Failure to turn - NJ Traffic ticket

Status
Not open for further replies.
L

lonekid5

New Member
Hi,

I got a NJ traffic ticket, 4-124, failure to turn. On a Friday evening with heavy traffic, I took the ramp to join the freeway and I was about to take a left turn but the car behind me occupied the space by taking a left turn and I had to go straight with little speed for a while waiting for that guy go past me and give me yield. Since ramp converted into a exit sooner than I expected, I had to drive a little into the marked course (white stripes at the intersection) to avoid an accident and finally join the freeway. The cop few hundred's feet in front of me, stopped me and gave a ticket.

Should I fight for this ticket? It is my first ticket and never had a traffic violation since I got the driver's license. Fine is $85 with 3 points, I am sure it would raise my insurance premium.

Please help me.
 
If you were unable to make the turn safely as you wanted to, you should have continued straight and turned around. Yes, the other driver may have been a jerk and took your spot, but people are allowed to be jerks.
You can avoid the points by taking traffic school and there will be no effect on your license or insurance... but you will still have to pay the fines and fees involved.
 
So do you think I should go to court or not? I already have scheduled it next month. Also, forgot to mention, the same cop stopped many other drivers for same violation but let them go with a warning. I was unlucky because I was driving unregistered car. Otherwise, I think he would have let me go with a warning as well.

So the question is, should I go to court or just plead guilty and pay the fine?
My friend suggests me to go to court and plead not guilty. He says, if lucky, I would get away with just paying fine because it is a first violation. I am also thinking of a defensive driving course after this.

Do you think hiring an attorney would help anyway with this case?

Please guide me in the direction.
 
Now you have another problem... the unregistered vehicle was reason enough for the stop regardless of how things occurred at the intersection.

You will be best off to pay the fines and attend traffic school. If you contact the court and ask about traffic school they will give you instructions. If you pay the fine in advance then you won't have to go to court. Traffic school will keep the moving violations off your record.
 
I am ready to pay the fine, but is there any way to beat this ticket or at least get off those 2 points. I have requested my complete driving record to show them as proof that I have a safe record and also willing to take defensive driving course. Can I say I did not run into the marked course? How the officer going to show the proof that I did?

How should I negotiate and with whom should I negotiate? I am new to US court system as I am not a US citizen.

Please help/guide me ... this ticket is bugging me for a while now ...thanks a lot in advance.
 
Taking the defensive driving class will keep the points off your record.
YOu have a slim chance of beating the citation, if any chance at all.
There should be a phone number on your citation for the court. Call them and ask about traffic school. They will give you instructions.
You will have to pay the fine and pay the fees associated with traffic school, and you will have to provide a certificate of completion to the court.
If you do all of this before the court date then you won't even have to appear.
 
I went to court today. The prosecutor did not even listen what I was trying to say and said "$440 - no points or pay $85 with 3 points or have a trial". I asked him if I could just pay the fine without points and take up traffic school, he did not agree. He asked me to leave the room and make a decision as many others were waiting. I left the room to make a decision and later on he called me in and offered me to pay $240 with no points or have a trial and hinted me that it would be a big mistake if I take it to trial and found guilty. Not sure it was a good deal but decided to pay $240, judge asked that if I accept the violation, lose right to trial, attorney ... etc, said yes to all and paid the fine.

1. How worse it would have been if just paid $85 and take 3 points ?
2. Do you think I made a correct decision? I wanted to have a trial but worried of another court date. Just want to do the right thing next time, if ever in same situation.
3. Now that I pleaded guilty and paid the fine with no points, will this be recorded in my driving history or will it affect my insurance premium?
4. Should I take the defensive driving course or not?

Thanks a lot for your help.
 
1. With 3 points your insurance would skyrocket.
2. Yes. You paid about the same amount as you would have if you had gone to traffic school.
3. It will show on your driving record, but if no points were assessed then it SHOULDN'T effect your insurance.
4. You should clarify with the court whether or not the violation is still reported to your insurance even though there are no points. If it is still reported to insurance, then yes, taking the defensive driving course can help. usually taking traffic school will prevent the incident from being reported to insurance. However, you can still take the class and get a certificate that may get you an insurance discount that may help to cancel out any potential increase. You should check with your insurance company to see if you qualify for a discount from a defensive driving class. I believe they have an age limit as it is typically a discount for younger drivers.
 
Also- it wouldn't hurt to contact the insurance company and just ask them if the citation will effect you or not. You won't be hurting yourself by bringing it up. If you have had a clear record for years they might give you a free pass... some agencies forgive you for a first accident but nail you with the subsequent one... it has a lot to do with frequency of violations and accidents. You might not have anything to worry about at all.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Share this page

Get a free case review from a lawyer
Back
Top