I’ll get straight to the point. I followed the advice from this thread and filed an objection, but I never received the paperwork that requires a signature...
However, I just found a blue envelope in my mailbox stating:
SUMMONS TO DEFENDANT FOR MAIN HEARING
xy is hereby summoned to appear in person for a main hearing regarding examination in the capacity of a defendant...
WARNING: I have the right to retain legal counsel I am required to notify the court of any change of address or face a fine of up to $750 (how am I supposed to report a change if I'm not receiving any mail???)
In the event of failure to appear, a bench warrant will be issued and executed at the defendant's expense (Section 130)
Should you fail to appear, the hearing will proceed and evidence will be presented in your absence (Section 189)
Judge: [Name]
Certified for delivery: Signature and Seal
I should note that the statute of limitations expires on January 26, 2009—in nine months—and the first hearing hasn't even happened yet.
My questions: 1. How can I prepare two different explanations for failing to appear? Should I focus only on the specific reasons they highlighted and underlined? 2. Is there any reason to respond to this mail since it wasn't personally served to me? 3. Can I show up and request a continuance because I haven't had enough time to consult with an attorney? Since I work out in the field, I could honestly say I only received this "last night." 4. If I can't do option 3, is it game over? Will I just receive a judgment, and what happens then?
Does this new policy regarding the statute of limitations on offenses also apply to violations committed before the Traffic Safety Act went into effect?
urbanraven16 said:Either the cops will come pick you up, or the Court is just going to make a ruling without you even being in the room, basically assuming you’re pleading not guilty but just decided to play hard to get by waiting until tomorrow...
Since they already have the signed delivery receipt back in their hands, you can't just pretend the summons doesn't exist, and any Court is going to view that as a perfectly legal notification unless you can somehow prove otherwise...
The situation was actually resolved in the best way possible. After a phone call where the father offered a direct apology to the judge—who was quite understanding—she told me to reach out once I'm back from my trip so we could reschedule the hearing. 🙂
Everything should be back to normal now, shouldn't it? 😕
Hi everyone on this thread (I've read all the 😁)...
I'll try to lay out my problem and my uncertainty regarding it as briefly as possible.
Basically, I committed a minor traffic violation. I didn't sign anything at the scene. I think the fine is excessive (especially since I work out in the field, so my driver's license is EXTREMELY important to me), so I decided to see if I could let the whole thing expire through the statute of limitations. Within eight days, I filed an appeal (which I did sign) after getting some advice from a law student—nothing major—and now I'm just waiting for court summonses to arrive, which I fully intend to ignore... blah blah (we've all seen this here)
...and I've told everyone at home at least 50 times not to accept or sign for any mail addressed to me (especially those blue envelopes from the court)
In the meantime, my old man couldn't help himself from messing things up. He goes ahead and signs for it, and only then does the mail carrier hand over the blue envelope. I should note that the blue envelope explicitly instructs the carrier: "deliver the shipment to the recipient only upon signature on the return receipt, which the carrier must return to the sender." This essentially means it was improperly delivered. But regardless, it's inside the house...
My question is this:
Should I simply not show up to court when scheduled under the pretext that "I never received the notice," or should I send them a letter explaining that I am prevented from attending that day (which is the truth) and requesting they schedule a later hearing (which I will also ignore)?
Thanks.
P.S.
The paperwork doesn't specify where or how to contact the court if I can't attend the hearing, but it does state that for failing to receive this notice, the defendant can be fined up to $1667. It also mentions that in the event of non-appearance, a bench warrant may be issued at the defendant's expense.
ginger said:I've lost count of how many times I've rewatched Generation X just for this specific scene. It’s easily the best part of the movie, and honestly, he looks incredible (sorry, my bad 😍)
Come on, you can't be serious.🤣
Look, the guy has a torso like a toothpick. Just a head.
But he's charming, 😍 and he really knows how to pull off a brooding look.😠
