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How do I fight a stop sign moving violation?

post #1 of 18
4/5/11 at 9:28pm
Thread Starter 
Found out I got a $720 ticket!!! What to do?!?! Backstory: 1. "California Roll" / right hand turn through a stop sign without a complete stop. Its right next to my apt. and I havent done it in 6 years. Blew past it and Cop saw me clear as day. 24050 - Failure to stop at stop sign (Infraction) 2. I HAVE insurance, but didnt have the latest card with me. 16020 - No Insurance (Infraction) Cop said to me "I'll make a gentlemans deal with you since this is near your home... pay the bail in a month and ask for a COURT APPEARANCE approximately a month later. Two things will happen: I will either not be there because of vacation or whatever and you get off scott-free or I will show up to do other trials but when you see me at court remind me about this deal and Ill have them reduce the charges so its at least not on your record. You can do a trial by declaration but its a lot of paperwork and its not guaranteed..." Thinking (A) the insurance was correctable since I can provide current evidence and that (B) a stop sign fee would only be $100 or so I just said ok and went home. Just got my official letter in the mail that its $720 dollars!!! Seems very outrageous to me, right? My questions are: Should I do a trial by declaration and hope he doesnt reply or go straight to the in-person? What would my defense be for turning through a stop sign? Is the insurance a correctable if proven I was covered? Why are the tickets so DAMN HIGH?!!?
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post #2 of 18
4/5/11 at 9:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Davidko19 View Post
Found out I got a $720 ticket!!! What to do?!?!

Backstory:
1. "California Roll" / right hand turn through a stop sign without a complete stop. Its right next to my apt. and I havent done it in 6 years. Blew past it and Cop saw me clear as day.

24050 - Failure to stop at stop sign (Infraction)


2. I HAVE insurance, but didnt have the latest card with me.

16020 - No Insurance (Infraction)


Cop said to me "I'll make a gentlemans deal with you since this is near your home... pay the bail in a month and ask for a COURT APPEARANCE approximately a month later. Two things will happen: I will either not be there because of vacation or whatever and you get off scott-free or I will show up to do other trials but when you see me at court remind me about this deal and Ill have them reduce the charges so its at least not on your record. You can do a trial by declaration but its a lot of paperwork and its not guaranteed..."

Thinking (A) the insurance was correctable since I can provide current evidence and that (B) a stop sign fee would only be $100 or so I just said ok and went home. Just got my official letter in the mail that its $720 dollars!!! Seems very outrageous to me, right?


My questions are:
Should I do a trial by declaration and hope he doesnt reply or go straight to the in-person?
What would my defense be for turning through a stop sign?
Is the insurance a correctable if proven I was covered?
Why are the tickets so DAMN HIGH?!!?

I can't answer any of the questions with 100% certainty other than this one:

Why are the tickets so DAMN HIGH?!!?
- so that it'll make you abide by the law. it'll make you think twice before running a stop sign ever.
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post #3 of 18
4/5/11 at 11:37pm
CA like their taxes sure enough. That sound very high for everything including the stop sign, $100 alone would be less than a speeding infraction for 20+ miles over here.
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post #4 of 18
4/5/11 at 11:43pm
Thread Starter 
$700 is the cost for bail for a misdemeanor assault or something, not rolling through a stop sign in your neighborhood. I expected $100-$200 at MOST, which is reasonable. $700 is egregious.

My hope is they drop the insurance since I had it and reduce the fees for the stop sign and bring it down to 2 or 3 bills.

ACTUALLY, my HOPE is the cop just doesnt show up...
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post #5 of 18
4/6/11 at 1:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Davidko19 View Post
$700 is the cost for bail for a misdemeanor assault or something, not rolling through a stop sign in your neighborhood. I expected $100-$200 at MOST, which is reasonable. $700 is egregious.

My hope is they drop the insurance since I had it and reduce the fees for the stop sign and bring it down to 2 or 3 bills.

ACTUALLY, my HOPE is the cop just doesnt show up...

Reschedule your appearance shortly before the date. This increases the chance that he will not show up by tenfold. As much as I've heard this, I'd expect it to be a wives tale - but I've had more than one officer tell me this.
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post #6 of 18
4/6/11 at 1:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by suited View Post
Reschedule your appearance shortly before the date. This increases the chance that he will not show up by tenfold. As much as I've heard this, I'd expect it to be a wives tale - but I've had more than one officer tell me this.

That's all sorts of weird to me. Why would a cop bother to stop you and give you a ticket but not show up, when he could have not bother stopping you at all.
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post #7 of 18
4/6/11 at 5:30am
So weird!
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post #8 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:27am
Quote:
Originally Posted by blahman View Post
That's all sorts of weird to me. Why would a cop bother to stop you and give you a ticket but not show up, when he could have not bother stopping you at all.

The former affects his quota, the latter does not.
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post #9 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:39am
If you're in a big city, find the best ticket lawyer in town. Generally that's like finding the least smelly septic tank but all you need him to do is keep deadlines. He can probably get the ticket thrown out or at least get your fines reduced. If you're in the suburbs then you might have more of a problem, in which case you pay. The insurance ticket can, in most jurisdictions, be thrown out if you bring your insurance card to the courthouse. You probably have to pay a 10 or 20 dollar admin fee.
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post #10 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by yjeezle View Post
I can't answer any of the questions with 100% certainty other than this one:

Why are the tickets so DAMN HIGH?!!?
- so that it'll make you abide by the law. it'll make you think twice before running a stop sign ever.

Lol, no. The tickets are so high to generate revenue.
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post #11 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Davidko19 View Post
My hope is they drop the insurance since I had it and reduce the fees for the stop sign and bring it down to 2 or 3 bills.

That's about right. I've seen No Proof of Insurance violations be as high as $700+ on their own, but filing a copy with the court clerk will reduce it to a proof-of-correction fee of maybe $50. The stop sign is a moving violation, so it's a point unless you go to traffic school. You don't need a court date for either of these things.

Or you can try fighting it.
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post #12 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by harvey_birdman View Post
Lol, no. The tickets are so high to generate revenue.

yes
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post #13 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by suited View Post
Reschedule your appearance shortly before the date. This increases the chance that he will not show up by tenfold. As much as I've heard this, I'd expect it to be a wives tale - but I've had more than one officer tell me this.

I rescheduled a moving violation for a $300 ticket 2-3 times pushing my court date to 6 months after the fact. I go to court, and the fucking cop shows. But I was in bumfuck maryland. So he likely had little else to do.
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post #14 of 18
4/6/11 at 10:43pm
Thread Starter 
SWEET. MY THREAK GOT SPAMMED.


I will try fighting it but I have no valid defense - what should I use? Or should I go with a simple "No I didnt" and make him prove the case, since the burden is on him?

BTW: I went to the stop and the sign is clear as day, the cop had an unobstructed view, camera wouldve been pointed straight ahead and there were 2 cops in the car, which makes me think at least one of them would show.

I can do a written declaration but think he might try to fuck me over from our "gentlemans agreement" since I made him do extra work with the small chance that neither him or his partner would show.
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post #15 of 18
4/7/11 at 2:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by taxgenius View Post
The former affects his quota, the latter does not.

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