One Too Many Speeding Tickets: Facing a Suspended License

Most states have various methods of deterring drivers from breaking traffic laws, including assessing cumulative points for infractions such as speeding tickets. The more tickets a driver receives, and the higher the speeds over the speed limit, the more points assessed. Often, when a certain number of points are assessed in an established period of time, the driver’s license may be suspended, beginning at 60 days and increasing exponentially. That is why it is so vital for people who are charged with speeding to fight that ticket if at all possible. And there are methods for fighting speeding tickets.

Avoid the Conviction

There are several methods of avoiding a conviction. That does not mean ignoring the ticket, but it does mean refusing to automatically paying the fine, which is an admission of guilt.

In some cases, merely showing up in court is enough to get the ticket dismissed, since the arresting officer’s testimony is required.

If the officer does appear, ask for a postponement, preferably near holidays or summer vacations. Officers often schedule court dates on one day. Any one that is rescheduled may be difficult to remember and meet.

Fight the Conviction

If the avoidance techniques fail, there are a number of ways to fight the conviction. Fighting a charge of breaking the “absolute” speed limit. This means when the speed limit is 55 and the driver is going 60, they are charged with speeding. However, there are defense options: Question the officer’s assessment of the driving speed. This may mean asking for the police report and learning which type of process they used—radar, laser, or pacing. Request the operation and maintenance manuals for any devices used, as well as the calibration and maintenance reports from the station. It may be possible to question the accuracy of the device. In addition, it is important to examine the positioning of the officer and the defendant to determine if their visibility enabled them to determine the speed correctly. An emergency may have forced the driver to speed up to avoid an accident.

The officer may have mistaken the defendant’s car with another one. Showing a diagram of the location and position of cars may show the officer could have lost sight of the defendant’s car.

Fighting the charge that a driver violated a “presumed” speed limit, where driving at a safe speed for the location and conditions, is also possible in some situations .It may be possible to use the same methods for fighting an absolute speed limit infraction. Claiming that the speed, while faster than the posted limit, was safe and in keeping with the conditions and flow of traffic.

Fighting the charge that a driver violated a “basic” speed limit means they were driving too slow for the conditions and traffic flow. This is often not charged unless the driver is accused of causing an accident. The best defense is often proving that there was another cause for the accident, such as, another driver, adverse weather, or natural conditions, including some unusual encumbrance in the road, and defects in the highway or the signage in the area.

Getting Legal Help with Fighting Speeding Tickets

There are many reasons to avoid multiple speeding tickets. Many of those consequences are monetary, but they can also include a suspended driver’s license. Fighting each speeding ticket is possible, especially with the help of a speeding ticket lawyer who knows the most effective techniques and can use them to save defendants from speeding convictions.

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