Speeding ticket question

[Tyrath]

So I got pulled over for the first time ever. Was doing 65 in a 45 work zone, stupid I know. I don't have any problems paying the ticket for the speeding but I had a problem with what happened when the cop asked me for registration.

This guy was literally stepping into traffic and pointing at cars to have them pull over. He had 3 including me when he pulled me over. So he asks me for license and registration. I give him my license and reach into my glovebox to get registration. My cars new so I literally hadn't touched any of that stuff since I got it. So i had to shuffle through the stuff to get it because it had gotten stuck behind things. Except the cop got impatient 15 seconds in, asked me the the year of my car and stormed off to talk to the other 2 people he pulled over while saying something about "not having time for this."

So he comes back and gives me a $35 fine for not having my registration even though I had it out within seconds of him leaving. I showed it to him and he's like too late "you need to have that stuff ready, man." Now I didn't know there was a fine for taking 30 seconds to pull out my registration. I didn't get the usual 5 mins of waiting for him to come over because he pulled over 3 people at once and came to me right away.

So i was wondering if I have any chance of getting the registration fine removed since I DID have mine, he was just too impatient to wait for it. I don't suppose this could get the whole thing removed but I'm fine paying for what I did do wrong. Or do I have nothing and should suck it up and pay the full fine?


PS. I can afford to take time off to go to the hearing on any day. I'll get paid doing it so I don't need any of the "it's only 35 bucks" kind of advice. I can afford to take it to court if I have a legitimate issue here.

[Qalbert]

A BLOO BLOO BLOO BLOO

[Tyche]

Should just be able to get it tossed without going to court. Just go to where you'd typically pay fines. I don't think it's much of an issue, at least it isn't around here. Same goes with insurance, people sometimes have old cards they forgot to replace. As far as the fine, should be able to get it deferred if you want to save some money and points. Have to go to traffic school though. That's also a question for the people who collect the fines payable outside of court. Just ask about a deferral.

[Pringles]

I once got pulled over for driving on a rejection sticker, and I was having a hard time finding my registration so the officer wrote me a ticket for it. He had told me if I find the registration, just bring it to court with me and it would be dropped and I would just have to pay the fine for the driving on a rejection. I found it a minute after he drove off, the registration stuck to the inside top of my glove box for some reason. I did what he said and brought it to court with me and the judge didn't make me pay for the registration ticket, as the DMV database showed I was registered at the time. This was in Virginia so I'm not sure where it is other places. Hope that helps

[Soa]

It depends on the state honestly. I know in Delaware you're pretty much fucked no matter what you try to do, but in Pennsylvania you could probably get it taken off.

[dejet]

happened to me once(just bought the car so I had nothing set up yet)

anyways I got a fee for not having my registration/inspection(both where good) I showed it to the judge and he dropped everything. He also seemed fairly pissed at the cop who got nothing else on me. I explained to the cop that I just needed a few seconds to pull it out but the cop gave me no time.

So ya lol was funny seeing him give the cop a glare when I told my story. to this day no tickets still! lol

[Xerlic]

I once got pulled over for making an illegal left. Same as other people posting in this thread, the cop asked me for my registration and gave me 4.5 seconds to dig it out before giving me a ticket for being unable to produce it. By the time I found it, he told me it was too late. I called the courthouse the next day and told me to just bring the registration to court since I was already planning on pleading not guilty to the illegal left. When I went to court, I showed the cop my registration and they dismissed that ticket and I just had to deal with the one for the illegal left.

[Suvhater]

Maybe you could bring this behavior to the attention of administration for the agency this guy works for.

[Acevalefor]

I once got pulled over for making an illegal left. Same as other people posting in this thread, the cop asked me for my registration and gave me 4.5 seconds to dig it out before giving me a ticket for being unable to produce it. By the time I found it, he told me it was too late. I called the courthouse the next day and told me to just bring the registration to court since I was already planning on pleading not guilty to the illegal left. When I went to court, I showed the cop my registration and they dismissed that ticket and I just had to deal with the one for the illegal left.

That sounds exactly like my story except the cop showed up late for the court date and the judge was already signing my stuff to take to the court clerk to drop everything. I had video from a local sport's equipment shop that showed me doing nothing wrong. I got pulled over for driving a shitty car essentially.
When the officer did show up, the judge gave him a 5 minute lecture about profiling older cars and young drivers. Then he proceeded to read the traffic laws regarding use of the center turn lanes in a very condescending tone to the officer. It was great to see him get knocked down a few rungs on his ego ladder.

Each state is going to be different, but generally you can just provide proof of registration and it will be dropped. In Oregon, you can just call the local clerk and ask them to look up the vehicle registration. No cost to you except a little bit of time on the phone.

[Lucavi]

Can probably get off of this one, if that's what he's trying to have stuck to you. Go to court if it means that much to you, and plead your case.

[Manako]

Probably depends on state, I'm the type of person who would go in and contest it because that is just a jerk move. I've definitely had problems scrambling for my registration the few times I've been pulled over. In my area they set up police blocks to check for expired registration and inspection tags, real pain in the butt.

