Options against a no turn on red ticket in Westland (credit card, loan)

Pharrox · 07-06-2010, 03:21 AM

Hello everyone. I'm in quite a bad situation right now so I was hoping someone could give me some advice.

I was leaving a friends house tonight and he asked me to drop him off at a store on my way home. I don't usually go over that way, and on the way back I missed a "No turn on red" sign when getting back onto my main course, as you can probably guess, there was a cop there and I was stopped and given a ticket.

The intersection is completely open, and this was very early in the morning so you could clearly see that there wasn't a single car for miles in either direction. I didn't realize it was my turn until I was right at the light, at which time I was already past the no turn sign, however, the cross traffic has a left turn arrow, which was green at the time, which I used as my cue to go seeing as there was absolutely no way there could have ever been an accident even if it was the middle of the day and the street was packed. Clearly if the city were to ever put in new lights the intersection would get a green right turn arrow which would have been active at the time.

While it certainly annoys me that this was clearly an instance of an officer writing a ticket just to bring in some money (as I specifically checked that there was absolutely no danger in the turn and I have a good driving record), ordinarily I would just pay the ticket. However, this past year has been extremely rough. After switching colleges after the Winter semester, the school I was transferring out of came after me for a student load which wasn't suppose to come up for another three years. This effectively emptied my bank account and maxed out my credit card. This same loan came back on my tax return with the IRS claiming that I owe them $300 because of it. I'm currently unemployed and have been seeking a job for the last 4 months (since the loan came up). As it stands I have absolutely NO money to my name and no credit I can draw from. There is absolutely no way I will be able to make the payment within the 14 days, and if I don't they will of course hit me with another fine.

So I guess all I'm basically asking is, is there any options I have for dealing with something like this? Would I stand any chance trying to fight it in court, and if so, would I need an attorney (I can probably get one through some family ties in Ford)? Also, does anyone know what the cost of a ticket like this usually runs or how many points it puts on your record? All it says on the ticket is that they'll tell me what I have to pay when I go to the courthouse.

Sorry for the long winded post, but thanks in advance for your help.

Bydand · 07-06-2010, 05:51 AM

No turn on red, means no turn on red. Doesn't matter if you didn't either read or heed the sign, if you turned while the light was red, you get a ticket. That isn't trying to raise money, it is enforcing the law plain and simple.

kcam213 · 07-06-2010, 08:44 AM

I doubt you can fight the ticket, since you are not disputing that you broke the law. You are challenging the legitimacy of the law. (eg. stating that there was no danger of turning on red even during daytime traffic).

I don't think a judge would side with you challenging the law. If you challenged that you broke the law... a different thing.

In this economic times... I don't think you can get out of a ticket. If you are concerned about the points... which in my opinion is the only thing that is negotiable here... you can go to court and most likely they will give you the option of pleading guilty of some other traffic infraction that will cost the same but not involve points. I know it is unethical but that is what happens.

Jwo85 · 07-06-2010, 10:30 AM

I always stop before the white line on the road. You can get a good view of the "no turn on red" sign. If the sign was knocked down and this caused you to not see the sign, then you have a chance of fighting the law.

canudigit · 07-06-2010, 11:32 AM

ITA with the other posts. If the sign that said "no turn on red" was posted where you could clearly see it and you can't contest that, then good luck, because I don't think that even an attorney would be able to get you out of this one. The court would look at it like the sign was posted in a clearly visible spot and it was your error that made you not see it until too late. Seeing that the drivers on the cross street had a left turn arrow won't matter in court.

I'm sorry this happened to you, I can imagine that it doesn't feel fair, and yeah, that cop could have just given you a warning, especially if there was no on-coming traffic, and it would have been nice if he had done so, but he didn't. Consider it a lesson well learned, I guess.

YAZ · 07-06-2010, 05:07 PM

Your only recourse now is to ask his/her honour ifya can get on a payment plan. Bring 20 bucks with ya.

mike0618 · 07-06-2010, 07:29 PM

get a job delivering pizzas asap

Pharrox · 07-07-2010, 01:46 AM

Yeah, I'm not really arguing that I deserve the ticket, it's more of a question of is there anything I could do about potentially dealing with the time restrictions for the ticket? I will likely have a job by the end of the week, but won't be getting paid for at least two weeks after that, so not until after the deadline. As someone mentioned are there any ways to negotiate to pay it in installments even if it is just over a few weeks?

YAZ · 07-07-2010, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pharrox

As someone mentioned are there any ways to negotiate to pay it in installments even if it is just over a few weeks?

Look.

You have some time on your hands right now.

Go the district court in the district that you received the ticket. Do it before the due date. Info should be on the ticket.

Hang out, even if you're not on the dockett.

Tell the judge your predicament.

They will cut you some slack.