Funny story...I got pinched up at the Dragon during the most recent CB1100 Rally, without telling the whole mess of a story, I was going fast enough that they wanted me to return to Maryville TN the following month to appear in court. Nothing to do but do it, So I took a day off work, drove to Tennessee all in one shot without stopping, sat in court for 1.5 hours, paid my ticket, and drove all the way home in one shot.
The funny part was the judge, who had personally threatened me with incarceration if i did not bring my happy rear end all the way up to TN on a Tuesday, actually looked at me with shock and commented that he didn't expect me to show up. He then asked me how much it cost me in gas to drive all the way up there, I told him about $80 round trip, and he knocked that off my ticket.....
i'm not sure whether that was his idea of a favor or an insult.
Well, at least you got a nice ride out of it!
(05-22-2023, 04:02 AM)Nachodaddy_imp Wrote: [ -> ] (05-22-2023, 02:45 AM)Gone in 60_imp Wrote: [ -> ]Timely topic for me, and if anyone from North Carolina can weigh in on my situation to let me know if I've just been scammed or not, I'd appreciate it.
I've not had the best luck with my business travel this year. Consistent flight delays leading to lots of late night arrivals on job sites.
Most recently, delays caused me to land in Charlotte, NC very late at night, after which I got into a rental car and had a drive of over two hours to Rockingham, along remote, two-lane roads.
I was probably half-asleep, driving a very quiet car, was pulled over for speeding some time around 1 a.m. in the middle of nowhere. The officer was very polite, and I was with him. I was too tired to think anything good, just said I had had a very long day, and just wanted to get to my hotel and go to sleep. Don't know how fast I was going, but he said "I don't to make this hard for you, and since you're from out of state, I'm going to write this up at a speed that won't make you have to come back to this county to see the judge. You can just pay online." Yippy.
While I was on the jobsite, I did enough online research to learn that California and North Carolina share traffic violation data, so the ticket would eventually get on my CA driving record. While many places, like California, allow online traffic school to eliminate a points ticket from your record, the county where I received the ticket does not. I called the court and checked. I haven't had a ticket in many years, but I was most concerned about my insurance going up.
When I got home from my trip, there were six letters from local NC lawyers all saying "Don't pay that ticket until you call us!" Ok, I'll bite. I called all six of them, and all of them claimed that they could go to court on my behalf, and based on a clean record and the speed I was ticketed for, my offense would be knocked down to a non-moving violation for "improper equipment", what we would call a "fix-it" ticket, that would not incur points.
All of the lawyers would charge a small fee, and with the court costs, it would be slightly more than the price of the ticket itself. One lawyer told me that they could save me a few bucks if I pulled my own CA driving record and send it to them, so I went with them, paid the two bucks to get my own record, and sent it. In any case, the same speeding ticket would be hundreds more in CA.
So I guess I'm waiting now, as my "court date" isn't until June. We'll see.
I used one of these when I lived in Las Vegas. I was nervous about it, but they did exactly what you described and all it cost me was the Lawyer's fee, which was about $150. They knocked mine down to a parking violation, though. I suspect it is less work for the court, too.
We will hope it works out as well for you.
People make money in the strangest of ways.
Hey, on weekends, I get paid to talk about cars to total strangers.
(05-23-2023, 04:37 AM)Gone in 60_imp Wrote: [ -> ]Hey, on weekends, I get paid to talk about cars to total strangers.
... and motorcycles too?
Yes, but not our main motorcycle exhibit. The bikes down in the basement are an eclectic mix. Some bikes from "On Any Sunday", a Gurney Alligator, and the Bat Cycle!
(05-23-2023, 05:07 AM)Gone in 60_imp Wrote: [ -> ]Yes, but not our main motorcycle exhibit. The bikes down in the basement are an eclectic mix. Some bikes from "On Any Sunday", a Gurney Alligator, and the Bat Cycle!
Ah, too bad Gone. I thought there was more.
Nonetheless, glad you can ride to work while averting tickets.
(05-23-2023, 10:31 AM)GoldOxide_imp Wrote: [ -> ] (05-23-2023, 05:07 AM)Gone in 60_imp Wrote: [ -> ]Yes, but not our main motorcycle exhibit. The bikes down in the basement are an eclectic mix. Some bikes from "On Any Sunday", a Gurney Alligator, and the Bat Cycle!
Ah, too bad Gone. I thought there was more.
Nonetheless, glad you can ride to work while averting tickets.
Ah, too bad Gone. I thought there was more.
Nonetheless, glad you can ride to work while averting tickets.
There's a LOT more down there, GO! Come on out to California and I'll show ya.
Speaking of tickets, had a hairy moment on the ride home yesterday, and thought I was going to watch a CHP officer crash hard for a few seconds of distraction.
Gliding along in the car pool lane with traffic going about 65. The officer, on a BMW, entered the freeway and shot over to the left pretty agressively. He was definitely on a mission. He moved into the lane to my right, the regular "fast lane", and got alongside the car in front of me. It appeared that he suspected that car of having a single occupant, and wanted to do some enforecement.
Unfortunately, his rather authoratative riding must have spooked the car that was now directly in front of him, who probably thought they were about to be pulled over. That car started braking, however the officer had his head turned to the left, looking into the car next to him, and didn't see that he was about to rear-end the slowing car directly in front of him.
I braced myself and figured it was about to get really ugly. At the last second, the officer faced forward, mashed his brakes, and did a quick swerve to squeeze between the two cars. Whew!
He than hit the throttle hard and disappeared. Either embarrassed or just plain po'd.
Wow - a significant wince moment, eh Gone?