Traffic ticket lawyers regularly field questions about what options folks might have when they've received citations. Your circumstances will determine much of what a traffic attorney will or won't encourage you to consider. Here are four of the most common answers.

Contest the Claim

If you're confident that you didn't commit the alleged violation, a traffic ticket attorney may directly contest the claim. Fortunately, there are usually several sources of potential evidence for a case.

A police cruiser usually includes a camera, and a traffic court lawyer may want to demand the video in discovery. It will show what the police officer saw in regard to the alleged offense. If another car that looked like yours appears in the video around the same time, for example, then your attorney might assert that the police can't be sure the offender was you.

Question the Equipment

Looking at equipment usually works best in speeding cases because police generally depend on radar guns to determine who was speeding. Once more, information about the equipment is discoverable. The police will have to provide logs and model numbers for the equipment. A speeding ticket attorney can then check whether the equipment was properly calibrated. Likewise, they can look at whether the specific model has a higher-than-acceptable inaccuracy rate.

Plead to a Lesser Charge

Some cases boil down to questions that are closer to judgment calls. In many of these cases, the state may be willing to consider a lesser charge in exchange for a certainty that the case will land as a win for them. For example, some reckless driving charges might plead down to a lower offense in exchange for a guilty plea.

This strategy often works best for motorists who are worried about their records. You might be facing traffic school, for example, if a full-on speeding charge hits your record. In that scenario, the possibility of pleading the case down to a failure to observe a traffic control device would feel like a win. You'd pay a fine, but there likely wouldn't be charges added to your license.

Exigent Circumstances

Claiming exigent circumstances is another viable option in some cases. For example, someone who was taking an injured person to the hospital might be within their rights to speed a bit to get to their destination sooner. Generally, though, a cop recognizes such circumstances immediately and does not press charges. However, if you ran into a stickler, a traffic court lawyer could appeal to the judge to hopefully dismiss the charges. for further information, contact a traffic attorney.

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