This is the first time this has ever happened to me. I consider myself a safe driver and have safe driving insurance rates. A policeman pulled me over today and said I went through a red light. I was bringing my hubby home from a doctor's appt. I was positive that this was green and my husband said so too. They will take points off my license and up goes my car insurance. There was construction on that street and one lane was closed. I don't even know how he could see me where he was sitting, and I keep wondering if he got me mixed up with someone else as there was a lot of traffic in that area.He ask me if I knew what I did and I said no, as I hadn't. I said the light was green, I wasn't speeding, I had my turn signal on when I switched lanes, so I didn't know.

Has anyone on here contested a ticket, and is there any chance that I could win, or should I just pay it and keep my mouth shut? When you go to a hearing, does anyone know what they ask you, and can you get in more trouble just by going? Geez, here I am just about 56, and now I get a ticket? Things haven't been going good for me in the last week. First my car needs a $400 part, then our well Pump burned out yesterday which is another $400. Now this. What else can go wrong?

Any advice appreciated.

I've never contested, only had one ticket ever. But I definately think you should. If you pay it, it's an admission of guilt. From what I understand, the cop who ticketed you has to be there, or you automatically win. But since you have your hubby as a witness, I'd say you have a good chance against the cop.
Good luck!

Yes, I went to court on a ticket and "won". How? Well, I told the truth. I was contesting one part of my ticket - I was sighted for speeding and an unsafe lane change. The former was true, the latter was not. They read the trooper's statement, the clerk/judge/whatever asked me for my side of the story. I said that it was pretty much just what the trooper said but that I didn't feel that the lane change was dangerous. She looked at the trooper and said something to the effect of "that's refreshing, don't you think?"....apparently I was teh first person all day to admit that I'd done wrong and not try to blame other people...so she'd let me go.

cj/

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I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

I would go back to where the police officer said he was and take a picture of the intersection where you were going through. Hopefully the picture will show alot of congested traffic, hard to see, etc. Take your husband to court with you as a witness who will also say the light was green, so you have 2 people, you and your husband saying the light was green. You will have your picture showing that maybe, just maybe the police officer got you mixed up with another wehicle because there was so much traffic and confusion. It's worth a try to fight it.

I fought a ticket on a Navy base once and I did win. I was waiting for my DH to drop off a piece of paper at an office, took like 2-3 minutes and I was sitting in the car, but I was in a fire zone, the car was running so if I heard sirens I could have moved instantly. I got a ticket for parking in a no parking zone. They did let me off, because technically I was not parked, and I was in the vehicle and it was running, they did not even argue with me, the MP wrote the ticket out to make it look like the car was parked with no one in it and was just sitting unattended while somone went in the building in a no parking zone.

I just recently got my first ticket for going the wrong way on a one way......oopss! It was the first time I'd ever been pulled over and I thought he'd give me a break. NOT!!! Anyway, I went to pay the ticket and the nice lady told my all I had to do was to come back and talk to the magistrate. I did that and he lowered my fine by $30.00. Better than nothing I suppose. My only gripe was that the police officer kept looking at my phone in my lap and the McDonald's bag in my car. My lunch I had eaten at my neices house and I was not on my phone. I think he thought I was distracted, and I wasn't. ONLY by the transit bus that was tail gating me!!! OH well, I guess the first ticket at 41 isn't bad! 2 points on my license though!!!

Thanks for all the replies. I am going to go over (it is in another town) and take a picture. There is no stores when I live, so I do my shopping when I go to a bigger city. When I got home and started unloading groceries, I saw my husband's bag of pills laying in the back seat. He has a host of health problems and the doctor makes you bring them all in original bottles to know what he is taking. They said too many older people can't remember, so they started that for everyone. One of the bottles was sliding out, and it was on my side. I thought the way they have to be today about drugs, I am surprised he didn't notice and ask what was in the bottles. I have nothing to hide, and try to be honest.

Definitely try to fight the ticket! I once got a ticket for making a right turn on red (allowable in PA) at an intersection marked NO RIGHT TURN ON RED. I was in an unfamiliar area, trying to figure out where I was going, and did not see the sign. It was on a pole, so that when you were stopped for the light, the sign was actually behind you. (It was not posted in the proper area) I took pictures of the intersection, and explained my side of the story to the magistrate. He let me off.

Many times, they will also let you off if the officer does not show up for the hearing. I have heard that this is not always the case, but what usually happens.

Be prepared. Take lots of pictures. Draw a diagram of the area if necessary. Bring your husband as a witness. And no, you will not be in any more trouble for trying to fight the ticket.

Sorry you got a ticket that has got to suck with everything else thats going on .

I wanted to share this with you tho, I just read, DANG can't remember where it was about if a police officer doesn't show up in court, OMG, I remember it was on MSN,That people will say you can get out of a ticket, However, MSN reported that is not true in most cases. The Judge will either allow you to leave or reset the court date so the Officer can come to court. , I do know it's not a "Truth" in Alabama. The judge may or may not let a person go here if the officer doesn't show.

Wanted to run that by ya..
I'll try to find that link I read a few days ago and post it for ya.

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Do you live in a state where you can pay for the ticket and go to traffic school? Here in California, if you pay the ticket, and go to traffic school you will not have the ticket "on your record" and it will not be reportable to your insurance company. You can only do this once every 18 months or 24 months, depending on the county. Check that out and see if it will help. You can still go to court and tell you side to the judge...even if you lost-then you pay the ticket and do the traffic school bit. Usually I have heard that if you go to court, the judge at least almost always will reduce the fine. I have had one ticket in my life--but you would nev er know it because of traffic school!
(It was a bogus ticket anyway in my opinion!)

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In my state, I believe (but have not verified) that the officer who issued the ticket doesn't have to show up, but an officer/state trooper is assigned to cover court for the day instead. Sounded like a better way to schedule things to me....

cj/

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I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

I went to traffic court with a friend and we met with the officer before court started and we pled it down to just a fine, no points. I think the judge had to agree with that because we still had to sit through the whole thing, I don't remember. Of course you don't want to pay the fine, but the points are actually more costly and since you have a good record, I can't see why they wouldn't be able to do something.

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"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

I've gone to traffic school and I've gone with DH to fight a ticket (red light run). We got DH's ticket brought down to no points and a fine plus they would knock it down to a non moving violation which means your insurance doesn't go up. If the cop who issued the ticket doesn't show up, you win (at least here). We saw the cop who gave DH his ticket in the hallway so we pleaded. We never had to see a judge. We talked to someone (don't know who) in the front and they pleaded with you or you told them you wanted to go to court

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