Mark in Baltimore

I have taken this approach countless times over the past twenty or so years but it requires that you have an absolutely clean driving record, accomplished by having previously gone to your state's MVA and expunging your record. Knock on wood, I have either been let go with a warning after the officer saw that I had zero infractions or had the judge give me probation before judgment. Every ticket that I have gone to court to fight has been dropped, with almost all of them PBJ. Only one, in Virginia near North Carolina, was I required to take a class.

mr_bock

With a reckless driving charge, you can not 'just' pay a fine.... must go to court, may lose license!!! I got out of one of these three years ago.... Here is a highly reccomended lawyer... Warren McLain, Fairfax...(703) 691-0444 Not cheap, but the best!!!!

Best of Luck to you!!!!!!

Marv

At a speed that I can control my car.

Rick Lee

I have plenty of experience in Fairfax Co. traffic court, but not with a reckless charge. Over 90 mph and you could be looking at jail time and, even if not, this is every bit as serious as a DUI in VA. You need a lawyer.

The way it works in Fairfax Co. is that the prosecutor will rarely talk with unrepresented defendants on reckless or DUI charges. If they know you have paid into their good old boy racket and hired a lawyer, they will bargain with your lawyer and probably get the charges knocked down. If you show up with no lawyer, the judge will probably tell you how much trouble you're facing and tell you to come back with a lawyer. You can find a lawyer in the hallway outside who may know the prosecutor well. Or you can really do your homework and hire one who might be able to get a deal before the court date. Either way, this is going to cost you. If you want to drive like that in VA, get a radar detector. The fine for that is only $90, which is cheaper than almost any speeding ticket. I never leave home without one.

Bill (NC)

In our family there have been four speeding tickets and one DUI (not really, .02 but under 18 = DUI) and with the help of various lawyers not one guilty verdict. Still cheaper than having those points accumulate. Leave it to the good ole boys.

Jeff96-993

Boy, I sure do hate the scams, and speeding tickets are a big one. Legitimate ones I'm OK with, the "laying in wait regardless of the conditions/traffic" ones are tough to consider as anything other than revenue enhancement.

I got my first one in my 993 after 8 years of ownership... doing 71 in a 55 with absolutely NO (ie zero) traffic going in my direction, on a divided highway with a barrier between the opposing traffic lanes. I wasn't happy...

Mark in Baltimore

When I go to VIR and have to spend most of my time in VA, I throw my V1 on the dash and toss a bunch of maps and other crap on there, all the while hiding the V1 under the detritus. When the detector goes off with a strong signal, I immediately shut the detector off, lest I get hit by the VG2 detector detector.

RoadWarrior19

V1 is supposed to be invisible to the VG2. Is the VG2 improved so that is no longer true?

ARM993

Good suggestion. While I'd like to hope it will just get lost and disappear, it could very well show up on a computer that I never took care of it. Since I plan on traveling through this area again I'd hate to deal with that hassle. Thanks.

tomcat

alpinadvl,

It was good meeting you today.

RE: Speeding ticket
Get in touch with people that know VA. 20 over in VA is a little more serious that in most states. Don't mean to scare you, but we kinda discussed it today. Don't know if this is proper 'List behavior, but check out http://www.pcapotomac.org/cgi-bin/ul...;f=17;t=000014
Third from bottom may be most relevant. This thread is dated, so maybe things have changed. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. But I think good preparation may mitigate this situation. Also, a local (where you got the ticket), $$$ lawyer may be required. Mr. Bock is from the great commonwealth of VA and a nice guy. (edit: I don't think he's a lawyer, but I know he recommended one earlier in the thread.)

(added: Oh, one last thing. I can't remember where I read it, but I read the "Reckless Driving", misdemeanor charge is given at the discretion of the officer. The underlying theme was they like to give them out in situations with uppity speeders. In most cases, I hear they only give out the "traffic charge." Check to see what you got.)

bpoteat

Here is a very good related site someone recently posted on the caymanclub's forum in a very similar discussion. Even if you don't use all of the info provided, it is a very informative article:

http://www.worldlawdirect.com/articl...ng_ticket.html

g_murray

Oh frig!
You seem to be getting some good (overall) advice ...from what I've read.
Good luck!

Gerry

Dick Beers

Suggest you contact the National Motorist Association in Madison, WI. They've got excellent info on fighting speeding tickets. Web site is www.motorists.org.

Good luck fighting it.

Ed Burdell

The cop who pulled me over in MS this summer wrote down the wrong county and phone number on the ticket, so my name never did come up on their computer, either . Eventurally, they realized what had happened and referred me to the right jurisdiction.

While my V1 dutifully noted that I'd been hit, a laser at point blank range gives little or no opportunity to hit the brakes. Makes a strong case for a Laser diffuser or whatever they're called.

Ty Smith

For you fellow Virginia drivers with detectors, how do you conceal them?

Anyone know the fines/penalties associated with using them....

Attorney or not the defense should be "going with the speed of traffic". Anyone that has driven on 495 knows that if you're not going 80 you're going to get run over.

Good luck, and keep us informed.




PS.. I think I have the record, I got pulled after only a few hours of ownership.. Talk about a reality check...



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