Most people complain about getting traffic tickets but few ever go on to challenge them. This is probably because most people are probably guilty of their crimes but in my case, I was innocent (I swear). Up until this point, I had a perfect record and I wasn't about to let a questionable citation tarnish my record.
Traffic Court – Pleading Guilty or Not Guilty
When you go to traffic court in the county of San Mateo, if you plead guilty, the judge will cut you a deal and knock $100 off your fine. In my good conscience I could not accept this “bribe” because I knew I was innocent and I had to fight to clear my name of any wrongdoing. Plus, I was willing to forgo $100 in savings to make the police officer show up in court (At the time, I didn’t know they got paid overtime for this).
Almost everyone plead guilty and took the $100 fine reduction but when it was my turn, I looked the judge straight in the eye and said, “Your honor, I wish to plead NOT guilty!” and a court date was set for my case.
Proper Court Attire
First off, you need to dress appropriately when you go to court. You can’t look like a bum because you are presenting yourself to a judge and you want to be respectful. But you don’t want to dress too fancy with a suit and tie because then you will look rich and the judge will think you’re being cheap for fighting the ticket. So what I went with was some slightly wrinkled slacks and a worn dress shirt that I haven’t worn in years. Imagine you have to wear business casual to work but all your good clothes are in the washer/hamper and it’s a slow Friday in the summer so you don't want to bust out your formal attire. That resulting outfit is what you want to wear.They key is to look respectful but poor/working class.
My Case
I was contesting a $220 illegal U-turn ticket. One evening, I had made a U-turn into a parking spot on the other side of the street and apparently further down the block, there was a No U-turn sign (as my police officer had pointed out to me with his flashlight). I felt that I was innocent because:
A.) I was parking on one end of the block and the sign was further down the block beyond my scope of vision.
B.) The No U-turn sign was poorly marked with faded paint and hard to see. I can’t be blamed for an ambiguously marked street sign. Keep in mind, I was pulled over at night when visibility is far lower than in the middle of the afternoon.
The Verdict
The high resolution 8x10 photos that I brought in as evidence mixed in with some playful flirting with the judge (a smile and a good sense of humor go a long way) made me feel pretty good about my chances of winning. In the end, the judge stated that both sides made good arguments and that she would have to drive to where the incident happened to see for herself whether the No U-turn sign was clearly marked. I felt that this was at least a moral victory because I technically didn’t lose— yet.
A few weeks later, I received a notice of decision and it said:
You have been found NOT GUILTY.
ost people complain about getting traffic tickets but few ever go on to challenge them. This is probably because most people are probably guilty of their crimes but in my case, I was innocent (I swear!).
Traffic Court – Pleading Guilty or Not Guilty
When you go to traffic court in the county of San Mateo, if you plead guilty, the judge will cut you a deal and knock $100 off your fine. In my good conscience I could not accept this “bribe” because I knew I was innocent and I had to fight to clear my name of any wrongdoing. Plus, I was willing to forgo $100 in savings to make the police officer show up in court (I didn’t know they got paid overtime for this).
Almost everyone plead guilty and took the $100 fine reduction but when it was my turn, I looked the judge straight in the eye and said, “Your honor, I wish to plead NOT guilty!” and a court date was set for my case.
Proper Court Attire
First off, you need to dress appropriately when you go to court. You can’t look like a bum because you are presenting yourself to a judge and you want to be respectful. But you don’t want to be too fancy with a suit and tie because then you will look rich and the judge will think you’re being cheap for fighting the ticket. So what I went with was some slightly wrinkled slacks and a worn dress shirt that I haven’t worn in years. Imagine you have to wear business casual to work but all your good clothes are in the washer/hamper and it’s a slow Friday in the summer so you don't want to bust out your formal attire. That resulting outfit is what you want to wear.
My Case
I was contesting a $220 illegal U-turn ticket. I had made a U-turn into a parking spot on the other side of the street and apparently further down the block, there was a No U-turn sign (as my police officer had pointed out to me with his flashlight). I felt that I was innocent because A.) I was parking on one end of the block and the sign was further down the block beyond my scope of vision. B.) The No U-turn sign was poorly marked with faded paint and hard to see. I can’t be blamed for an ambiguously marked street sign.
The Verdict
The high resolution photos that I brought in as evidence mixed in with some playful flirting with the judge (a smile and a good sense of humor go a long way) made me feel pretty good about my chances of winning. In the end, the judge stated that both sides made good arguments and that she would have to drive to where the incident happened to see for herself, whether the No U-turn sign was clearly marked. I felt that this was at least a moral victory because I technically didn’t lose— yet.
A few weeks later, I received a notice of decision and it said: You have been found NOT GUILTY.
