Got 3 tickets.

[Fanoflive]

Is the ticket written as 93 in a 55? I ask because if you get a judge on a bad day and he upgrades the ticket back to reckless driving, seeing it at 93 in 55, it is a Class A misdemeanor. The reckless driving charge in Illinois is punishable by up-to 364 days in the county jail and/or $2500 in fines and fees. Possibilities like this are reason enough to get representation.

Edit: Also tell your parents, trust me, you don't want to go through this alone.

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[Drix]

Is the ticket written as 93 in a 55? I ask because if you get a judge on a bad day and he upgrades the ticket back to reckless driving, seeing it at 93 in 55, it is a Class A misdemeanor. The reckless driving charge in Illinois is punishable by up-to 364 days in the county jail and/or $2500 in fines and fees. Possibilities like this are reason enough to get representation.

Edit: Also tell your parents, trust me, you don't want to go through this alone.

yup

 

[Drix]

Is the ticket written as 93 in a 55? I ask because if you get a judge on a bad day and he upgrades the ticket back to reckless driving, seeing it at 93 in 55, it is a Class A misdemeanor. The reckless driving charge in Illinois is punishable by up-to 364 days in the county jail and/or $2500 in fines and fees. Possibilities like this are reason enough to get representation.

Edit: Also tell your parents, trust me, you don't want to go through this alone.

i just told my dad

 

[Fanoflive]

i just told my dad

Good for you. I know it sucks, and things might be difficult for a while but you will make it through. It will not kill you, and you will see the other side of it eventually. I have told my kids this for years.

 

[Micah]

Better they hear it from you than from anyone else. In NJ, reckless driving is hard to prove as it denotes willing endangerment of life. I've had to plead not guilty to reckless and careless driving tickets in the past. Been pulled over more times than I can count in my 20's at well over 100mph. Often had a passenger with me too, which has resulted in a few of my friends having great stories of "Remember that time you got pulled over?". Not going to lie, I've been scared shitless every damned time. Was advised many times to get a lawyer, but never did. Typically I would show up to court early, and ask around to find the county prosecutor. Usually he/she would tell me to wait and they would speak to me later. Shortly before court starts he/she would ask us to line up and bring us in to talk with him one by one about our violations.

In the end, it's a cash grab. The county will typically be willing to let you plead not guilty to the original violation and instead will amend the charges to something else. With NJ, moving violations carry points which affect your license and insurance. Too many points can get your license suspended, and will greatly increase your car insurance rates. As a result, the county will have non moving violation type charges which they will be glad to charge you with instead. These will carry no points, but a large fine. On top of that you'll be looking at court fees added on. Look at it this way, better to give money to a local government than to a car insurance company.

For your own peace of mind, try calling the court and asking if you can reschedule your court date. Typically they are ok with that. You can then show up to court on your original court date just to observe. Speeding tickets are very common. Watch and pay attention to see how things go. Hell, consider being assertive and try approaching someone who dealth with a speeding ticket after they are leaving court to ask about how it went.

When talking to the prosecutor be remorseful, explain that you do not normally drive like that and it was a momentary lapse in judgement that you never intend to do again.

In terms of speeding, don't do it. But if you do, don't do it for long. Have a poke and then get back down to the legal speed. Consider getting a radar detector if they are legal, and don't get a cheap one (Escort Max/Redline or Valentine1 are what you should be considering). Learn to read the road. If you see brake lights ahead, odds are someone saw a patrol car, so slow down. If you have a dash mount for your smartphone, use Waze as it tags known speed traps. If you are the only car on the road, NEVER SPEED. If you are with normal traffic, don't be first or last. Move through the pack switfly. Be aware of the roads you are on and where police can be. Any time you have a doubt or inclination there might be a police car, SLOW DOWN.

When you get pulled over, have your documents out for the officer. Be polite. Explain that you normally do not drive like that and are not sure how fast you were going because your eyes were on the road.

