First ticket
 

Got my first ticket tonight on the way to school. 42 in a 25. I didn't realize the limit was 25 where I got pulled over, I thought it was a 40. DMV online lists it as 4 points :( My court date is Oct 16 at 6pm if I choose to plead not guilty. On the front of the ticket it is listed as statute 39:4-98, which is the general speeding listing on the back. Online however the official statute for 15-19 over is 39:4-99, think that'll do me any good in court? Think I should fight it and try to loose the points atleast?

Plead your case to the DA first. Write a letter dripping with regret and pointing out that you don't have any points and you'd like to keep it that way. I've got a friend here that did that and it was "reduced" to a noisy muffler. No points but still a fine (revenue). I fought a "Driving on the Shoulder" ticked that way and won outright.

Collins
92 Pearlie

NJ is very forgiving DEPENDING ON your situation.

Me personally - my license is TRASHED. I got caught for doing 86 in a 65MPH zone.........wound up getting it reduced to a 2-point ticket and a $100 fine. The judge was pretty nice.

Whatever you do DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT plead guilty. Plead not guilty and when you go to court you WILL be able to talk to the prosecutor. When you talk to him he will be able to help you out with a reduction. I'm sure you will not get it as bad as you think.

Good luck.......hopefully the judge is cool. What district?

It's from the borough of Pennington in Mercer County. I will try writing the letter, what exactly is the DA? My parents told me to just accept it and pay, but those points would kill my insurance. Actually I don't know if I'd even be able to afford the insurance.

the District Attorney, He'll be prosecuting you. In my short and hopefully one time experience... If you don't try BS, He'll be more than fair. Especially on a first time ticket.

Collins

Steve,

Sorry to hear that. :( I haven't had any tickets in a long time so I am not much help here. Other than watch the speed limit signs and maybe, if you haven't done this, go back and check on the signs.

John

PS At least the officer couldn't wonder about the mouse in your engine.

As for your parents. Yes you did wrong and should be punished. :D , but you're not really fighting the ticket as much as pleading for lieniency (sp?) IT IS WORTH IT, a couple of stamps and maybe a court date to avoud points that will be there for 3 years or so. in the long run it could save you loads of money.

Collins

Steve, go to court and you are likely to get off if the officer does not show up, or get a reduced fine/points. The DA usually tries to plea bargain down to a lesser violation. A few months ago I got pulled over for speeding but the charge was decreased to a no point violation. Good luck.

Matt

Uhhh... who cares. You still have 8 points left, right? I have 4 left right now...

- Rob

What the heck are points? Is that some state specific thing or do I not know because I've never had a ticket?

Yeah what do you care it's not your driving record.:rolleyes:

I still don't know about the points either but I think I was pretty close to getting the maximum amount, I got a warning letter in the mail. My trick is to alternate, I drive alot in R.I. and C.T. and fortunatlly they don't seem to share information, somehow I'v had tickets weeks apart and the other state didn't know about the one in the other. ( exept for the time I had to go to court in R.I. two days in a row, I told the judge I had a pretty good driving record and he let me off the first day, the next day I just walked up and smiled at him and he told me to go pay the ticket.:D



The only time i'v ever got to talk to the DA before court was in C.T., when I was clocked doing 45 in a 45 by cops sitting at the 35 sign. The bastards were just standing on the side of the road pointing at cars to pull over and giving them tickets for exeading a speed limit they haven't even entered yet. I got off on that one but I wonder how many suckers just payed it?

Re: First ticket
 

is 4-98 for a less or greater amount of speeding, or is it for some other moving infraction?

Based on advice given to me by a practicing attorney, I would suggest to anyone to never plead guilty to anything unless a judge or DA has offered you something in return. Plead no contest. Some states take the same amount of $$$, but put no points on the record. With the wrong statute listed it may help your cause.

Well
 

On the back of the ticket 4-98 is the statute listed for all speeding infractions. Online however 4-98 is listed as 1-14 mph over and 4-99 is listed for 15-19 over.

P.S. What exactly does pleading "no contest" mean? I have never heard this term before.

It's some STUPID system some states adapted. This way, instead of doing things that actually prevent accidents, for instance pulling over inattentive drivers, people yapping on cell phones, or people who don't use signals, they can instead focus on revenue generating speeders. You have TWELVE points if you don't have any tickets. An average ticket is going to be 3-4 points (negative points). However, here's the catch. You get your points back, sort of. You cannot lose 12 points in any 1 year period. EX: I get a 4 point ticket on jan 5th, a 4 point in Feb, and a 3 pt in March. All good if I don't get any until AFTER Jan 5th.... because as long as I make it until then, I don't have 12 points taken away in any 1 year period.

its incredibly retarded.

- Rob