Out-ofState Speeding Ticket

Speed generally isn't a problem *at all* - it's not a matter of prioritizing, it's a matter of some things being problems and other things not being problems.

nate

Does that mean we shouldn't look at cures for the flu just because that more people die from cancer and heart disease?

Not at all. I just though that people who take a black and white position on penalty and repentance issues should have a bit of understanding that enforcement is often based upon a priority system that has less to do with protecting the public's safety than with the politics of collecting revenue via law enforcement. Speeders are the easy target so they get the enforcement priority. But I bet our honest law enforcement officers feel that they had a good day at the office when the get a truly stoned or drunk driver off the road.

Richard.

That is IMHO an absurd response...even from an attorney.

First, your clients 'ignorance' of the law is no excuse. [When did I say that?]

If he can not speak English, what is he doing driving in a country where traffic control signs are in English? [My reference to being a foreign language speaker was in the context of needing assistance negotiating the court system, not in reference to being able to read road signs; do I now detect that it is not just lawyers that draw your ire?]

Suppose the numbers on that speed limit sign were in a different language in Canada! Not!! [Well, actually the numbers in Canada with reference to speed limits are metric and Canadian vehicles apparently do not display mph as well as kmp. Most US cars still do even though Ronald Regan's team eliminated that mandate one week after he took office; not that that would be an excuse, mind you].

Richard.

That may well be true, however, you are missing the point. This is completely avoidable. If your client had been driving 65 (or even 69 in most places), the police would have not ticketed him. I'm amazed that even an attorney will go to such great lengths to justify illegal behavior. As I said before, if you don't like the law, lobby to get it changed. That is what motorcyclists in PA did recently. They got a long-standing helmet law repealed. I personally think helmets are a good idea and always wear mine and I didn't have any problem with the law that required them, however, I have a lot of respect for the people who took this issue on. Rather than just being outlaws, they fought for what they believed in and made a difference. But that takes a lot more work than just being an outlas...

Matt

Well, if your client had been driving 95 kph, he'd have had no trouble with speed in NYS! You do realize what 90+ mph is in kph, don't you? Hint, it is three digits.

Matt

All Canadian vehicle speedometers display both kilometers and miles, and all Canadians know that speed limits in US are posted in MPH. All Canadian can convert kilometers to miles in their heads in about 1 microsecond.

Your client knew he was breaking the law in a big way.

There is no such thing as "kmp". Kilometres per hour is abbreviated "KM/H". Canadian-market cars virtually all have both KM/H and MPH calibrations on the speedometers, as is the case in the US (though Canadian cars have the KM/H scale larger than the MPH scale, while in the US it's the other way round).

If he were driving 69 MPH in many places, he would have been the slowest driver on the road, and at serious risk of getting PITed. I've found myself doing 80 MPH in the slow lane before during off-peak hours, and being close to the slowest driver on the road. But of course the IIHS et. al. keep lobbying for keeping speed limits low...

nate

"KMP" was an unintended mistype. Most if not all US cars still display both English and metric speed information even though the regulatory requirement has been eliminated.

By the way, thanks for the tip on the GE Nighthawk bulbs; they work great in my Town & Country. How do they do that?

Richard.

I received my first ticket as well, 21 over the speed limit in a safe corrider (double fine!) in NJ. I was ready to just pay the bill online and everything but unfortunantely it required a court appearance. I had to wait in a loong line at traffic court to see the prosecutor who reduced my fine to 2 points and after all is said and done paid $200 out the door. Interestingly the prosecutor told everyone in line if they had a ticket for speeding 15 mph or under, they're willing to reduce the penalty down to zero points on your license if you agree to pay a $250 surcharge ON TOP of your fine!!

Sounds like the very definition of conflict of interest/corruption.

Bill Putney (To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my adddress with the letter 'x')

In fact, yes you implied such, though you chose to selectively quote in your reply.

Not at all, but from someone that spent more than 20 years in upstate New York right near the border I can assure you unless your client is still in diapers his English is well enough to read the signs and follow the court system here. I'll bet he could even understand them all the way down here in Virginia! And lawyers do not draw my ire, only lawyers that spend there time wasting the courts time while their clients cop a plea to a lesser charge. Like DWI's reduced to unsafe lane change and that kind of crap!

Yep, its all Ronnies fault (ROTFLMAO). Even a lawyer can come up with a better defense than that. Any Canadian I know (and I know plenty) are well aware of the conversion. Perhaps because it is required in their school systems. And all Canadian vehicles I am aware of show both Kph and Mph. Remember when you go before the judge with the 'Ronnie did it defense' that he was President of the U.S. and not Prime Minister of Canada.

And your response confirms my suspicions. Your client deserved the ticket he got and should pay the price.

Sorry to get off topic, but please do tell me about these. My caravan head-lights SUCK!

Corruption in New Jersey.....who you expect would ever believe that!? :0)

There's no magic bulb that makes bad headlamps (e.g. Chrysler products) into good ones, but the GE Night Hawk bulbs are the best 9004 and 9007 bulbs currently available. Other products in the Night Hawk line are good, but not necessarily the best available.

For general information on what this type of ultra high efficacy bulb does, click the first link on this page:

Speed enforcement activities are fund raising activities and safety is not usually the priority.

Richard.

Ya shoulda paid it. Wait until you see your insurance surcharge for the next three years for those two points.

Again - someone claiming that the insurance companies are automatically informed of moving violations by the cops. Even violations that happen out-of-state.

What gives? Does this really happen - or not?

I can only speak to the situation in New Jersey and my own problem around 14 years ago. The out-of-state ticket from Virginia was $85 + 2 points, but the insurance surcharges amounted to (if memory serves) around $2,000 over three years. So somebody told somebody. And no way out at that time by paying extra for the ticket, which was a Virginia ticket anyway. The two points were definitely on my license and the surcharge definitely began to appear on my next 6-month insurance renewal bill. Listed separately.

Now after posting my original response, I did some surfing and did find a comment that the Whitman administration in NJ had eliminated or was trying to eliminate some sort of auto insurance surcharge -- but it was not clear if this had really happened or was at the time merely a plan. It was also not clear exactly which auto insurance surcharge they were talking about. So my experience might or might not be valid today. I just don't know.

But the insurer was notified and I did pay a whopping surcharge.

A clear day in spring, a newish 1989 turbocharged Mazda 626 touring sedan, a divided highway, no cars in sight in either direction except for me and the patrol car once I got over the crest of the little hill. Me trying to see how fast the car would go. Him snagging me fair and square on radar but citing me for 69 in a 55-zone instead of 100+. My only ticket in my entire life, and one of the few times I was significantly speeding.