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So I got a ticket...

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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
So I got a "failure to yield to pedestrian" ticket in CA earlier this week.

Not going to lie, I did cut in front of a pedestrian, a lady with a stroller. I had started making my turn, hit my brakes because i realized there was some people crossing. I also noticed that the nose of my car was in the oncoming traffics lane, and there were cars coming. I made a split second decision, and decided to go through the gap of people, the lady with the stroller had just stepped off the curb and i turned into the closest lane to me, so its not like she was in the middle of the road.


So obviously I did do what the cop cited me for. I have two questions.

Does anyone know what this ticket would cost to just straight up pay it? I cant really find anything online. I've found some around 200 but it was a few years old..

and second question. would it be worth it to go to the court date, explain what happen, in hopes of getting it off my record?

or do you think the judge wont care, and i'll have to pay the fine + court fees?

any suggestions?
Jun 6 2011 12:58AM
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EvanA02
Posts: 421 - Karma: 47
California is broke, you are going to have to pay it
Jun 6 2011 1:00AM
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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
thats kinda what i'm thinking...

i'm expecting to still have to pay something even if i went to court to get it off my record.

trying to figure out if i should even bother with trying to do that
Jun 6 2011 1:04AM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
You always pay the fines when you go to court. The only benefit is that sometimes they take off points if you agree to your sentence (which you should since you did it) before hand and save the city/state the money involved in litigation of petty crime.
Jun 6 2011 1:08AM
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Rachy
Posts: 4355 - Karma: 2,761
Speeding tickets you can get taken off your record on occasion, but failure to yield to a pedestrian... not so much. It wont do you any good.

Also, I believe the price varies on what city/county. They have been upping the fines lately. My friend got a $600 ticket for being on his cell phone.
Jun 6 2011 1:12AM
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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
i'm from minnesota, i dont have a point system for my license...

and i couldnt care less if i cost california money they dont have for me to go through the court process. the majority of their cops are deuschebag pricks.


and not always. i've gone to court before for a 300 dollar ticket, walked away paying 60 and it off my record.
Jun 6 2011 1:15AM
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GayWolf420
Posts: 37387 - Karma: 120,101
Yo man fuck da police. dats police brutality right dare homie.
Jun 6 2011 1:16AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
You think that's bad... I got a ticket going 67 in a 65 on a hilly mountain road in bumfuck nowhere, California back in December... His instrumentation COULDN'T have been accurate...
Jun 6 2011 1:18AM
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CrotchKiller
Posts: 9037 - Karma: 6,943
this is da truf fuck da pol ice.
but fo real its gonna come back to you putting a young life in danger(i know you werent but thats what they will say)
Jun 6 2011 1:20AM
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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
yea. thats kind of what i'm thinking.

what are the chances i get it off my record but still have to pay the fine?
Jun 6 2011 1:22AM
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Blake.P
Posts: 9894 - Karma: 3,585
That is one you could actually fight and win. Just challenge when it was calibrated last and it isn't accurate
Jun 6 2011 1:46AM
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deleted5
Posts: 14507 - Karma: 13,507
i know how to get out of any ticket but its way to long to type if you want to pm me i can exsplane it to you over the phone then if you feel like it you can type it out on here.
Jun 6 2011 1:52AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
That's what I'm going to ask at the hearing...

He claimed there was icy roads that night. Holy un-true, especially on that stretch of road... If there was Ice, and I was going 65, without snowtyres, there isn't a fucking chance I would have been able to go around corners... then again I was going 55 around many of the corners... (so what the fuck I WAS being safe. such BS)
Jun 6 2011 6:32AM
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belden...
Posts: 2914 - Karma: 1,274
Yeah memorial day weekend i got pulled over doing 90 in a 65 in mass. it was fucking bullshit.

But in all seriousness id just pay it op you probably would get it stricken off your record
Jun 6 2011 6:45AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Lol. 25 over isn't exactly bullshit. That's legit speeding...

If I pay it off, It goes on my record.. I actually have to go to court and prove shit first... and court is 5 hours drive away in the boonies to Prisontown USA...
Jun 6 2011 6:47AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Also to the OP...

A few years ago, I got a 'failure to yield to an emergency vehicle' when a Fire engine rolled up behind me when I was stuck in traffic and couldnt get right... It was bullshit, but it ended up being like a 500$ ticket.

I'd expect around 350-400 for this one, and chances are, your only hope to fight it is to stall this thing out as much as you can. Do a trial by declaration. If the cop doesnt put in a statement, then you automatically win. IF he does, you can still go to court on it if you claim to have further evidence - which could simply be that you claim there were no pedestrians there in the first place.

If he puts in a statement, and then you still bring him to court, and he shows up, then at least you tried and maybe you can enter a guilty with an explanation plea (they will ask you again how do you plea when you return to court) and hope the judge pitys you and knocks you down a few bucks...

Also, if you go to court, you can make sure it's possible for you to pay your ticket by Installments, which could be as low as 20 or 30$ a month, and keep you from going flat out broke.

And if you get drivers school with the ticket, and decide to go to court with it, make sure you are given that option upon trial, because sometimes they will not account for it without you making a stink about it.
Jun 6 2011 10:32AM
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inactive
Posts: 4772 - Karma: 97
holy fuck
Jun 6 2011 10:51AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Amazingly, a friend of mine fought a 400$ cellphone ticket and won... He was driving a clean rental car, and was using his girlfriend's' phone at the time. Cop pulled him over, so he hid it in his underwear, and had the officer check the entire car only to find no cellphone whatsoever. The officer didn't grab for his dick, so he had no evidence other than his word. In court, he proved he had no cellphone plan at the time (he had just returned from college in Canada so he hadn't signed up for one yet)

They threw it out, and he was able to file a grievance to the police department for manufacturing a citation, and won 500$ based on his claims of how far he had to travel, and how much work time he lost having to fight the ticket.



