Man, this come at the perfect time. I just got a letter from my attorney that the prosecutor wants $298 to dimiss the ticket or I can go to court to fight it. My friend and I got ticketed for 98 in a 55. My friend was 1/4 mile ahead of me when I noticed the cop. He was in a Tahoe pacing (too short of a distance to accurately pace) coming up behind me with lights on. My friend pulled over to wait for me and the officer pulled up behind me and ticketed us both for exactly the same speed. I think I'm/ we are going to try and fight it.

 

I got one a few weeks ago 93 -65 and well I got a lawyer!! And the way he talks is he can get me in driving school and the speed reduced to 9 over!! But ill find out what happens!! Ill keep you posted!

 

Let me preface this post with the fact that I'm a law student in VA. and can't technically give out any legal advice, that being said:

DO NOT PLEAD GUILTY!!!!! I'm not 100% sure what the laws are in CA, but I know that in VA, if you plead guilty, you give up some of your constitutional rights while being prosecuted. You want to plead no contest. This way you still keep you rights in tact, but basically ask for the court to show you some mercy.

If you want to fight it, +1 +1 on the asking about the cops speedometer records if you do want to fight it. Also, when the cop is before the judge and is telling the judge why the both of you are there, make sure that he says what the speed limit was when he pulled you. If he only mentioned what speed you were going, and not the posted speed, he failed to inform the court of what you did wrong, and you can ask for the case to be dismissed. Some judges don't look to favorably on you asking for things like that w/o having a lawyer present though. So if yo can find a lawyer for less than $400, get one, if not, sounds like just taking the ticket and pleading "no contest" would be the more cost effective approach. Also, in VA, in some cases they will allow you to pre pay and not go to court, basically pleading no contest as a result. By doing this, you can avoid paying court costs.

hope it goes well for you man.

 

It also helps if you find the right lawyer. The only time I ever needed a Lawyer, the ticket was in Little Rock and my Dad knew the Sherwood Traffic Court Judge. Gave him a call and he refered us to his Father who had been a traffic court judge years ago and practicing law for over 30 years, and he took my case for $300. When I went into court the Little Rock judge knew my lawyer on a first name basis and was making small talk regarding his previous health problems and how his family was. Needless to say, when I stood before the Judge being represented by one of his personal friends, I was no longer just some punk kid trying to talk my way out of a traffic ticket. Still got a heafty fine but no Driving School and nothing on my record.

 

fight it dont give the bastards the satisfaction what do u have to loose ![:@]

 

never stop for the police lol

 

I am going to fight mine. He didn't have enough distance to pace me accurately. Only 7/10ths of a mile. His closing speed was very fast and Ihad already slowed down to make a sharpleft turn. I believe that he put down 98mph so there would be the maximum fine without him having to do extra paperwork for taking us to jail. I bet that he has written a lot of tickets for 98mph especially for motorcycles and giving 2 tickets to 2 bikes at the same time for the same exact speed and for the distance we were apart will be difficult for the jury to believe. If I left from a stand still, I can accelerate much quicker and reach the speed limit on a motorcycle than can a Police Suburban (which is fully loaded with equipment). He would have to greatly exceed his speed to catch up to me.

If you decide to fight it, get a jury trial. Question the officer on the lighting condition/ visibility available and how he was able to accurately pace you at that time of night. Also from where to where did he pace you. Ask him as many questions as you can. His speedometer has some innacuracy as the speed of his vehicle increases due to the tire growth and if he hasn't had his speedo calibrated in a while. Thereis error from his tire wear also. I know that my speedo went way off when my tire was worn. Ask for his calibration certificate.

Just my 2 cents.