***Sorry this has nothing to do about fit*******

I recently moved to Cali, and i got a call from my family member saying i received a ticket. ( Havent changed my address yet so ticket went to GA)

I was charged for failing to stop for an official red traffic control signal.

Back in GA, if no car was in sight at red light i usually didn't come to a complete stop (slow roll) and never got a ticket for that even at a camera light.

My question is, what should i do at court. I am receiving two citation for two different days of the same charge....Yeah i know i f'ed up but i had no idea i was doing something wrong until i got this citation and another one coming on the way since i noticed the flash two days ago.

On the ticket it says i am eligible for traffic school but i doubt i will be on the second one that i think is coming on the way.

I know i am wrong and will pay for my mistake, but i am worried about the point situation.

Should i try and ask the judge to drop the two tickets for going to Traffic School and pay both fines?

Thanks.

 

red means stop. everywhere...

I am pretty sure it's the same in GA, but not enforced.

i believe in NY red light means no turn on red period.

looks like you're just going to have to suck it up... unless you can prove rolling through a red light is legal.

 

NY state you can, NYC you can't.

 

The right turn on a red regulations should be standardized across North America.

Some regions will allow vehicles to turn right on a red after they have come to a complete stop while other regions will not allow the right turn... the light must turn green or a green arrow.

Not stopping at a red light or stop sign is called a rolling stop and is considered illegal.

I think the best approach is to admit you were not aware of the local regulations (don't use this an excuse) and agree to attend the traffic school... then ask for some leniency on the points.

 

there is a name for that rolling stop - referred to as a "California stop"--you have to physically stop the car not roll thru the light/ stop sign

 

I doubt you'll be able to argue your way out of it, but it's at least worth showing up to court. Just plead ignorance and ask the judge if he'll decrease the fine (unlikely, as it's just a tax-collecting racket, not a real safety concern,) AND keep the points off your license (more likely.)

I got popped twice in the same month by the same cop last year. Not BLOWING a stop sign or anything, but a slow roll in an area with lots of visibility. Gotta keep the car moving for hyper-miling's sake, right? I went to court. Cop didn't show up, but they claimed to have video, and I didn't call their bluff. Got the judge to call the fine "court costs" so there's no record of the ticket, no points, etc.

Interestingly, back here in GA, a lot of communities are removing red light cameras:

Future Not So Bright For Georgia Red Light Cameras « GeorgiaTrafficLawyer’s Weblog

Best of luck! Pay up but keep those points off. Whatever you do, get your CA license if you haven't already. That's another ticket if you get popped, and it'll hurt.

 

Sorry to hear...that sucks! Am I understanding you correctly that you received the tickets/citations in the mail and that you were not pulled over by a cop? I do know that here in NY, if you were to get a ticket in the mail from one of those red light cameras, there are no points involved because they cannot prove that it was you who was driving the car. They send the ticket to the address of the registered vehicle. Anybody could be driving your car...mother, brother, sister, friend...so they can't give you points.....Is this not the same in Cali? How do they prove it was you who was driving the car at the time of the infraction? Now if you got a ticket from a cop who pulled you over...that's something else...

 

in socal, the camera tickets i've seen actually show the driver of the vehicle very clearly, and from a few angles. but it could depend on the intersection you get caught at, some cities have more money and are better equipped than others it seems.

you could try to argue that you were stopped at the light to make a right, but you were stopped on the line, which triggered the camera.

i know someone who used this argument before, and it worked for him. in his case, it was what had really happened. the light turned yellow and he stopped just over the line to make a right, then the light turned red and took his photo while he was still stationary in the same place.

was the light yellow when you approached the intersection or was it red the whole time? if it was red, i didn't know the camera would trigger, and i don't know if you could use this argument.

 

go to Fight Traffic Tickets / Contest Traffic Tickets with the Ticket Assassin: Your Guide to Fighting California Traffic Tickets & Contesting Traffic Citations in California and beat it

If I were you, I would fight them by mail using written declaration. Tell the judge that you were preparing to move to CA so you were practicing making "california stops." The judge will probably laugh and dismiss your ticket.

Also, don't use the F word in court or anywhere ever again, because it makes you look like a F.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by doctordoom

in socal, the camera tickets i've seen actually show the driver of the vehicle very clearly, and from a few angles. but it could depend on the intersection you get caught at, some cities have more money and are better equipped than others it seems.
you could try to argue that you were stopped at the light to make a right, but you were stopped on the line, which triggered the camera.
i know someone who used this argument before, and it worked for him. in his case, it was what had really happened. the light turned yellow and he stopped just over the line to make a right, then the light turned red and took his photo while he was still stationary in the same place.
was the light yellow when you approached the intersection or was it red the whole time? if it was red, i didn't know the camera would trigger, and i don't know if you could use this argument.

