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[DJ Gecko]

QUOTE (dmack_901 @ Sep 29 2003, 10:12 PM)

QUOTE (kkattfish @ Sep 29 2003, 09:20 PM) not if he got you clocked.  you could always plead not guilty, get a appearance date, and if the cop doesn't show it's dropped.  it's also good to call the courthouse and postpone your court appearance once or twice, may confuse the cop.  has worked before. I does work. My dad has done that twice and the cops usually just don't feel like showing up.

This definitely works in NY.  I once got a ticket for 65 in a 55.  I kept pushing my court date off for a year and a half so that I wouldn't have to enter a plea.  After that I had to attend a hearing before the judge so that he could admonish me for being such a sneaky bastard and to force my plea... not-guilty.     He also ordered that I pay a rather large fine up front (essentially my bail) to be returned or amended upon judgement.  By the time my final court date rolled around, we were informed by the court clerk that nobody could locate the trooper so he must have been transferred / fired / quit / whatever.  The judge was obviously annoyed but there was nothing he could do.  With no prosecution present, there was no case.  Ticket dismissed, money returned.
After that much time, it's unlikely that the trooper will show.  Push it off as long as you can get away with.

Your best defense of course is to not get ticketed in the first place.  Keep your eyes open, don't be stupid, and be polite and helpful to the cop if you do get pulled over.  I've only been pulled over twice (ticketed once) and fled / escaped twice in 15 years of driving.  That one time I got ticketed, it was a pissed off cop and no amount of smooth-talking would work on him.  I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[Gonefission]

I knew my no ticket streak wouldn't last forever, I got my first ticket today.  I was clocked doing 90 in a 70, thats a pretty hefty fine.  $150 to be exact.  I think I'll just pay it less hassle that way.  You can plead guilty or no contest.  There isn't a difference is there?

[DJ Gecko]

QUOTE (Gonefission @ Oct 6 2003, 05:09 PM)

I knew my no ticket streak wouldn't last forever, I got my first ticket today.  I was clocked doing 90 in a 70, thats a pretty hefty fine.  $150 to be exact.  I think I'll just pay it less hassle that way.  You can plead guilty or no contest.  There isn't a difference is there?

Guilty means you admit it.  No contest says that you don't admit to any wrongdoing but that you cannot provide an effective defense for yourself so you throw yourself at the mercy of the court and hope for leniency.  Essentially they mean the same thing in traffic court though because the whole point is to make money from fines, not to let peeps off because they feel like being nice that day.  There is no justice in traffic court, so you have to massage the system to work for you.