Traffic violation procedures

If you haven't been cited before, you might be able to ask them to just give you a warning instead—you know, the kind that doesn't actually hit your wallet...

But honestly, I think your mindset is more dangerous than $167 which is just going to drain your bank account... and since the laws here are pretty strict, and considering you exceeded the limit by quite a bit—something that could have easily been missed—I'd say the judge gave you the absolute lightest sentence possible.

Everyone loves to talk about how much they want a rule of law to work, right up until the moment it actually applies to them...

Kyle Nelson2 said:Everyone loves to preach about the rule of law, right up until the moment it’s actually used to hold them accountable...

Well put.

So, what now? I’ve always driven like this, and after five years, they finally caught me. Considering I clock about 40,000 miles a year, it’s not exactly a huge deal...
On Saturday, I headed toward Munich. It took me 12 hours instead of the usual 4.5 because of some light snow and way too many skiers out there. Yesterday was another 12-hour haul back, though there wasn't much stopping—just heavy snow through Austria and Canada and people driving like they're walking on eggshells.

What happens if I just don't say who was behind the wheel? Or if I don't pay the fine or file an appeal? Will I just get a summons for court?

Anyway, thanks Xena2000. You know why.

fadedtrucker19 said:Honestly, whenever I see some reckless idiot speeding through—especially if they blow right through a red light—I just wish a driver would run over their kids. Just so they can actually feel what that's like.

And when someone stares at your wife, you want their mother violated?

Michael Rodriguez40 said:So what's the deal—I always drive like this, and after five years, they finally caught me. Given I clock about 40,000 miles a year, it's really not a huge biggie.
On Saturday, I headed toward Munich and it took me 12 hours—usually it’s just a quick 4.5 hour trip—but there was snow and way too many skiers on the road. Yesterday, the drive back also took 12 hours, though there wasn't much stopping, just tons of snow in Austria and Canada and people driving like they're walking on eggshells.

What happens if I don't say who was driving, or if I just don't pay the fine or file an appeal? Will I eventually get a summons to court?

I honestly don't get why nobody wants to give you a straight answer here? 😁

In the US legal system, a photo isn't considered proof of who was actually behind the wheel. The photo just proves the vehicle committed the violation.

So, since multiple people use that car—your wife, brother, dad, etc.—you can just write in and say you aren't entirely sure who was operating the vehicle at that exact moment... the keys just sit in the hallway and whoever needs the car grabs them. Who actually remembers down to the minute who used which car and when?

Superskeptik said:I don't usually speed, but I actually got pulled over recently on a straight stretch of Bologna Avenue. I was doing 52 miles/h when the limit is 37 miles/h.

Generally speaking, I take full responsibility if I commit a violation, provided the law governing that infraction makes any logical sense.

In this specific instance, however, I have no intention of paying the fine. I find a 40 mph limit on a divided highway without any pedestrian crossings or intersections to be utterly nonsensical. If the road is completely empty, you could easily cruise at 70 without issue, and even when traffic is heavy, everyone is naturally moving around 50 miles/h anyway.

It is my firm belief that our justice system and legal framework would be significantly more effective if they included a clause stating that if an incident occurs due to exceeding the recommended speed then:

- if someone is physically injured - 5 years in prison.
- if someone loses their life - 20 years in prison.
- if someone loses their life and the culprit flees the scene - life imprisonment. - - if there is only property damage - full restitution. If you can't pay - seizure of assets.

The only people who would end up broke because of this are the cops losing their "coffee money."😁

It doesn't matter how stupid the limit is; what matters is that you chose to ignore it just because you're as thick-headed as the person who started this thread. If they had set the sign at 55, you would've been doing 65 or 70 and whining about how the limit was ridiculous all over again.

As long as "know-it-alls" like you exist, we're going to keep having far too many accidents on American roads.

If you mess up or just forget and end up speeding, just pay the ticket and shut up about it.

Michael Rodriguez40 said:What can I say? This is just how I drive, and after five years on the road, they finally managed to catch me. Honestly, considering I put down about 40,000 miles a year, it’s just part of the territory.
Last Saturday, I headed out toward Munich. It took me twelve hours instead of the usual four and a half because of some light snow and a massive amount of skiers on the road. Yesterday, the trip back was also twelve hours; there wasn't as much stop-and-go traffic, but there was heavy snow through Austria and Canada, and plenty of drivers out there driving like they're terrified of breaking an egg.