Friend tried to contest and they showed her the VIDEO.

 

Was there a no turn on red sign?


I didn't know there were such things as rolling stop cameras.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies. No there was no "No turn on red" sign.

I will most likely try and admit fault and try and take the traffic class to see if the judge will let me just pay the fine/take the classes and drop the points.

Dam this sucks though, first time moving out and living on my own and i get this....I guess i'll be eating ramen noodles for a good bit.

Thank you everyone. will let you know how it goes in court.

 

member in another forum posted this. Guess i am fucked either way. (Money or points situation)

snopes.com: 2011 California Traffic Ticket Fines

jesus christ. over 800$ i'm looking at.

 

They are "stop light" cameras. They catch everything that happens when a vehicle doesn't stop.

Also, red means stop so whether or not there was a no turn on red sign, coming to a complete stop before proceeding is a requirement. (I believe the requirement is 2 full seconds before proceeding). The no turn simply means that after you've completed your 2 second stop, you can't go until green.

~SB

 

No expert on California law but just a suggestion- if you've been in California for more time than you're supposed to be there without changing your license and registration you might want to do that before you go to court, in case the judge asks these questions... because that's another rule broken that won't make you look good.

You can always say that had there been a cop issuing the ticket, one ticket would've changed your behavior immediately, but you didn't know about the first violation until you'd already committed the second one.

Humility counts. Despite your belief that the Constitution provides you with the presumption of innocence, traffic court judges will assume that everyone who comes in is guilty, because that's pretty much true. They'll also believe that you're probably lying, because a lot of people do. And they'll believe whatever cops say, not because they believe that cops are honest but because the whole system breaks down if judges stop believing cops.

 

One thing to look into: A lot of the traffic cameras are not actually owned by the city/county they're located in. They're often owned and operated by third party companies that are simply collecting revenue and taking a skim off the top. Look carefully at the tickets that were sent to you, and if they're from some third-party, you might do some research to find out what legal ground they actually stand on, which likely is little to none.

So certainly attempt to dispute or go to court. If it's one of the third-party revenue collecting companies, they'll likely just drop it if you make ANY sort of fuss. If it's actually a city or county run camera, you'll be faced with the plea bargaining in court mentioned earlier in the thread.

 

check this site out http://www.highwayrobbery.net/


Also, fwiw, my gf got a ticket for turning on a "no turn on red" and it cost her about $500 for the ticket/traffic school. This was about 4 months ago in San Diego.

 

I am aware of the rules, but damn... they just have cameras just sitting there on record 24/7?? It has to be privately owned if that's the case. I know the photo cameras use lasers.

 

What a bunch of bull. I get pissed at the red light cameras here in Illinois and they are only $100 and no points but it still pisses me off. I've never gotten a ticket but now I'm afraid to ever turn on red even when it is legal after a stop. I just sit at the stupid intersection until the light turns green. These lame ass cameras are just there to make money, it's a guaranteed $40,000 a month for the city. For each one they put up. As many as 98% of the tickets are from 'turn on red' which are statistically shown to cause almost no accidents. It's there for money, not safety. I can't believe these things aren't getting vandalized yet.

 

I hesitate turning on right at red light camera intersections... but I usually do it anyway (after the short hesitation). Of course, only when there's no "no turn on red" sign.

What bothers me, the eastbound Willow onto Milwaukee camera. it's flashed me twice while coming to a stop! The first time, I overshot the stop line by about two feet (my wheel was touching the stop line). But it flashed on me just as my wheel had touched the line (cause I was crawling at that point). The second time, I had purposely slowed down much earlier to crawl even longer... hadn't even made it to the line... FLASH!

WtF!

At least, I haven't gotten a ticket for either of those.

But, I always come to a stop on red lights, flashing reds and stop signs... no matter what I'm doing (ie turning right). There's ONE exception. The intersection of Green Bay and Tower. 99% of the time, I'm on GB, turning onto Tower, only to turn onto GB again (GB shifts over at that intersection). The thing is... there's a full sequence for Green Bay (GB uses green and yellow arrows on the right-turn part, which is the second half of the intersection)... followed by a full sequence for Tower Rd. In between, there's a second between the yellow arrow and the normal green light. I'm turning right... both sequences give me the right to turn... except for that one damn second in between. That's the light I normally blow through without stopping. After Tower gets its sequence, sometimes, there's a walk sequence (ALL stop, only walk allowed, push button or "random" winter programming)... then I actually stop for that light. But, the thing about that part... 99% of the time that I'm caught on a walk light, I'm stuck at the left turn section... so I can't do anything anyway.