Sunday, June 26, 2011

Old warrants return to haunt drivers

One guy had a cracked windshield ticket in 1982. Claims he paid it. 29 years later he gets pulled over and told he has a warrant. The court claims he never took care of it. Save those receipts!

This problem could become more common. St. George, Missouri reactivated traffic warrants from as far back as 2003, apparently trying to make some money. The current city administration is re-thinking the move.

Warning drivers without issuing tickets in order to educate them has become a formal program in Benicia, California (population 27,000) for minor offenses. The warning is noted in the computer, though. So next time you get pulled over for a similar offense, good luck.

Some Texas homes are getting calls saying you must pay this red light ticket now, over the phone, or a warrant will be issued for your arrest. What's your credit card number? The caller claims he's from the Department of Public Safety. Three problems: DPS doesn't collect traffic fines, supervise red light cameras or issue warrants.

Texting or emailing while driving becomes illegal in Indiana July 1, 2011. That includes both sending and reading.


---How to Beat a Traffic Ticket

Image courtesy of Anusorn P nachol

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Florida city refunds red light camera fines

Pembroke Pines, Florida jumped into the red light traffic camera business a little early--before state law authorized participation. So they're refunding about 3,000 fines for tickets issued prior to July 1, 2010. Lest you think the city thought of this on its own, the refunds are the result of a lawsuit. The city admits no fault.

The Los Angeles City Council put off re-authorizing red light ticket cameras. Concerns that the program (sold as a moneymaker) actually costs the city are being weighed against an apparent reduction in accidents. One council member says there is no enforcement mechanism. He apparently believes the court cannot issue a warrant if you fail to pay the ticket received in the mail.

The city of Windcrest, Texas (population 5,600) is getting serious about warrants. They've got a little over 9,000 open cases from the last 11 years. On the last Monday and Tuesday of June, they're sending 8 officers out to homes, offices and schools to click and book. If the arrestee can't make bail (at $200 per violation), it's off to the county jail. (By the way, all cattle brand registrations in the county expire August 30 so be sure and get those taken care of.)

A police chief has been charged with receiving extra, unearned money for his Pennsylvania department. He allegedly filed inflated overtime and traffic ticket figures.. (It is unclear whether he is still in that position.)


---the essential guide to fighting traffic tickets is available here

Image courtesy of scottchan

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Cop GETS ticket. What's the world coming to???

Yes, police officers do get tickets (sometimes). One officer totaled his police cruiser while making an improper U-turn. He was cited. No word on whether the guy he was chasing got away or not.

In one Georgia county traffic tickets issued are down 27% due to budget constraints.

More ways not to get out of a ticket:
  • pretending you're a police officer and trying to get the ticket waived.

  • using your brother's ID
  • Each charge on a Tennessee ticket will cost you $13.75 extra if you pay before the appearance date.

    Is all your traffic citation money going to a good cause? Maybe. A Georgia courthouse noticed some of that money was missing. They suspect a (now former) employee with 24 years on the job. No charges have been filed.


    ---How to Beat a Traffic Ticket: The Six Steps Guide
    Available for just 99 cents from Kindle or Nook or instant PDF download

    Image courtesy of akeeris

    Saturday, June 11, 2011

    100,000 tickets found & California changes traffic school

    We reported June 2 that Greenburgh, NY is unearthing tickets from as far back as 2000 and charging people.

    We didn't report that they'd reportedly discovered 100,000 misplaced tickets because we didn't believe it. But here's another report that says, indeed, the court found that many tickets "crammed into cabinets and buried in corners".

    This town of 86,764 was apparently losing almost 25 tickets a day for 11 years. Surely somebody in all that time came in, wondering what happened to their ticket?

    Traffic school in California will no longer keep a point off your DMV record as of July 1. The ticket will still be hidden from insurance. Ouch.

    Apple no longer accepts DUI checkpoint apps for sale on its Iphone. It's hard to believe that someone checks his Iphone for DUI spots before choosing where to drink. Or that afterwards, she's sharp enough to review the DUI app.


    ---brought to you by How to Beat a Traffic Ticket: The Six Steps Guide
    Available for just 99 cents from Kindle or Nook or instant PDF download

    Image courtesy of Bill Longshaw

    Tuesday, June 7, 2011

    Cop writes ticket, then asks for date

    A little extra with your traffic ticket? One Indiana woman got a speeding ticket--with the officer's phone number on the back. He allegedly asked for a date. The officer has since retired,
    amidst an investigation. Hopefully he's working on his timing.

    Get a ticket in California--and you contribute to a slew of state causes. In the last 2 years, legislators have tacked on fees. So you're not only paying your traffic citation--you're kicking in for a state conviction fee, new courthouse construction, and emergency air transport services. The legislature is thinking of adding spinal cord injury research and DNA identification.

    Right, right--traffic tickets are about deterrence. Not revenue. Sure.

    New York drivers will now get 2 points if convicted of using a cell phone while driving. Previously the charge reportedly involved a fine but no points.


    Image courtesy of Idea go

    Sunday, June 5, 2011

    Florida judge: red light tickets unconstitutional

    One judge in Florida rules red light tickets written by police are unconstitutional.

    His reasoning is that the difference in fines between red light camera tickets and red light cop tickets violates the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution.

    This almost certainly exceeds the federal Supreme Court's understanding of the Clause. The state is planning to appeal the judge's ruling.

    Still, he's going to be a really popular judge for a while.


    ---In case you get a different judge: How to Beat a Traffic Ticket: The Six Steps Guide
    Available for just 99 cents from Kindle or Nook or instant PDF download

    Image courtesy of digitalart

    Friday, June 3, 2011

    Officer writes 10 year old a ticket

    A Texas cop wrote a traffic ticket to a 10 year old boy for improperly wearing a seat belt. The 4th grader told a reporter he was scared. Reportedly, Texas law says you have to be 15 to get a traffic ticket.

    The assistant chief of the police department is reviewing the matter. Yeah, why wasn't the kid arrested?

    Update: The officer later wimped out and asked the court to dismiss the little lawbreaker's ticket. The court did.

    Running your license plate number doesn't come cheap. Alberta will spend about $77 million (Canadian) doing that this fiscal year. Starting September 1, they'll pass the cost along to the municipalities--at $15 a pop. The cities are expected to add the cost to the fine a motorist pays.


    ---the best way to fight traffic tickets whether you're 10 or 80:
    How to Beat a Traffic Ticket: The Six Steps Guide
    Available for just 99 cents from Kindle or Nook or instant PDF download

    Image courtesy of Idea go

    Thursday, June 2, 2011

    You know it's a bad day when ...

    You know he's having a bad day when a person ....

    ---leads the police on a merry chase, then climbs up on the roof and pelts them with tiles

    ---steals a computer which photographs him in his car and sends pictures to the owner

    ---posts a threat to the chief of police on Craigslist over a traffic ticket

    Diamonds aren't the only thing that lasts forever. Greenburgh, New York thinks traffic tickets do. A new court administrator found thousands of open tickets, some from the 1990s. The town is trying to collect on those from issued in 2000 and later.

    Some people are complaining they already paid the tickets 11 years ago. But they can't prove it--who keeps records that long? (Well, probably my dad.) They may be right. A town that can sit on all those tickets for so long might be a little sloppy in connecting payments too.

    ---How to Beat a Traffic Ticket: The Six Steps Guide
    Available for just 99 cents from Kindle or Nook or instant PDF download

    Image: graur razvan ionut