Traffic Ticket – Do You Just Pay It or Opt For Court?

0 Flares Twitter 0 Facebook 0 Filament.io 0 Flares ×

I totally forgot to tell you all about the traffic ticket I was issued a couple of weeks ago when we traveled down state to IKEA!

Mistakenly I turned right on a red light at the intersection that does not allow for that. I had absolutely no idea and was shocked to see red lights flashing in my rear view mirror as I entered IKEA’s parking lot! Yes, I was the lady pulled over in the parking lot of IKEA. Son of a gun!

The officer was nice and explained that I had turned on the red light. He acknowledged that I did stop and carefully check that no on coming traffic was present (yeah me). Apparently the intersection in question is the site of over 150 accidents per year. The police force is attempting to curb the high rate of accidents by enforcing the no turn on red regulation.

The waiting game

You know the feeling when the officer goes back to his car and you wait for them to return. And wait. And wait? My driving record is clean so I was really hoping for a warning. I was disappointed when he issued me a traffic ticket.

ticket

When I returned home I noticed that on the traffic ticket you could admit responsibility with an explanation in writing. I whipped off a letter acknowledging my error and stating that I honestly didn’t see the sign. I assumed I would get a letter of determination in the mail specifying the amount of my fine. Instead – I opened the mail to see this!

ticket2

A notice to appear in front of the prosecutor.

I called to inquire about the process and was told that I have two options at this point:

  1. Pay the $135 fine and be assessed 2 points on my license.
  2. Drive the 1.5 hours one way to meet with the prosecutor who can decide to keep the current penalty in place for the traffic ticket, or reduce the fine/and or points.

What would you do?

Part of me says to just take my punishment and move on. The other part of me is curious to see if the fee would be reduced or the points reduced. Does anyone know how much of an impact 2 points for a violation of this sort plays into your auto insurance rates?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Oh, and DO NOT turn right on red at the intersection of Ford Rd. and Haggerty Rd.!

Comments

  1. If you work, it’s probably not worth it. You might do better paying the fine and taking a driving class if you want to get rid of the points. If you really didn’t see the sign, go back and take pictures of the placement.

    Around here, we have an intersection that’s no U-turn. There are two signs and people do it all the time. I imagine he thought you were someone who does it all the time anyway?

    • That is exactly what I did Caren. I paid the fine and then luckily the Sec. of State sent me an offer to take a driving class and have the points waived.
      Hooray!

0 Flares Twitter 0 Facebook 0 Filament.io 0 Flares ×