If I just don't tell them who was behind the wheel, or if I refuse to pay the fine or file an appeal, will I end up getting a summons to appear in court?

Anyway, thanks Xena2000. You know what I mean.

Honestly, you might be better off handing in your license and buying a bicycle. Or, you could just pick up a racing game and keep "driving" from the comfort of your own room.

Watch out—he’s been driving for five years and now he thinks he’s some kind of expert.

By that same flawed logic, I should be able to just wander down the street firing off rounds from a handgun, or whatever else, totally unbothered, provided I don't actually end up killing someone or leaving them disabled
drunk, high... it doesn't even matter
why shouldn't I be allowed to decide for myself that some specific regulation or law is just plain stupid and doesn't apply to me??
besides, banks can basically rob whoever they want, as long as they don't get caught
you can always just claim you were kidding
if the cops show up, screw them, they're actually the ones violating your human rights...
because a fundamental human right is being able to do whatever we feel like doing, without having to worry about anyone else
honestly, those other people are also violating our human rights
and screw them too, we should probably send the police after them instead

hollowtrucker77, just some cop sucking up... where'd your youth go? 😁 😁 😁

Look, buddy, you can take the cops and the legal system out of this conversation if you want...
but you really ought to start getting nervous, and I mean seriously terrified.
🙂
I’ve never been one for authority or the heavy hand of the law, honestly—I can't stand the thought of being micromanaged by some guy in a uniform—but when I see how fast things go south the second a mob realizes they aren't being watched, I find myself actually missing those old-school beat cops and the weight of their badge.
How many times have you ranted about them, dustyscout53?

Look, hollowtrucker77, I’m not out here driving like a maniac—I’m really not that kind of person. But when they take my spot and pull me over in my 30-year-old Buba just for speeding—which happened a few years back—well, God will judge them for that fine.

As for those old-timers, I can only feel sorry for them, even if I did get chewed out by them a couple of times. I deserved it, I guess.

Man, I’m right there with you on that point, absolutely.
But honestly, after dealing with enough close calls on winding backroads and at red lights to last a lifetime, I just can't bring myself to feel bad for some kid flying through town at 75 mph when he hasn't even grown a decent beard yet.
I honestly don't know if my first instinct when I see someone like that is to reach for a heavy blunt object or something with much more firepower.
Look, I was young once too—thank God—and yeah, I used to tear it up, but I never did it without using my brain or worrying about flattening someone else in the process, and that’s saying something considering I’ve driven everything from beaters to custom-built monsters.
The way things work today feels like nothing more than one-sided anarchy: some idiot can run me over, but I’m legally barred from "returning the favor."
😁
You know how it goes; back in the day, people sometimes got a pass just because they came from a certain family or had the right connections, and once you were caught, you didn't really have much ground to stand on.
It’s not that I’m nostalgic for the old days, but it really gets under my skin when thugs try to play the system by relying on outdated laws or the sheer incompetence of the courts—even if, technically, that’s their legal right.
We all love to talk big until we find ourselves on the receiving end of a beating, or when someone else ends up making a massive mistake that lands us in trouble.
That’s when the tolerance level drops through the floor, and suddenly everyone starts crying out for vengeance, the courts, justice, or God...

walter said:But when they take away one spot and pull me over in my old Buffalo for speeding—which happened a few years back—then God will settle the score.

A few years ago, I ended up losing my plates because my registration expired by twenty days. Honestly, it was a simple matter of needing to fix some issues with the car and just not having the cash for both the repairs and the registration at once. I was waiting for my paycheck to clear so I could write the checks and get to the DMV. The officer—been on the force about twenty years, riding a motorcycle—basically told me to chill out when I tried to plead my case 😁 ...he just said, "Ma'am, get a grip!" Whatever. He stripped my plates without much discussion, and I had the registration sorted and the plates back the very next day.
However, once the tickets started rolling in... honestly, it would have been cheaper if I’d actually killed someone. They hit me with everything under the sun... road safety laws, insurance regulations, misdemeanor codes, you name it... basically, the whole ordeal cost me around $3000.

