Post: #1

Got busted on a major roadway in Northern Virginia and was issued a reckless driving ticket. I came across mostly info advising to lawyer up and some red pilled ones including one by a gentleman who claim to sit on on a bunch of cases and claim that judges were surprisingly lenient when people (lawyerless) copped to their infractions, apologetic and requested driving improvement school.
I have zero points and my license is from another state.

Post: #2

96 on 66?

Just get a lawyer. They have it all figured out. Less stress and time spent.

Post: #3

(12-02-2013 06:58 PM)Menace Wrote:  96 on 66?

Just get a lawyer. They have it all figured out. Less stress and time spent.

More like excess on the Access. Seriously though, every advise that i come across is an ad for a law firm using scare tactics.

Post: #4

(12-03-2013 02:15 PM)Kingsley Davis Wrote:  

(12-02-2013 06:58 PM)Menace Wrote:  96 on 66?

Just get a lawyer. They have it all figured out. Less stress and time spent.

More like excess on the Access. Seriously though, every advise that i come across is an ad for a law firm using scare tactics.

Correction on that advice.

Just get a Good lawyer.

G Manifesto rule #4087: Never skimp on your legal team.

Post: #5

You can either plead not guilty, no contest or guilty.

If you plead no contest you are not admitting guilt but you are paying the fine and it goes on your record.

If you plead not guilty it goes to trial. The most likely outcome will be a no contest with reduced fine IMO. Lawyers for a speeding ticket are around $1500 so you have to look at your finances.

What you can do is show up to court and hopefully others will be called before you to go the judge and you can see how the judge responds to the people.

Speeding tickets are not a crime so much as a revenue generating scheme by the government to milk the most out of those who can afford it the least.

Post: #6

I've been in that situation I got the charges reduce to reckless driving to following too close....

Post: #7

Hmm.

"Far be it from me to try and talk you out of hiring a lawyer, especially if you're going to fight the charge. If you're going to fight the charge then this is a smart move. Otherwise, going to court yourself on the first court date and trying to get your own deal is the way to go. If you can't get a deal then you have the right to a continuance and you get your lawyer."

Post: #8

How fast were you going? If you were going over 90 get a lawyer. Under 90 ask the prosecutor for a deal or offer to go to driving school in front of the judge if you have a clean record.

Post: #9

Why would you get a lawyer? Just to go to arraignment. They will tell you what you will get. If you think lawyering up would benefit in the end, you can decide at that point. You will probably get between $300-500. Is a lawyer $100? I say at least 300 so no point to hire them.

Post: #10

(12-03-2013 11:06 PM)TheBMan Wrote:  How fast were you going? If you were going over 90 get a lawyer. Under 90 ask the prosecutor for a deal or offer to go to driving school in front of the judge if you have a clean record.

104 MPH!!

Clean record though.

Post: #11

Not worth getting a lawyer. Hearings are highly informal. Cops don't show up a lot of the time.

Post: #12

(12-04-2013 04:21 AM)Sp5 Wrote:  Not worth getting a lawyer. Hearings are highly informal. Cops don't show up a lot of the time.

Apparently, in Virginia does'nt matter if the cop is a no show and besides.....

"Virginia[edit]
The Code of Virginia has over 20 sections pertaining to reckless driving. It is defined as a Class 1 misdemeanor criminal offense, not a traffic infraction or a speeding ticket. For example, Virginia code explicitly defines the act of speeding 20 mph or more above the posted speed limit (or at any speed greater than 80 mph) as reckless driving.
All drivers convicted of reckless driving in Virginia, including out-of-state and foreign (e.g. Canadian) drivers, will have a permanent criminal record that will be indexed in the NCIC criminal database. The conviction will also be added to a Virginia driving record for 11 years, and six demerit points will be applied.[5] Although a convicted adult's driving record will temporarily reflect a reckless driving conviction, a criminal record is for life. Only through the expungement process [6] can an arrest (even if it does not result in a conviction) be removed from public view. Expungement is not available, however, if the charged driver is found guilty or pleads guilty to the offense (except in rare circumstances) (e.g., an absolute pardon by the governor)
A person charged with reckless driving, if they show that their actions, while they do show insufficient care or failure to properly operate a vehicle, but are not truly serious enough to reach the level of reckless driving, may instead be convicted by the court of the lesser included offense of improper driving which is a much less serious offense, and is not a criminal conviction. This potential reduction in level of offense is only available at trial, as a law enforcement officer can only write a traffic ticket for reckless driving, they do not have the ability to write a ticket for improper driving.[7]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reckless_driving

Post: #13

(12-02-2013 06:42 PM)Kingsley Davis Wrote:  judges were surprisingly lenient when people (lawyerless) copped to their infractions, apologetic and requested driving improvement school.

