[eagles23]

I got my first speeding ticket today. I'm not sure if it means anything, but the officer misspelled my name. I was woundering if there is any law that states I can get out of paying since my name is spelled wrong.

[shelley7180]

Unfortunately, no. Your name and address do not have to be correct, only the SSN. The officer should have had you look at the ticket, and sign it. That's where he/she says "By signing this you are not admitting guilt, only that you have been advised of your rights...blah,blah, blah.", or something along those lines. (It's like the Miranda Rights for speeders!) It depends on your state, but you can go to court to contest the ticket. You have a 50/50 chance of getting out of the ticket or getting a reduced fine by doing so. I don't know your age or how fast you were going, but since this is your first ticket you have a pretty good chance of the judge dropping it to a warning. It would be worth the chance.

[Fr_Chuck]

I will disagree about arguring to get it droped for a mis-spelled, often at least in our courts, that only makes the judge upset at someone thinking they are Perry Mason or some smart... And at least in the courts where I worked, the judge would make sure you paid the max and anything else he could do for people who did that.

Now I would advise to go and plead not guilty, if the police officer does not show up, which is common, you ask for the case to be dismissed.

Also go and talk to the court clerk before hand, and see if they allow you to take a traffic school, in those cases you pay a court fee and pay for the traffic school but the charges are droped after you pass the traffic school

[phillysteakandcheese]

If you really were speeding, I'd just pay it and go on with my life... lesson learned.

However -

If you were not speeding, you can fight the ticket in court. As Fr Chuck says, the officer may not even make it to your court apearance. If the officer does show up, you can ask if the radar gun used to clock you was calibrated, if the officer completed training, and note any other specific conditions that may have caused you to be singled out mistakenly over other cars... Collectvely, these can all be used to raise doubt about how accurate the charge is.

[shelley7180]

In response to the above answer:

I will disagree about arguring to get it droped for a mis-spelled, often at least in our courts, that only makes the judge upset at someone thinking they are Perry Mason or some smart... And at least in the courts where I worked, the judge would make sure you paid the max and anything else he could do for people who did that.

I never said to argue about the misspell. I said to go to court because it was his/her first offense.

Do not even bring up the misspell because the judge will turn it back on you because, like I said earlier, you had to review the ticket and sign it. It would be your problem if you did not advise the officer at the time that there was a clerical error.

As for driving school, bad idea. That is costly. However, there may be a defensive driving course offered by the State or county in which you live, which is a good idea to volunteer for. Make sure you differentiate between the two. Taking a defensive driving course can also reduce your insurance rates in some cases. (I would only mention that you took the course to your insurance company if the case is dropped, and nothing is to appear on your driving record.)

Also, do talk to the clerk or a representative on the clerk's office prior to appearing before the judge. They has wonderful insight on what mood the judge is in and how the judge usually handles cases like this. Explain that you have never had a ticket before, and you're not sure what to do. Don't be afraid to ask the clerk questions. That's what they are there for. They will do their best to point you in the right direction.

Here is how court is going to work. You show up at 9:00am, and you sometimes watch a short video. The bailiff will the swear everyone in. Then you sit and wait for the bailiff to call your name. When your name is called, you go before the judge. He/she reads the charges against you, and then asks you how you plea. Plead NO CONTEST. You want to plead this instead of not guilty because no contest gives you the opportunity to speak with the judge and explain yourself. (In most cases, you do not get to tell your side when you plead not guilty.) Do not come up with some stupid excuse as to why you were speeding. DO NOT under any circumstances say that you were not paying attention!! Simply state that this is your first traffic violation. Say you were unaware, at the time, that you were exceeding the posted speed limit. Thank the officer for brining it to your attention because you know that speed limits are in place to keep others, as well as yourself, safe. Apologize to the court, say that you made a mistake, you have learned your lesson, and will not make this mistake in the future. (Or something of that nature.) Don't ramble, speak up, don't mumble, or use slang. Be polite yes sir/ma'am, no sir/ma'am.

I know this sounds cheesy and over the top, but my grandfather was a judge for many years. That is what he told me to say to the judge when I got my first ticket. As long as you ''man up" and take responsibility for your actions the judge will be lenient, especially if this is your first offense. If you try to lie or come up with a BS excuse, the judge will throw the book at you.

Or you could just pay it, and be done with it.