They gave me two days to make a decision

So i just received my red light ticket in the mail. It has to be serviced in two days (well less than that if we are counting hours).

August 22nd 2013 I have to service the notice. The envelope is date stamped on the 15th of august, 2013, and was in the postal system for about five days. The original offense was noted on July 31 2013, is this grounds for dismissal?

Secondly, is it worth going to court, do they still give half the charge for guilty plea? or is it best to just go for first attendance?

I have a decent explanation with proof.

Thanks in advance.

please help

preludex wrote:

I have a decent explanation with proof.

Do you have a defense or an excuse? Excuses aren't going to take you far in a trial. Keep that in mind when preparing a defense.

Red light camera tickets aren't going to impact your insurance, which is why many here don't really worry about them. They don't know who is driving so you can have piece of mind that when you pay your ticket, you won't be paying for it again down the road. If I could get something out of a first attendance meeting in this situation, i'd probably just take it and move on.

bend wrote:

preludex wrote:

I have a decent explanation with proof.

Do you have a defense or an excuse? Excuses aren't going to take you far in a trial. Keep that in mind when preparing a defense.

Red light camera tickets aren't going to impact your insurance, which is why many here don't really worry about them. They don't know who is driving so you can have piece of mind that when you pay your ticket, you won't be paying for it again down the road. If I could get something out of a first attendance meeting in this situation, i'd probably just take it and move on.

Thanks Bend,

It's basically an excuse with an explanation. I have recent service records indicating my cars transmission is done, and the reason I went through the red was both car trouble and weather related. I know this poses more questions, however it was safe for me to pass through the intersection at the time.

Is there any chance of a "No Show" in court? not sure if the person verifying the pictures has to also be present in court?

Thanks again

Arguing you went through the red light because of car trouble will not go over well in Court. Red light offences are what are known as absolute liability offences, which basically means there is no excuse, short of your life being in imminent danger (i.e. mad gunman chasing you). Weather and/or car trouble will not be accepted as valid reasons to break the law, and trying to justify your actions could actually lessen your chances of the Court being lenient.

No officer will be present in Court for your matter. They proceed based solely on the certificate that was sent to you. You can make a request for the issuing officer to attend, but you need a valid reason (i.e more the hoping for a no show), and such requests are rarely granted.

Stanton wrote:

Arguing you went through the red light because of car trouble will not go over well in Court. Red light offences are what are known as absolute liability offences, which basically means there is no excuse, short of your life being in imminent danger (i.e. mad gunman chasing you). Weather and/or car trouble will not be accepted as valid reasons to break the law, and trying to justify your actions could actually lessen your chances of the Court being lenient.

No officer will be present in Court for your matter. They proceed based solely on the certificate that was sent to you. You can make a request for the issuing officer to attend, but you need a valid reason (i.e more the hoping for a no show), and such requests are rarely granted.

Thanks Stanton,

Wise words, should I go to the first attendance, would it be best to not prove my car situation in asking for a reduced rate?

Back to my first statement, since I only had two days to make a decision, to what advantage would this be for me?