TOP 4 LIST OF DRIVING MYTHS EXPLORED
The amount of myths surrounding traffic tickets is astounding. We hear urban legends and antidotal stories and over time they become “fact”. Below I explore the most common questions, or Top 4 Myths, that I get from clients on a fairly regular basis. Please note that we don’t address every possible scenario, but these general principals apply to most situations.
MYTH #1:
I CAN’T GET A SPEEDING TICKET FOR GOING 1 MPH OVER THE LIMIT.
FALSE: Although it is not likely you will get a ticket for going one mile over the limit, you can. As recently as Easter weekend, a NC State Trooper stated that “During the (Easter) campaign, some motorists will undoubtedly get stopped for being just a few miles over the speed limit, and that could be as little as 1 mph over. Having said that, in my 20 plus years as an Attorney, I have never had to fight a traffic ticket for 1 MPH over the limit. But I can tell you that I have had hundreds of clients who got stopped for going 1 MPH over the limit and then had issues. Maybe the cop “smelled pot”. Maybe your registration was not updated or your tag was expired. Lastly, I have represented DUI clients that were pulled over for 1MPH over the limit. Of course the cop did not cite them for speeding, but the DUI charge was the result.
MYTH #2:
MY TRAFFIC TICKET WILL BE DISMISSED IF THE COP DOES NOT SHOW UP.
DEPENDS: In most counties, fighting a traffic ticket is a two-part process, sometimes three. Most people can’t afford to miss three days of work or school or life to go to court and that is what the “system” takes advantage of every time someone pays a ticket. The first court date is a Pre-Trial Hearing. That is when you can plead guilty (you may as well just mail your payment in and not miss work), or not guilty. If you please not guilty, you get the surprise for the Judge “Okay Mr. Smith, I have set it down for a trail next month at 11am”. 99% of people say “what the @#$%, I have to miss another day of work?” Then a lot of people plead guilty. Then when you come back on for the trial, if the Officer an not make it and he notified the Court, they will tell you to come back an third time when the Officer can make it. Most times, if the Officer does not show up for the second trial date, the Judge will dismiss the case. Of course, you have missed 3 days of work/school. Thus, the ticket is usually dismissed if the Officer does not show up on the second trial date.
MYTH #3:
I CAN’T GET A SPEEDING TICKET IF I AM JUST DRIVING THE SAME SPEED AS TRAFFIC?
FALSE: It does not matter if EVERYONE is going 80 in a 55 and you are going 70, you are still speeding above the posted limit. It is not a defense in court that you were “keeping up with traffic”. Of course you know it is actually more dangerous to go 25 MPH than everyone around you, but that is no excuse in court. Anyone reading this in Florida knows, this is the norm on I-95 and it’s crazy.
MYTH #4:
IF I GET A TICKET OUT OF STATE ON VACATION, IT WON’T AFFECT MY FLORIDA DRIVERS LICENSE.
FALSE: Most states are part of an Interstate Driver’s License Compact (DLC). Under the IDLC participating states forward reported traffic violations to the ticket recipient’s home state. A handful of states do not participate in the DLC and therefore don’t receive notice of out-of-state violations. However, most of the States you drive through on your summer vacation is part of it. Thus, don’t speed just because you are in some small town in another State and figure it does not matter. It does and it will most likely affect your driving record.
For your FREE consultation, please call or email Jason Diamond, Esq. at (561) 752-9288| [email protected]