Appealing an appeal... or rather, filing an objection to the objection... I didn't pay a dime. My objection followed my lawyer friend's advice—claiming I wasn't even there, they didn't take my plates, and I had nothing to do with it...😬
I found the whole thing hilarious while I was writing it out; I can't even describe it. But in the end, it turned out the lawyer was right... these municipal court judges don't bother reading who is who or why they are there... eventually, I walked away with $133 which mostly covered court costs and fees... plus a warning from the court.
Which is fine... I didn't feel guilty. The car was safe, and I was only talking about a day or two waiting for the money to come in... there's justice 😉

Well, if you don't feel like you're at fault, then I guess everything is just fine, isn't it?
🙂
I mean, would she probably show some sympathy for someone who got run over by a guy driving an uninsured, unregistered junker? For all his endless complaints about delays, stalling, missed hearings, and dragging things out... until the whole thing hits the statute of limitations!
Or maybe back then, we’d all be sitting around reading articles about how inefficient our court systems are, the total lack of the rule of law, or just general institutional incompetence... ??
😉

That’s why there’s a fund set up to pay out damages; they just go after the person who didn't have auto insurance to recoup the money.

hollowtrucker77 said:Well, if you don't feel guilty, then I guess everything is just fine.
🙂
😉

Look, I genuinely didn't feel guilty. In those twenty days alone, I drove that car three times. Twice was just shuttling it back and forth from the mechanic. The third time? I was just heading to a grocery store out near 1.9 miles because I had to move some chairs. Then, boom—out of nowhere, this twenty-year veteran cop in a leather jacket pops out from around a corner, acting all high and mighty about handing me a ticket for $3.00. Give me a break... I’ve never even had a speeding ticket in my life. I drive like a sane person, strictly following every limit, sticking to every rule, headlights on, zero accidents—and I’ve been driving since I was 18, which means two full decades behind the wheel. To make matters worse, I was already planning to go get the car inspected the next day because I needed my paycheck to clear. That one moment almost cost me nearly two paychecks. First, they went after my husband since he’s the owner, then they came for me as the driver. Thank God I had a sharp lawyer on my side; otherwise, I would've lost money I had no business paying in the first place.
The judge asked if I felt guilty. I told her—I only feel guilty that they caught me. Around here, half the cars on the road are running on fake plates; there's no way they'd pass an inspection even with five seatbelts, yet they choose to nail me 😁
I still think the whole thing was unfair... and honestly, I believe God was on my side 😬

nimblemarlin80
so, are you actually suggesting we should factor in everything someone did in the past, or is your take that an individual should just be left to decide their own penance for every single thing they do?
🙂
I mean, do you honestly believe that God works through lawyers and judges?

What kind of sci-fi justice movie have you been watching? 🙄 Every court recognizes mitigating circumstances; they weigh them before handing down a sentence.
You’re suggesting we should slash the penalty for a first-time offender just as heavily as someone who treats breaking the law like a daily routine? That’s nonsensical. Those distinctions are fundamental to the legal process.

God works through many channels, and that includes the judiciary. At the end of the day, judges are His creations. 😬

Goodwill said:I don't get why nobody wants to just tell you one simple fact? 😁

In an American courtroom, a photo isn't considered definitive proof of who was behind the wheel. It’s basically just used as evidence that the vehicle committed the violation.

So, look, since multiple people use that car—your wife, your brother, your dad, whatever—you’re saying you aren't even sure who was driving at that specific time... I mean, the keys are just sitting in the hallway and whoever needs the car grabs them. Who actually tracks down the exact minute someone uses a vehicle? Not happening.

The car is always registered to one person, so that's the person who gets hit with the ticket... it's the same deal as if you get a notice for unpaid electricity because the apartment is in your name, even if there are five other roommates living in there.

The whole situation only changes if one of those people or roommates actually submits a signed, written statement admitting they were the ones driving at that moment...

There’s also this thing called a formal warning or a reprimand... I remember reading about this in the papers a few years back—apparently, some high-ranking judge over in San Francisco racked up about fifty different traffic violations, things like speeding and whatnot, and every single time, the local Police Department just slapped him with a slap on the wrist via a warning. Then you have the Bernie Sanders situation in Washington, D.C., which was actually a relatively positive example of accountability. But honestly, as long as these corrupt types are running the show, we need to make sure there are actual consequences. So, my advice? File that appeal while you still have the chance!