[jmc]

So I got pulled over for the first time ever. Was doing 65 in a 45 work zone, stupid I know. I don't have any problems paying the ticket for the speeding but I had a problem with what happened when the cop asked me for registration.

This guy was literally stepping into traffic and pointing at cars to have them pull over. He had 3 including me when he pulled me over. So he asks me for license and registration. I give him my license and reach into my glovebox to get registration. My cars new so I literally hadn't touched any of that stuff since I got it. So i had to shuffle through the stuff to get it because it had gotten stuck behind things. Except the cop got impatient 15 seconds in, asked me the the year of my car and stormed off to talk to the other 2 people he pulled over while saying something about "not having time for this."

So he comes back and gives me a $35 fine for not having my registration even though I had it out within seconds of him leaving. I showed it to him and he's like too late "you need to have that stuff ready, man." Now I didn't know there was a fine for taking 30 seconds to pull out my registration. I didn't get the usual 5 mins of waiting for him to come over because he pulled over 3 people at once and came to me right away.

So i was wondering if I have any chance of getting the registration fine removed since I DID have mine, he was just too impatient to wait for it. I don't suppose this could get the whole thing removed but I'm fine paying for what I did do wrong. Or do I have nothing and should suck it up and pay the full fine?


PS. I can afford to take time off to go to the hearing on any day. I'll get paid doing it so I don't need any of the "it's only 35 bucks" kind of advice. I can afford to take it to court if I have a legitimate issue here.

Challenge the citation, and you should be able to get the registration ticket removed easily. Just say exactly what you said here, its a new car so it was mixed in with dealership paperwork etc...etc...

[Tyrath]

Thanks for the response guys. I'm gonna see if its even worth doing it because apparently theres a $25 court fee and I'm not sure how I can get it removed without going to the court. I'm slightly concerned about something else I just noticed on the ticket. The cop said I was apparently doing more than what he put in for the violation. He listed the violation as 65. But he wrote down in the description of offense I was doing 70. This makes me wonder if going to the court can get me screwed over and have to pay a higher amount based on the description or if what it says in the civil violation section is the final word?

[Tyche]

Not every violation requires a court appearance. Some can just be paid, usually at the courthouse. The phone number or address should be on the ticket. Go there or call and ask about dropping the registration violation and/or diversion.

[jmc]

Thanks for the response guys. I'm gonna see if its even worth doing it because apparently theres a $25 court fee and I'm not sure how I can get it removed without going to the court. I'm slightly concerned about something else I just noticed on the ticket. The cop said I was apparently doing more than what he put in for the violation. He listed the violation as 65. But he wrote down in the description of offense I was doing 70. This makes me wonder if going to the court can get me screwed over and have to pay a higher amount based on the description or if what it says in the civil violation section is the final word?

Speed on the ticket is the speed the officer will claim you were doing in court.

If the officer were to say you were doing 70 MPH, and "forgot" he put 65 on the citation it could get thrown out if you make the right arguement.

[Raldo]

Every state should just make registration stickers that you stick in the corner of your windshield, like Texas. Get pulled over, and all you need is your license and insurance. I think some states do them as stickers on the license plate.

[Acevalefor]

Every state should just make registration stickers that you stick in the corner of your windshield, like Texas. Get pulled over, and all you need is your license and insurance. I think some states do them as stickers on the license plate.

That is correct. Except the officer can still make you prove that the vehicle registration matches your registered address on your license and all that jazz. There is still a paper trail.

[Melena]

Never ran into a cop giving that short amount of time to produce registration, but then again I keep my registration card in the same envelope as my insurance so I don't have to hunt for it. Typically those you can get waived though at court. I had an incident where I was involved in a car accident and my front end was crunched enough to where I couldn't even open up my glove box to get my insurance and registration out. Had to show up at court with the documentation and got it dropped for like 10 bucks. This is california though so your mileage may vary.

[Manako]

Every state should just make registration stickers that you stick in the corner of your windshield, like Texas. Get pulled over, and all you need is your license and insurance. I think some states do them as stickers on the license plate.

We have this in NY state (hence why they are able to ticket us for out of date so easily) but if you get pulled over for broken light or speeding they still ask for the one in the glovebox. I assume this is so they can file their report easier.

[seppuku-gb]

First off, it's HIGHLY unlikely that you will be fined for the registration if you can prove that you were registered the day you were pulled over.

DON'T JUST PAY THE FINE! Laws vary based on your state, but you're much better off hiring a traffic lawyer for about $200-300 to have them drop your ticket. 20 over in many states is reckless driving, and just about every state it is 6 points on your driving record. The hike in your insurance when you renew it will far exceed the price you will pay for lawyer + fees. If your driving record is clean, a lawyer can get that ticket dropped to a simple moving violation (or get it dropped completely if the judge is empathetic) which will save you tons of money.

Proof~ in WA state 20 over is reckless driving and they can impound your car and revoke your license as a maximum punishment (also possible jail time). NY state the ticket price is up to around $300 and NY state penailzes you with a $100/year fee which goes up if you get more tickets. So just using NY as an example, you will fork over $600 alone over 3 years not taking into account insurance (insurance records follow you for 3 years also, generally). I would personally hire a lawyer.