Red Light Camera Ticket - Ottawa

I received my first red light camera ticket. It says my options are:

Option 1 - Trial Option (Plead Not Guilty)

Option 2 - Plea of Guilty (Submissions as to Penalty)

Option 3 - Plea of Guilty (Voluntary Payment of Total Payable)

Option 2 allows me to appear before a justice and make submissions as to penalty amount or time to pay. Given that I have had a clean driving record up until this point, would this be the best option to take to see if I can get the fine reduced?

I read through other posts and the consensus seems to be that Option 1 is the best bet by trying to negotiate with the prosecutor before the trial. However, I couldn't find a post where someone had the same Option 2 as me. (everyone seems to have an Option 2, but worded differently).

I would request the trial for this charge.

I have seen the prosecutor offer everyone $175 fine if they agreed to plead guilty and the JP reduce it in the interest of "fairness" to $125 for everyone regardless of circumstance. One person who was elderly was not fined at all.

I have also seen the prosecutor not have the photos with them and withdraw the charge altogether.

+1

Its almost always reduced by the prosecutor. And, as ynotp indicated, its usually reduced to $150-$175 (depending on the jurisdiction). Plus, if your financial circumstances are pretty dire, JP's will sometimes issue a 'suspended sentence'--meaning you get no fine (but that's only in rare cases).

lfc wrote:

Given that I have had a clean driving record up until this point

You still have a clean record. Red light camera offenses don't follow you once they are paid off.

lfc wrote:

I read through other posts and the consensus seems to be that Option 1 is the best bet by trying to negotiate with the prosecutor before the trial. However, I couldn't find a post where someone had the same Option 2 as me. (everyone seems to have an Option 2, but worded differently).

Different areas may have a different ordering of the options.

Here's the way it works in Ottawa;

It used to be you could negotiate a reduction in the fine on a guilty plea, no more. There is no defence and no one defends them.

Get your trial date by selecting the trial option. Attend on the date and plead guilty - once you're found guilty you can ask the JP to reduce the fine to whatever amount. However, be prepared to explain why.

This will take most of a morning or afternoon. So, if you're prepared to spend that much time to get a reduction, go for it.

Otherwise, pay the 325.00 - if you attend your trial date and actually have a trial, you will lose and there will be no fine reduction. I will not be increased though.

By pleading not guilty and having a trial you simply annoy everyone from the clerk to the jp.