 

[Fanoflive]

Better they hear it from you than from anyone else. In NJ, reckless driving is hard to prove as it denotes willing endangerment of life. I've had to plead not guilty to reckless and careless driving tickets in the past. Been pulled over more times than I can count in my 20's at well over 100mph. Often had a passenger with me too, which has resulted in a few of my friends having great stories of "Remember that time you got pulled over?". Not going to lie, I've been scared shitless every damned time. Was advised many times to get a lawyer, but never did. Typically I would show up to court early, and ask around to find the county prosecutor. Usually he/she would tell me to wait and they would speak to me later. Shortly before court starts he/she would ask us to line up and bring us in to talk with him one by one about our violations.

In the end, it's a cash grab. The county will typically be willing to let you plead not guilty to the original violation and instead will amend the charges to something else. With NJ, moving violations carry points which affect your license and insurance. Too many points can get your license suspended, and will greatly increase your car insurance rates. As a result, the county will have non moving violation type charges which they will be glad to charge you with instead. These will carry no points, but a large fine. On top of that you'll be looking at court fees added on. Look at it this way, better to give money to a local government than to a car insurance company.

Yeah, but we are in Illinois, no points system. Corrupt and power hungry idiots run this state, Judges included. In addition to that, we have a graduated driver license. Look at this from Secretary of State website http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/drivers/teen_driver_safety/gdl.html

• To obtain court supervision for a traffic violation, a driver must appear in court with a parent/legal guardian and also must attend traffic safety school. Limit one court supervision for serious driving offenses.
• A moving violation conviction before age 18 generates a Secretary of State warning letter to the parent and teenager.
• A moving violation conviction that occurs within the first year of licensing will result in a six-month extension of the passenger limitation, which allows only one unrelated passenger under age 20.
• Two moving violation convictions occurring within a 24-month period results in a minimum one-month driver’s license suspension. Suspension length is determined by the seriousness of the offenses and the driver’s prior driving history. An additional driver’s license suspension will result for each subsequent moving violation following the initial suspension.
• Suspended drivers must attend a remedial education course, may be retested and must pay a $70 reinstatement fee.
• Any person under age 18 who has unresolved traffic citations will be denied issuance of a driver’s license.
• Driver's License Suspension for Nighttime Driving Restriction Violation – A person under the age of 18 who violates the nighttime driving restriction may have their driving privileges suspended.

I wouldn't take my chances without a lawyer.

 

[Micah]

Yeah, but we are in Illinois, no points system. Corrupt and power hungry idiots run this state, Judges included. In addition to that, we have a graduated driver license. Look at this from Secretary of State website http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/drivers/teen_driver_safety/gdl.html

• To obtain court supervision for a traffic violation, a driver must appear in court with a parent/legal guardian and also must attend traffic safety school. Limit one court supervision for serious driving offenses.
• A moving violation conviction before age 18 generates a Secretary of State warning letter to the parent and teenager.
• A moving violation conviction that occurs within the first year of licensing will result in a six-month extension of the passenger limitation, which allows only one unrelated passenger under age 20.
• Two moving violation convictions occurring within a 24-month period results in a minimum one-month driver’s license suspension. Suspension length is determined by the seriousness of the offenses and the driver’s prior driving history. An additional driver’s license suspension will result for each subsequent moving violation following the initial suspension.
• Suspended drivers must attend a remedial education course, may be retested and must pay a $70 reinstatement fee.
• Any person under age 18 who has unresolved traffic citations will be denied issuance of a driver’s license.
• Driver's License Suspension for Nighttime Driving Restriction Violation – A person under the age of 18 who violates the nighttime driving restriction may have their driving privileges suspended.

I wouldn't take my chances without a lawyer.

Holy crap.

 

[Two Step Performance]

Yeah, but we are in Illinois, no points system. Corrupt and power hungry idiots run this state, Judges included. In addition to that, we have a graduated driver license. Look at this from Secretary of State website http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/drivers/teen_driver_safety/gdl.html

