"Request a Conference" in court?

[Barton72]

^^^Ridicules someone for asking for advice and then gives advice.

 

[shadowchaser59]

Glad it worked out for you. Saving money is always a good thing

 

[Patronus]

$450 for 15 mph over? At what point is a fine excessive? Do we have a government designed COMPLETELY to screw us now?

 

[harrycalahan]

your first mistake was getting caught speeding...
the second mistake is asking for legal advice on an internet forum.

my only suggestions are:
Plea out or get an attorney

My first mistake was not getting caught speeding. It was speeding itself. I drive way too fast and its time to slow it down.
Also, thanks for the advice I shouldn't have asked for...

IMO, it would be a little absurd to get an attorney for $450. It would only cost more in attorney fee's and court fee's. I've come to grips with paying the ticket if I have to, I just want the speed reduced.

 

[harrycalahan]

$450 for 15 mph over? At what point is a fine excessive? Do we have a government designed COMPLETELY to screw us now?

My first two tickets in Habersham county were $200 each. I had one in Henry county 2 years ago and it wasn't much over $200 if it was at all. The only thing I can figure is now that McDonough can no longer use radar, they're beginning to hurt for income.

 

[harrycalahan]

"Request a conference" was actually my plea. The judge was a really cool guy and I'm pretty certain he was pro-2A (more on that in a minute). The judge explained the proceedings for the day for all the traffic scofflaws and said you have 3 choices: you can either plead guilty, pay your fine and be on your merry way; plead not guilty and request a jury trial; or, if you would like the opportunity to explain your case/try to work something out without a jury trial and get everything wrapped up today, you can request a conference with the solicitor. He then called roll for everyone on the docket and asked how do you plea. If you pled "request a conference", the solicitor took everyone, one by one, to a conference room for a quick meeting. I was in there with the solicitor for all of less than 5 minutes. She agreed to reduce the fine to $50 to cover court costs and I went on my way. Total time at the courthouse 45 min. It was a packed house too, standing room only. Pretty sweet deal IMO.

So my thoughts as to why I think the judge was pro-2A: he was in Cherokee County for starters. But also, before they got to the people with traffic citations, we got to hear proceedings from people there for a little more serious offenses, i.e. DUI, drug charges, domestic disputes, etc. Well, there was a lady who was arrested for a domestic violence incidence with her "partner". The judge asked her how she wished to plead, she said guilty. Before the judge would accept her plea, he would ask her if she was certain she wanted to plead guilty because she would never again be allowed to own a firearm. She said I understand and I wish to plead guilty. He reiterated THREE times to her that she would never again be allowed to own a firearm with a guilty plea. He made her say I understand and plead guilty multiple times. I don't know if all judges remind the defendants of this (because I never go to court) but I thought that was pretty cool of him to let her know the right/privilege she would be losing.

This is, of course, just my personal experience and in no way, shape or form legal advice.

Thats all I was asking for. I have no recourse if things go south for me in court. You're safe I just wanted to know roughly what to expect as this is differnet from my last court hearings. Thanks for the help!

 

[bc]

Holy crap!!! The last speeding ticket I received was in the $15-20 range. $450!!! Outrageous.

 

[Byte Stryke]

My first mistake was not getting caught speeding. It was speeding itself. I drive way too fast and its time to slow it down.
Also, thanks for the advice I shouldn't have asked for...

IMO, it would be a little absurd to get an attorney for $450. It would only cost more in attorney fee's and court fee's. I've come to grips with paying the ticket if I have to, I just want the speed reduced.

first, it wasn't advice, it was a suggestion.
secondly, you are going to pay allot more than 450 in higher insurance costs over the next seven years

 

[ARCman47]

Last time I told the Judge i thought my ticket was "****ing Ridiculous" he threatened to throw me in the pokey Ymmv

 

[ARCman47]

^^^Ridicules someone for asking for advice and then gives advice.

Ooowww!