There have been, over the years, some pretty pathetic defense strategies when it came to fighting a traffic ticket. Someone would read some information somewhere or use some advice from a relative or friend.
Below I have listed the top five mistakes you can make when fighting your traffic ticket. I hope you too will see the futility in them and refrain from using these worthless defenses.
Mistake #1- Delaying the traffic court date
Most would advise you to get a continuance. The claim is the longer your can postpone the traffic court date, the bigger the chance the police officer wont show up. This makes no sense and isn’t a good strategy to fight a traffic ticket.
Do not try to delay your date with the traffic court. You will not increase the likelihood the officer wont be there and thus having your traffic ticket thrown out.
Lets say that you do get your traffic court date pushed back. What if the police officer still shows at court?
Then what? Police officers get paid overtime to show up to traffic court.
Mistake #2- Requesting evidence before traffic court.
You have the right by law to see any information the court plans on using to convict you. The process is called discovery. And it would be useful if you were charged with murder, but this is traffic court. Don’t do this, it can hurt your chances of successfully getting your traffic ticket dismissed.
Requesting evidence before any kind of trial tells the prosecution you are planning a defense. He will see this as a challenge and will undoubtedly prepare accordingly, making your chances of winning almost impossible.
Do yourself a favor and don’t even contact the court about anything related to your traffic ticket. You don’t want them to know your familiar with the proceedings of traffic court.
Mistake #3- Doing a lot of needless research
There is no need to spend any time reading boring law books. Its pointless.
For most traffic tickets it is pointless to read up on case law before traffic court. Except on the rare occasion that you may want to see how a certain statute is worded.
Mistake #4- Going after the police officers credibility
If you go to traffic court with the idea you are going to attack the officers credibility, don’t waste your time. You can forget getting your traffic ticket dismissed. Saying the officer didn’t use the equipment properly, or that he singled you out or any number of other excuses are useless.
Challenging the officers training of a radar gun will always draw scrutiny from the judge. He will take the officers side and will insist you ask the next question.
Its just understood that the officer has the proper training on the speed detecting equipment he or she used to give you a traffic ticket. There’s no question about it. Say you do try this defense, where are you going to get the evidence the judge will ask for to support your claim?
Mistake #5- Showing up to traffic court unprepared.
This may be the biggest mistake individuals make when they try to fight a traffic ticket. They go into traffic court thinking they did their homework, when in reality they had no idea what they were doing, and end up paying the traffic ticket.
Those who did no research go to traffic court with the notion that they can just tell their side of the story and the judge will see things their way and dismiss their traffic ticket. Yeah right!
Look, I know the thought of going to traffic court can be a little scary for some, but this isn’t a murder trial. It’s just a simple traffic ticket. Traffic court is set up to be extremely ‘user friendly’ due to the large amounts of people who go there every day.
If you avoid these 5 mistakes you will have a better chance of claiming your victory in traffic court, and hopefully getting that traffic ticket thrown out.
Want to find out more about traffic tickets, and how to beat them? Then visit James Kincaid’s site for the the best advice and information on traffic violations. Check here for free reprint licence: Fighting Your Traffic Ticket: Don’t Make These 5 Foolish Mistakes.
categories: speeding tickets,law,automobile insurance,driving,law enforcement,family
