Fighting a speeding ticket is an option to avoid increased rates, insurance premiums, and license restrictions. It can be done by appealing to the officer, applying for judicial leniency, or fighting the ticket in court with or without an attorney. Special waiver procedures may also be available.
Getting pulled over and cited for speeding can be a jarring experience, but usually a speeding ticket isn’t final. While paying the ticket, moving on, and forgetting about the accident that ever happened is almost always an option, fighting the ticket is usually a viable choice as well. The process required to fight a speeding ticket varies slightly by jurisdiction. In some places, alleged offenders can ask the subpoena directly to have the charges dropped, or they can apply for judicial leniency. Other times, one must appear before a designated traffic tribunal to fight a speeding ticket.
Speeding tickets can be costly not only in terms of the short-term fines they impose, but often also in terms of increased rates and insurance premiums. In some jurisdictions, speeding tickets also result in “points” against the cited driver’s license, which can lead to higher registration fees and, in some cases, license restrictions or suspensions. Fighting a speeding ticket so that it is removed from your record is one way to avoid these and other negative alternatives.
The first and usually easiest way to fight a speeding ticket is at the scene of the alleged crime: Talk to the officer who issued the ticket and ask for a reduction in charges, an alternative punishment, or just a warning. Different officers will react differently and your tone and attitude are very important. For an officer to abandon or reduce the ticket, he usually has to be convinced that he respects police authority, is sincerely sorry, and does not deserve the ticket.
However, appealing to the sympathy of officers is not a statistically effective way to combat a speeding ticket. If a ticket nonetheless follows, fighting the ticket is simply following a jurisdiction’s appeals and review process. Some jurisdictions have a judicial review option where speeding offenders can apply for a judge to overturn or void speeding tickets. This is usually done by mail: offenders write to the presiding traffic judge of the jurisdiction where the ticket was issued, and explain why the ticket should be abandoned. Most of the time, these letters can be drafted by the offender independently, without the help of a traffic lawyer or traffic lawyer.
If this is your first ticket, or if you haven’t had a ticket for a number of years, your jurisdiction may have special waiver procedures for which you may qualify. Most of these programs are “first-time offender” or “rare offender” leniency programs that effectively suspend speeding tickets for a period of time, often six months or a year. If no new tickets are received in that window, the infraction is cancelled. Admission to these programs is usually at the discretion of a judge and is never automatic.
Where no leniency programs exist, or if your judge has withheld your admission, you can usually still fight a speeding ticket in court. Fighting a speeding ticket in court usually means presenting your side of the story in a trial setting and asking for the ticket to be reduced or waived entirely. The summons officer will usually participate in this process and will also have the opportunity to present his or her side of the story. Any arguments regarding the officer’s judgment or bias, the calibration of the officer’s radar equipment, or any error in the citation process should be considered at the hearing.
Recipients of a speeding ticket can and often do represent themselves in court, but many also choose to retain the services of an attorney or speeding ticket attorney. This type of attorney is a traffic attorney who specializes in representing speeding ticket recipients. The attorney is usually well versed in the ways speeding tickets can be overturned and often has the resources to do things like check officer citation histories and equipment calibration records – things people may find difficult to do alone.
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