FAQs
- Q: Is there a guarantee? What are my chances?
A: There is no guarantee that after trial you will be found not
guilty. Depending on where you got your ticket, you are required to
appear in a specific jurisdiction. Each judge has his/her own way of
running the court room and, therefore, chances vary according to the
judge and location. It is the job of an attorney that the conditions
are as favorable as possible to obtaining a verdict of not guilty. This
may mean postponing the case (at no additional cost to you) until we
get our best chances to win. Another variable is who the police officer
is. The newer the officer, the better chance of winning. On cross-examination
of the officer it is often possible to find inconsistencies in his testimony
which will result in a not guilty. By hiring an attorney to tip the
odds in your favor.
- Q: Can I pay the fine and not get points?
A: The basic answer is no. Unless the violation itself carries
no points, such as a cell phone or seatbelt violation, you cannot pay
the fine without getting the points. Within 5 Boroughs of NYC/Western
Suffolk In Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island, The Bronx and
the western part of Suffolk – THERE IS NO PLEA BARGAINING. This means
if you win, you pay no fine and accumulate no points. If you lose, you
get both the points and the fine. Anywhere else within NYS In most places
in New York State (aside from above) THERE IS PLEA BARGAINING. This
means that we have the ability to conference your case either with a
prosecutor or the police officer himself. We are generally able to negotiate
a plea to a much reduced charge; often one which carries no points.
The better your record, the better the deal we can make with the court.
So in these instances, it may be possible to pay a fine and not receive
points. You have your best chance of minimizing the damage of a violation
with an attorney.
- Q: I don’t have a NY license – do I get points?
A: Yes. New York creates an identification number for any driver
stopped within its jurisdiction. You would accumulate the same points
as any NY licensed driver. You would have to contact your home state
to see how many points, if any, transfer. For example – For any violation
in NY by a NJ driver, 2 poitns would be transferred.
Driver Assessment Fee
If you accumulate 6 points within an 18 month period, you will be
required to pay $100 a year for 3 years above and beyond the fine.
This will be paid to NYS DMV. Any additional points will result in
an additional $25/year or $75 fee. Therefore, it is in your interests
to fight any NY moving violation even if you have a license from another
state.
- Q: What happens if the officer doesn’t show?
A: In general, the judge has the discretion to either dismiss
the summons or require you to return again. They base their decision
on:
- The nature of the violation – the more serious the summons, the
more likely you’ll have to return.
- Your record – if your record is clean, we have a better argument
for a dismissal.
- History of Reschedules – if you’ve never rescheduled this case,
it works in your favor; if it’s been administratively adjourned
before, meaning by mail, this works in your favor.
- Reason for Non-Appearance – the officers have some basic excused
absences such as: conflicting court appearance, being sick/injured
etc. If such a reason is given, you’re more likely to have to return.
The second non-appearance of an officer must result in a dismissal unless
the judge deems a substantial safety hazard would result from the dismissal.
- Q: How long do points stay on my license?
A: The short answer is 18 months for DMV and 39 months for insurance
purposes. Howeve,r if 18 months has elapsed and you still have another
open ticket which you received within the same 18 months as another,
the older points won’t drop off until the newer summons is completed.
For example:
You received 2 speeding tickets. Ticket A was issued 6/1/06. Ticket
B was issued 12/1/06. Technically, the points for ticket A come off
12/1/07 and the points for ticket B come off 6/1/08. If you do not
complete ticket B, the points for ticket A will stay on even if the
court date for ticket B is in 2008 or later. For DMV purposes, points
start from date of violation; insurance can use date of conviction.
- Q: Will it affect my insurance?
A: Each insurance company has it’s own standards. Some will raise
your insurance even for a no-point violation such as cell phone or seatbelt.
A summons for no registration or no license is almost certain to raise
your insurance with any company. For specifics, contact your insurance
carrier.
- Q: I mailed my ticket to Albany and I didn’t get it back.
A: You have 35 days to answer a summons. For the next 30 days
you will probably be required to post a $40 cash bond to secure a date.
Albany is deluged with mail and I do not recommend mailing in tickets
unless you do so by Certified Mail. You are better off either having
the attorney get you the date or going to any of the local Traffic Violations
Bureaus to check on your status.
- Q: I missed my court date, is it too late?
A: If you had a court date scheduled and you failed to appear
or failed to go forward, you will be required to post a $40 cash bond
to secure another court date within 30 days. In general, once bonded,
you or your attorney must appear. Failure to do so can result in the
suspension of your license and you’ll be required to plead guilty or
reschedule with a suspension. A suspended license will require you to
pay a $35 suspension termination fee before your license is re-instated.
- Q: I got a ticket for failing to produce insurance/license,
is that the same as no insurance or no license?
A: No. There is a separate violation of failing to produce a
required document. This is not curable by bringing/mailing in that document.
The only issue between the court is….Did you produce the document when
stopped by the police officer!!
In some cases, such as if you were really driving an uninsured automobile,
you are better off with a failure to produce summons.
A violation of driving an uninsured violation results in a mandatory
one year revocation of yoru license.
A violation of failure to produce carries no points.
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