• To obtain court supervision for a traffic violation, a driver must appear in court with a parent/legal guardian and also must attend traffic safety school. Limit one court supervision for serious driving offenses.
• A moving violation conviction before age 18 generates a Secretary of State warning letter to the parent and teenager.
• A moving violation conviction that occurs within the first year of licensing will result in a six-month extension of the passenger limitation, which allows only one unrelated passenger under age 20.
• Two moving violation convictions occurring within a 24-month period results in a minimum one-month driver’s license suspension. Suspension length is determined by the seriousness of the offenses and the driver’s prior driving history. An additional driver’s license suspension will result for each subsequent moving violation following the initial suspension.
• Suspended drivers must attend a remedial education course, may be retested and must pay a $70 reinstatement fee.
• Any person under age 18 who has unresolved traffic citations will be denied issuance of a driver’s license.
• Driver's License Suspension for Nighttime Driving Restriction Violation – A person under the age of 18 who violates the nighttime driving restriction may have their driving privileges suspended.

I wouldn't take my chances without a lawyer.

Yikes.

 

[Zeffy94]

A year ago I missed a speed limit sign saying 25 mph and was doing 50 as the previous speed limit was 45. A cop happened to be driving the other way and he flipped a uey to come after me. I had no previous tickets. He wrote me a reckless driving and speeding over 20 ticket.

After doing research I lawyered up and in the end I went from a possible 9 points to just 2 and a $200 court fee. Much better than all those points. Speeding was dropped entirely and reckless was downgraded to careless driving. Reckless driving in NJ may be worse than IL, but I would read up on what the penalties are and go from there. My advice is to hire an attorney.

Fighting it on your own is possible but lawyers usually know people that help your case out.

 

[charleswrivers]

A lot of advice for a scenerio that's different state by state based on laws and based of the whims of a judge you have no control over.

You told your dad (finally)... good. Even when you mess up, your folks should always love you and be there for you.. even if you cock up bad.

I won't say, at 17, I didn't do things similar to you... but I didn't caught and you did. Sucks to be you.

You did...

driving on the highway and i was trying to do a pull in 4th gear to see how fast i go

...so that's just the way it is. Sounds like maybe the cop was trying to do you a favor by giving you improper lane change vice reckless driving. In GA you'd be a 'super speeder'. The cop maybe coulda let you go... but didn't and that's the way it panned out. I would not assign him/her... or whatever judge hands down a punishment, blame for something you did. That'll go the way it goes... and that's on you... not any of them. It's done though, and perhaps things will work out favorably. I don't know how your interaction with the officer went... but you'd better be respectful in that courtroom or the judge will take you to the cleaners. I've stood beside several of my Sailors as a Chief, and they got what they got, but were respectful young men and took whatever the judge gave them and went on with life. One of my guys lost his Nuclear NEC (job code) for his offense... had to pay back nearly $20k of a reenlistment bonus he'd received... lost the rest that was due to him... and had to leave the sub he was on with me because he couldn't do the job anymore because his job code and security clearance we're revoked for a time. Lost his license. Rode around on a scooter with a tiny motor for a year. He dusted himself off got picked up as another rate... his then fiance and he got married. 3-4 years later... he's got a promotion, a kid and is back doing his job well and is up for CPO. It was a rough patch but he did ok. As bad as it was... he could have been imprisoned for his offense and got off with a low level felony and a big monetary fine.

In the end, you are guilty whether you plead that way or not... and there will be consequences. The advice to speak to a lawyer is a good one. This may incur costs that you might not be able to field that your old man may have to cover... if he's willing.

My advice to you is to confide in your family... seek their advice rather than a bunch if strangers online and see what he is willing to do and how you'll move forward so you can move on with life. They will be the ones to support you through this and provide a soft spot to fall when its all done. This is a ripple in the pond of life. Weather this storm and move on.

 

[Drix]

A lot of advice for a scenerio that's different state by state based on laws and based of the whims of a judge you have no control over.

You told your dad (finally)... good. Even when you mess up, your folks should always love you and be there for you.. even if you cock up bad.

I won't say, at 17, I didn't do things similar to you... but I didn't caught and you did. Sucks to be you.

You did...