This is bullshit, the same advice got my ex-girlfriend to do this (in a midwestern state) and she got the book thrown at her.

I'd recommend a lawyer for any ticket that can increase your insurance, especially above a 100.

Post: #14

§ 46.2-862. Exceeding speed limit.

A person shall be guilty of reckless driving who drives a motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth (i) at a speed of twenty miles per hour or more in excess of the applicable maximum speed limit or (ii) in excess of eighty miles per hour regardless of the applicable maximum speed limit.

They may have eliminated the 80 mph provision (http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604....sum+HB1949) but you are still reckless if you're 20 mph over, which you were.

You're facing a criminal misdemeanor....and considering not getting a lawyer? As I'm sure you know, a criminal record will fuck you up. This is not a joke or a mere "speeding ticket."

Anyway, get a good lawyer.

Post: #15

Have a mechanic write you a receipt for a speed sensor for your car and plead not guilty. Tell the judge there was no way you were going that fast and you had the car checked and they replaced it because it was messing up your speedo.

I do this for my friends all the time.

Your welcome

Post: #16

In Virginia, reckless driving is an incarcerable offense which carries with it a maximum of one year in jail and a fine up to $2,500. I imagine you have either a D.C. or Maryland license in which case the points would probably transfer over. In some other states, reckless driving is not a big deal because it doesn't carry any jail time. In Virginia, it is taken pretty seriously. If you show up without a lawyer, the judge will either continue the case for you to get a lawyer or determine that you waived your right to a lawyer and make you represent yourself. Get a lawyer.

Since you have an out of state license and therefore an out of state driving record, make absolute sure that you obtain a copy (preferably a certified copy) of your record to bring to court. This way, the judge will have to believe you when you say that you have a clean driving record. People lie left and right about their prior record. Certified driving records don't lie.

Speed is generally proven by radar/laser or by pacing. If the officer used radar or a laser, he should be able to prove that he was certified to operate the radar/laser at the time of the incident and he should bring his certification to court. If he does not meet these requirements, you should object to any testimony regarding his operation of the radar/laser. The other way in which speed can be proven is through pacing. Pacing is when the officer looks at his own speedometer and paces the speed of another vehicle based on the speedometer reading of his own vehicle. In order to prove the speed of his own vehicle, the officer must prove (this probably varies from state to state) calibration of his own speedometer. If the officer was not the one who calibrated his speedometer and the person who calibrated the speedometer is not present in court, there is often a strong argument that any evidence regarding the calibration is hearsay and is therefore inadmissible. If such evidence is deemed inadmissible, you may be able to argue that there is insufficient evidence that you were driving in excess of 80 miles per hour and that you therefore are guilty of reckless driving.

Post: #17

Just pay it. Only 2 points carry over to your home State from out of State tickets.

There's a 1 mile strip of 95 going through Maryland where I got pinched one time.
The speed limit drops from 55 to 35 then back to 55. Total speed trap. They nail all
the out of State drivers. How else do you think these hick pigs pay for their pensions?

Post: #18

(12-04-2013 03:30 PM)Parlay44 Wrote:  Just pay it. Only 2 points carry over to your home State from out of State tickets.

There's a 1 mile strip of 95 going through Maryland where I got pinched one time.
The speed limit drops from 55 to 35 then back to 55. Total speed trap. They nail all
the out of State drivers. How else do you think these hick pigs pay for their pensions?

Since this happened in Virginia and it is an incarcerable offense, he can't simply pay the ticket. He must appear in court.

Post: #19

(12-04-2013 03:33 PM)Merenguero Wrote:  

(12-04-2013 03:30 PM)Parlay44 Wrote:  Just pay it. Only 2 points carry over to your home State from out of State tickets.

There's a 1 mile strip of 95 going through Maryland where I got pinched one time.
The speed limit drops from 55 to 35 then back to 55. Total speed trap. They nail all
the out of State drivers. How else do you think these hick pigs pay for their pensions?

Since this happened in Virginia and it is an incarcerable offense, he can't simply pay the ticket. He must appear in court.

It depends on the ticket. Speeding is usually 2-4 points. Reckless Driving I believe might be a 5 point ticket so you might be right. Anything over 4 points in one shot is usually a mandatory 30 day suspension of license.

