actions anymore.

 

Well it is definitely worth trying to go to court and lower the fine IF the amount is substantial. Some judges will cut you a break and some don't.

 

a cop can always amend the information on a ticket, so if you can do traffic school than suck it up and do traffic school. it's up to the driver to know his surroundings.

 

take it to the Court of common plea.. Plead for a PBJ (probation before judgment) and if you have a clean record to start with theyll accept the plea. Once the plea is accepted youll be on probation for tops 6 months.. drive safe for 6 months and you dont get any points on your license. However you still have to pay the fine. Got any questions feel free to message me.. ive fought lots of tickets.

 

I would just go to court and suck it up and if you have a clean record the judge will probably drop it or at least reduce the speed and fine. I don't know how it works in texas but when I got mine in my old car I just went to defensive driving school and it took the points off my license.

 

Dumas, TX? My GF's dad worked there at the refineries for a little while last year. Small a$$ town he said.

btw, you should of never been speeding in a school zone, that was the first mistake.

 

yeah, it sounds like he wrote the ticket for another vehicle that either got away, or he changed his mind and decided to give it to you.

fight it, get a lawyer, if the information on the ticket is wrong, then it can't be held up in court.

 

got a good point there ^

 

Thanks for the replies, I think I'm just going to pay the partial fine and take the class, It's most likely cheaper in the end anyhow.

Like some have said I WAS speeding, and that was my mistake, albeit not knowingly. (believe it or not, i wouldn't be going 30 in a school zone intentionally.)

I just don't like the fact that I'm getting fined for being im a hurry and not paying close enough attention, while he didn't take the time to run my plates, check my insurance, or see that the car was grey and had 2 doors when he got off his bike and walked over to it. He didn't even ask if the address on my license was still correct. They always do that.

 

Now that is kind of weird that he didn't do any of the stuff!

 

i honestly would not fight it i dunno where you are but from around here school zones and construction areas are taken on a very strict note.......if im right then theres really nothing to fight just pay the ticket

 

i would definitely fight it...because the fact that you were speeding is minor...the real issue is that you were speeding in a school zone. 10 over on an interstate is easy to fight, 10 over in a school zone they will try to give you maximum punishment for. My brother was doin 14 over in a school zone and they revoked his license for 30 days

 

Did your officer not have teeth? This reminds me of a time I got a ticket in Maryland for speeding and I got told that I sped up to to let a guy pass me even though i never left the driving lane or kicked my cruise off 72 luckily all I got was a warning but I shouldn't even have got that


But I would fight it obv the officer did right the wrong car so that's a good chance to show he may have got the wrong car

 

you might as well pay for the ticket. you are 16 and i gareentee you are gonna get anohter one eventually in the tc. i got a school zone ticket as well but mine was for 56 in a school zone lol just paid it and went on my way

 

If you get a good judge that plays by the rules you may be able to get out of it. But they have the correct plate number, and make of car and your license number I would say you are not going to walk in there and win by yourself.

You are 16 which means your insurance company probably hates you (and me) for being under 25. No reason to pay this and get it on your record (with points)for your insurance to find.

Pay the money to the lawyer to get reduce citation. He will have more knowledge and it is better to pay him/her one time rather then your insurance company for years.

I can tell you going into court to fight a ticket isn't fun I did it at 18 and I was nervous as crap. Also what I can tell you is Traffic Court (from my experience) is a boys club, the judges like to see people they know (IE Local Lawyer) than some young kid showing them the cop was wrong.

32mph in a normal 30mph zone, sounds like the cop wanted a ticket to write that day when a warning would have been suitable to tell you during xxx Time the speed limit is 20 mph.

It doesn't seem like you were breaking the law intentionally/maliciously and with a lawyer you may have a shot (4dr versus 2dr is a big difference). At least it would be nice to get it to a non-point offense so it stays off you driving record which a lawyer may be able to help with.

Good Luck.

 

Pay a lawyer and go on your merry way. The lawyers in WA will pay your ticket for you if they lose the case but they usually charge $200-500 to take a speeding ticket case. XD Your 16? Have you told your parents yet?

 

In Oregon...Fines double in school zones, construction zones, & safety corridors. I'll let you guys do the math.
Tickets suck, but it's the price you pay for not being more aware of your surroundings. Be glad that they can't throw in that you hit a kid.

 

Honestly, why is it worth the trouble going through lawyers, the court system, etc for a ticket like that?

How much is the ticket?


I don't know about tx, but in AZ the cop can write that you were driving a yellow submarine, as long as he has your name and address (spelled improperly even) and enters your drivers ID correctly you're pinned.

Theres ways of getting around minor things like miss-spellings, or wrong car ID's, etc but it's only worth it if you're fighting a DUI case or something extreme.

You have a very minor violation, pay the ticket and let it clear it's self in a couple years, or however long it takes.


I got a ticket last year for going 73 in a 40, and I did lots of research and called around deciding if it was worth the effort fighting it. In the end, it wasn't. It was most beneficial to get the 3 points NOT put on my record, but it would've cost me a grand for a lawyer and my insurance wasn't going to bump my rates for it, so I just paid the $400 and went on with life.

To sum it up, pay the ticket quietly and treat yourself to a nice smoothie or something. Smoothies make me feel better about losing my a$$ out of my wallet.