Speeding: 94 in an 80 - do i fight?

Hello, got caught in a standard speedtrap... one officer on the bridge doing radar/laser, and lots more in cruisiers pulling over cars.

He asked me when my last ticket was, took my license and was back within minutes with a 94 in an 80. Said he really got me doing 115 and in an 80, and knocked it down and left.

(off topic: this was the quickest ticket ever! If they were all that quick during that trap, they will have hundreds that day i'm sure!)

My question is, do i fight it? With two officers involved my chances for one or both not wanting to goto court will be improved, not to mention the fact that both would have to have reliable notes for that day, and with any luck the court system in sarnia will be backed up with more important cases.

I have 2 other minor tickets on my abstract now, and figure i better dispute while i have a chance (if i have a chance) before my insurance starts to be affected.

So far it's about $300 +HST to have a lawyer/representative take it to trial and hope there is a fatal here to find.

Thanks!

35 over is roughly $265 and 4 points - yours was lowered to 14 over, which is about $50 and 0 points.

Quite often on an enforcement program of that nature, the officer writing the ticket has the officer name/ date/road/municipality/act/section/ badge/ unit # all filled in, plus probably has the wording filled in (ie: Speeding at km/hr in a posted 80km/hr zone) so the officer only has to drop in the time, your info, speed, licence plate and fine and that is all. That officer just has to quickly jot down how you were identified and vehicle. Other officer usually would have a template of some sorts for evidence with check boxes. Very quick, efficient and accurate. Just coles notes explaining why it can be so fast

lm123 wrote:

Hello, got caught in a standard speedtrap... one officer on the bridge doing radar/laser, and lots more in cruisiers pulling over cars.

He asked me when my last ticket was, took my license and was back within minutes with a 94 in an 80. Said he really got me doing 115 and in an 80, and knocked it down and left.

(off topic: this was the quickest ticket ever! If they were all that quick during that trap, they will have hundreds that day i'm sure!)

My question is, do i fight it? With two officers involved my chances for one or both not wanting to goto court will be improved, not to mention the fact that both would have to have reliable notes for that day, and with any luck the court system in sarnia will be backed up with more important cases.

I have 2 other minor tickets on my abstract now, and figure i better dispute while i have a chance (if i have a chance) before my insurance starts to be affected.

So far it's about $300 +HST to have a lawyer/representative take it to trial and hope there is a fatal here to find.

Thanks!

You know your record better than the rest of us. You mention you already have 2 tickets sitting on your abstract. Depending on when you got those tickets, the points may still be on your license.

If points are becoming an issue, you may want to consider the reduction already given. If you decide to request a trial, your ticket will return to the original points and fine. Depending on your points situation, you may want to consider accepting the deal.

I don't have any current points on my record, just two other standard "15 over" tickets. Problem is with insurance, once #4 is applied, then the rates go up a lot.

This would be #3 on the record, meaning if i get anything else between now and Aug 2014 my rates would almost double.

I figure, if i pay the ticket, it's #3 on the record... if i 'fight' it a a miracle dismisses it, then great... or if i lose, it's still #3.

worst case, the ticket still ends up on my record... best case... it's dropped.

One word of caution, some insurance providers may consider 35 over a major conviction versus your current 14 over which would be a minor conviction.

Id check with your insurance provider (anonymously if needed) to make sure both convictions would be treated the same. Most companies set the limit at 50+ over, but a few start at 35.

Make sure you think this one through carefully. The prosecutor in Sarnia will seek to amend the ticket back to the 35 over and I have yet to see a JP here deny that. Sounds like it was OPP on the 402 and I know that they have a new Inspector that does not take too kindly if they mis POA court. So you can count on both officers being there.