PS Fuck Virginia

Post: #20

Go to court and see what the judge is like.

Often times, like I said above, tickets are just a revenue generator for the government. They could give two shits about you going to jail...the system is designed to milk money from you and that's about all.

The only one who will want you to go to jail is the DA, and when you go before the judge if the DA wants you to go to jail the DA will publicly request to the judge as soon as you stand up before the judge that he recommends you go to jail over and above a fine. It's at that time that you plead no guilty, get yourself an attorney and do that legal thing.

If the judge is lenient, pay the fine and be done with it. You MAY also be able to plead no contest, listen to what the judge fines you then request to change your please to not guilty to get an attorney but I'm not sure about that. I've changed my please from no contest to not guilty but it was before I heard the judge specify a specific fine.

At least that's how it has been when I've been to traffic court.

Get this shit: last time I was in traffic court, some dude got fined $50 for not riding a bike "with at least one hand on the handlebar." It's just a revenue generator for the system, that's all it is. When the judge read aloud his charge, everyone in the court room burst out laughing. The judge banged his gravel "order in the court, YOU WILL RESPECT THE COURT." Seriously, how the fuck can you respect a system that gives a $50 ticket to some dude for showing off riding without a hand on the handlebar?

Post: #21

(12-04-2013 04:34 AM)Kingsley Davis Wrote:  

(12-04-2013 04:21 AM)Sp5 Wrote:  Not worth getting a lawyer. Hearings are highly informal. Cops don't show up a lot of the time.

Apparently, in Virginia does'nt matter if the cop is a no show and besides.....

"Virginia[edit]
The Code of Virginia has over 20 sections pertaining to reckless driving. It is defined as a Class 1 misdemeanor criminal offense, not a traffic infraction or a speeding ticket. For example, Virginia code explicitly defines the act of speeding 20 mph or more above the posted speed limit (or at any speed greater than 80 mph) as reckless driving.
All drivers convicted of reckless driving in Virginia, including out-of-state and foreign (e.g. Canadian) drivers, will have a permanent criminal record that will be indexed in the NCIC criminal database. The conviction will also be added to a Virginia driving record for 11 years, and six demerit points will be applied.[5] Although a convicted adult's driving record will temporarily reflect a reckless driving conviction, a criminal record is for life. Only through the expungement process [6] can an arrest (even if it does not result in a conviction) be removed from public view. Expungement is not available, however, if the charged driver is found guilty or pleads guilty to the offense (except in rare circumstances) (e.g., an absolute pardon by the governor)
A person charged with reckless driving, if they show that their actions, while they do show insufficient care or failure to properly operate a vehicle, but are not truly serious enough to reach the level of reckless driving, may instead be convicted by the court of the lesser included offense of improper driving which is a much less serious offense, and is not a criminal conviction. This potential reduction in level of offense is only available at trial, as a law enforcement officer can only write a traffic ticket for reckless driving, they do not have the ability to write a ticket for improper driving.[7]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reckless_driving

You can't be penalized in the USA in any serious way without testimony from an accuser. Sixth Amendment.

Post: #22

(12-04-2013 03:08 PM)el mechanico Wrote:  Have a mechanic write you a receipt for a speed sensor for your car and plead not guilty. Tell the judge there was no way you were going that fast and you had the car checked and they replaced it because it was messing up your speedo.

I do this for my friends all the time.

Your welcome

I've done the same and got it dropped to a defective speedo. Cheaper and no points.

Dunno about 104MPH though...

Post: #23

@ El Mech- It was a rental.

@ Parlay44- 6 points.

@ Pyre- I can't win.
/thread-14659-...#pid557834

Post: #24

(12-04-2013 06:12 PM)Kingsley Davis Wrote:  @ Pyre- I can't win.
/thread-14659-...#pid557834

hahahaha

Post: #25

(12-02-2013 06:42 PM)Kingsley Davis Wrote:  Got busted on a major roadway in Northern Virginia and was issued a reckless driving ticket. I came across mostly info advising to lawyer up and some red pilled ones including one by a gentleman who claim to sit on on a bunch of cases and claim that judges were surprisingly lenient when people (lawyerless) copped to their infractions, apologetic and requested driving improvement school.
I have zero points and my license is from another state.

Begin with a guide from Nolo Publishing. They are typically of good quality. Just do it right away, so that you still have time to find a lawyer if you need one.

http://www.nolo.com/products/beat-your-ticket-beyt.html