...so that's just the way it is. Sounds like maybe the cop was trying to do you a favor by giving you improper lane change vice reckless driving. In GA you'd be a 'super speeder'. The cop maybe coulda let you go... but didn't and that's the way it panned out. I would not assign him/her... or whatever judge hands down a punishment, blame for something you did. That'll go the way it goes... and that's on you... not any of them. It's done though, and perhaps things will work out favorably. I don't know how your interaction with the officer went... but you'd better be respectful in that courtroom or the judge will take you to the cleaners. I've stood beside several of my Sailors as a Chief, and they got what they got, but were respectful young men and took whatever the judge gave them and went on with life. One of my guys lost his Nuclear NEC (job code) for his offense... had to pay back nearly $20k of a reenlistment bonus he'd received... lost the rest that was due to him... and had to leave the sub he was on with me because he couldn't do the job anymore because his job code and security clearance we're revoked for a time. Lost his license. Rode around on a scooter with a tiny motor for a year. He dusted himself off got picked up as another rate... his then fiance and he got married. 3-4 years later... he's got a promotion, a kid and is back doing his job well and is up for CPO. It was a rough patch but he did ok. As bad as it was... he could have been imprisoned for his offense and got off with a low level felony and a big monetary fine.

In the end, you are guilty whether you plead that way or not... and there will be consequences. The advice to speak to a lawyer is a good one. This may incur costs that you might not be able to field that your old man may have to cover... if he's willing.

My advice to you is to confide in your family... seek their advice rather than a bunch if strangers online and see what he is willing to do and how you'll move forward so you can move on with life. They will be the ones to support you through this and provide a soft spot to fall when its all done. This is a ripple in the pond of life. Weather this storm and move on.

i have it recorded on my dashcam. i was so quiet when i was pulled over. the cop was being a dickhead. he said i could had killed myself.

 

[Micah]

i have it recorded on my dashcam. i was so quiet when i was pulled over. the cop was being a dickhead. he said i could had killed myself.

I'd be really careful who you showed that video to. Laws are one thing, intent is another, and.....I guess you could always toss it up on World Star Hip Hop or the badcopnodonut subreddit..... just to see what happens.

He scolded you and showed concern for you and your behavior?..... THE NERVE OF THAT GUY!

 

[Lazylahma]

i have it recorded on my dashcam. i was so quiet when i was pulled over. the cop was being a dickhead. he said i could had killed myself.

From the sounds of it, he gave you a lesser ticket then what he could have. he was not being a dickhead, he was doing his job. Gave you a bit of a scolding and gave you a break on the tickets you received, be thankful you still have your license.

With that being said you did nothing that i would bet just about all of us have done in the past. Some people get caught some get lucky.

You were unfortunately one of the unlucky ones, only thing to do from here is realize there is no one to blame here but yourself, the "dickhead" cop did not force you to speed, he just saw you.

And yes you could have killed someone, your own words

I was driving on the highway and i was trying to do a pull in 4th gear to see how fast i go and did some reckless driving.

Doesn't matter if your a seasoned professional or a 17 year old learning to drive, reckless driving on public roads is dangerous, not only to you but every other person on that road.

You want to see how fast your car is, go for it off the line, do not chirp tires and stop once you hit the speed limit.

You want to drive fast legally, look into the scca track days around chicago.

http://scca-chicago.com

 

[typemismatch]

• Lawyer up.
• Be honest with your parents.
• Learn to behave on the roads.
• Find a track to test your car at.

I didn't lawyer up when I got into the same kinds of trouble, and that haunted me into my mid 20's. Every time I got pulled over they used my history against me and I spent most of my late teens and early 20's driving on a suspended or provisional license. Eventually the tickets stack up and you end up with bench warrants for things you forgot about and they arrest you and tow your car the next time you get pulled over.

The insurance sucked to pay, the tickets and drivers courses added up. By the time I was done I was working to pay the fines and fees.

• Don't follow in my dumbass steps.

The judge and the cops don't have your best interests in mind.

They just want to make an example of you to scare you and anyone that hears your story into behaving. Not to mention the financial benefit the state gets from the tickets, court fees, state ordered/run remedial driving courses, and taxes from your insurance going up.

 

[htran1]

The cop was a dickhead because he told you the truth that you could have killed yourself? Going 93 in a 55? Because you know, if you're in an accident going that fast, you can kill yourself and at the very least seriously injure yourself? Yeah, I don't know about that one.

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