Jun 6 2011 12:46PM
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Static
Posts: 8553 - Karma: 4,089
as someone who's gone to fight more than just a handfull of speeding tickets, that defense will not work, in my experiences the cop ALWAYS has documents to cover his ass in regards to radar. The best is when they submit a calibration from 5 or more years ago, then cite that it was a two rod calibration (only makes it more accurate initially, doesn't extend the calibrated period.) which is good for the radar lifetime vs. 1 rod calibration which is only good for a year.

Your best bet, with a ticket youre guilty for, is to first ask the judge for a deferment or reduced punishment, if they say no then you have two options
1. pay early for point reduction
or
2. change your court date multiple times (once isn't enough and it will only piss the cop off) and pray the officer doesn't show. If he does show (and you can't lie your way out) the judge will not give any leniency and you will pay the full fine, get full points, and have court costs.
Jun 6 2011 1:04PM
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BenWhit
Posts: 4654 - Karma: 3,256
you don't actually have a law-suit, man. i know in massachusetts, they just sit you down with the judge's clerk and a state police officer in a random ass room and they kinda just tear you a new one. most of the time you can get the fine reduced or get rid of it completely. you only pay like $20 to take it to court anyway. take ti to court, give a shot. you don't need a lawyer or shit like that, just show up dressed nicely and highlight all your excellent qualities.
Jun 6 2011 1:08PM
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Peter.
Posts: 23796 - Karma: 13,014
i feel like that is so much work for something so insignificant. not fighting the ticket but like filing grievances and all that. i know here in NY if you take the ticket to court they usually lower the fine, but that's about it
Jun 6 2011 1:12PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Yeah... He wanted to prove a point, since he was in law school at the time.. Not to mention cather experience , I guess.
Jun 6 2011 2:12PM
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theJones
Posts: 676 - Karma: 158
such a win. That made me happy
Jun 6 2011 2:27PM
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Deluge
Posts: 4401 - Karma: 805
haha so much win
Jun 6 2011 3:35PM
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moonofendor
Posts: 1484 - Karma: 14
ummm yeah you do...

http://www.dmv.org/mn-minnesota/point-system.php
Jun 6 2011 3:35PM
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GeneralT
Posts: 912 - Karma: 19
always go to court. get there early. he is going to have a big stack of tickets to get through and if you are there early he is more likely to just rip it up. even if you do have to pay it you have a good chance of keeping the points off your license. court=good decision. might as well try. not like you are gonna pay more at court.
Jun 6 2011 3:39PM
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.frenchy
Posts: 18221 - Karma: 12,323
thug life.
Jun 6 2011 3:43PM
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Static
Posts: 8553 - Karma: 4,089
wrong. there are court costs and various victims funds they milk you for.
Jun 6 2011 4:18PM
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Rachy
Posts: 4355 - Karma: 2,761
My friend that is a cop told me a few things about this.

1. You may still be able to have the court date moved to your county so that you don't have to drive 5 hours.

2. You will get off if you state that you were driving safely and the conditions allowed for the speed limit. You were more concerned about looking at the road and making sure the conditions stayed safe than constantly checking your speedometer. Cruise control wasn't on because of the turns. You are fairly familiar with the roads there and have been driving in icy conditions for years and saw no signs of there being a problem.

My friend told me that as long as you were going less than 10 miles an hour over and driving safely and make it sound like you were paying attention, the ticket will get removed.
Jun 6 2011 4:39PM
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ORDEAL
Posts: 6386 - Karma: 75
#winning


but seriously. that is awesome
Jun 6 2011 4:57PM
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gnarles.
Posts: 2587 - Karma: 130
try and fight it
Jun 6 2011 5:20PM
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mistahfabbydavis
Posts: 216 - Karma: 15
jus go in there and shoot the courthouse up
Gangsta NS style
Jun 6 2011 6:37PM
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ECB
Posts: 6991 - Karma: 622
I got a ticket for going a few over, like 7 over and the cop never reported it....hope for that ha
Jun 6 2011 6:40PM
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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
did you even read the article? It says, "Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS) does not enforce a so-called "point system" for driver infractions and improvement."

its the first line... the closest it gets to point system is if you get 3 speeding or moving violations, i dont remember which, in a year, your license can be suspended, etc.
Jun 6 2011 8:28PM
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ryano
Posts: 4465 - Karma: 1,535
yea, i thought about doing a trial by declaration...

i've also thought about just going to the court date, admit it, and ask for drivers school, or just plain out ask if there's anyway he could lower the fine or get it off my record. short, simple, and honest. but i doubt that would do much, saying its CA..


thanks for your thoughts. its appreciated.
Jun 6 2011 8:31PM
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Alpine3
Posts: 1811 - Karma: 24
Click for larger image
Jun 6 2011 8:32PM
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315jibber94
Posts: 880 - Karma: -39
take it from me, ive had 2 speeding tickets already, go to the date, sit your ass there for hours untill all the hood rats make their way through. tell the DA not the judge what happened, and you have a legit reason so hell prob give you an pricy parking ticket, both mine were 100 bucks
Jun 6 2011 9:44PM
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