How can I get out of a ticket for running a red light?

trooper3316

Officers not showing up for court is for the most part a myth. If they have a valid reason, the case will be rescheduled.

An officer's testimony will almost always be given more credibility in court, so saying it was yellow will probably not help your case if the officer testifies it was red.

You may also want to research NJ traffic law first. In most states, a yellow light is the same as a red, you are required to stop unless you are so close you can't stop safely. If it turned red while you were crossing, you were too late.

Kevin

You want to ask a "what if" to justify going into court and perjuring yourself. If you know the light was red and you knowingly make a false statement you would be committing a felony. Even if you are not caught do you want to go to that length just to get out of a $100 ticket?

The officer probably does not have "proof" that you ran the light. The officer, however, is NOT going to go into court and lie for his own benefit. Because of that the Officer has more credibility than the violator, who has reasons you already stated to lie.

You are welcome to roll the dice, and if you get a rookie cop or get some technicality maybe you will get out of the ticket. If that is really worth it to you to do that to yourself.

Oh yeah, as far as the cop not showing up for court.
First, he could be charged with contempt of court since he is under subpoena.
Second, if court does not fall within his scheduled work hours, we get either 3 hours overtime or 4 hours overtime for showing up to court in our off time. You fight a ticket and I will be there.

Also, if you fight the ticket and lose you will have higher court costs, including the officer's witness fees.

Sexie

All you can do is insist the light was yellow and hope for a leinent judge. Yes, I do believe if the cop doesnt show you don't have to pay. But if he does show, who do you really think the judge will believe? It's not really fair, but the odds are against you.

mike i

They will ALWAYS take the cops word over yours 90% of the time.

You JUST admitted that the light turned Red JUST before you crossed the line in the intersection.
So i think you just answered your own question.

ALSO, remember the cop may have a dashboard camera and could have recorded the incident!!!!

Just because the cop doesn't show up, doesn't mean you get off.

However sometimes it does.....

Every case is handled on its own merits...that's the FIRST thing you need to know about laws.

Theres no way to guarantee anything to get you out of a ticket.

Being late for work isnt an excuse.
You cant claim that you didnt see the light change, because they judge will simply argue that you obviously werent paying attention if you didnt see the light in the first place.....
(and could induce more charges upon the self-guilt statement you just made,lol)

You BEST BET, is to just admit it, tell him you were late for work, you know it doesn't give you the reason to run a light, however, your judgement led you to believe you could safely MAKE the light.
However just admit you were wrong and wont do it again.

He'll likely go very easy on you...may even throw the charge out.

CAT^

No the cop will show up. A yellow light means prepare to stop. You instead went through it during the signal change. Traffic lights are set up to coincide with the posted speed. That being said you probably had ten seconds or more to stop. The officer's proof is his testimony. You can't beat that.

damonem345

In my particular case, they installed red-light cameras in my neck of the woods to catch red-light violators. While their hearts are in the right place, that does nothing for any pedestrians that end up street pizza due to a careless motorist.

Yellow lights are quite a legal battleground in traffic court. In some jurisdictions, there is such a thing as running the yellow light that is often punished as harshly as running a red light. I would first knock on wood and hope that the traffic court judge with your case on his work load is not prowling around Yahoo! Answers because you would have killed your case. The only way out of this imbroglio is right through it in traffic court and into a driving lifestyle of slamming on your brakes during an approach to a yellow light. Even if you end up getting rear-ended, at least you demonstrated that you learned your lesson about violating yellow and red lights. Good Luck!!!

Dan

If the cop fails to show then the judge will likely dismiss the ticket. However, you cannot necessarily bank on this, as the cop will likely show. The cops don't need concrete evidence that you went through a red light - if the cop says you did the judge will take his word for it UNLESS you have convincing evidence to the contrary, which you probably don't. If you go to court and lose you will be charged court costs and sometimes an increased fine than if you just pled guilty.

Rock Firestorm

Is this your first ticket?

Everyone says what you want to say. Do you actually think it's a new excuse or even valid. After the laugther dies down in the courthouse, you will lose. If you fight this ticket you will have court costs added to your fine.

Pay it and go to traffic school and it won't be on your record but you're not getting out of paying it. You seem like one of the rare smart people in here, so I suspect you'll do the right thing.

PS - and the MORONS telling you if the cop doesn't show up they dismiss it are GUESSING. This is not done. They reschedule your case, they don't dismiss it. Remember, most of the people here don't have a clue what they're talking about.

Hmmmm

it will be the cops word against yours and he wins.if he's not present the court will most likely dismiss the ticket.

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