anyone know the rules of newly placed traffic signs?

[hans007]

i got a ticket in southern california today. driving down a street i have driven down for 5 years and took a left turn on a green lighted intersection, completely safely.

there has been construction on the street that i was turning onto for about the past year, and i did not notice the new "no left turn" sign that had been placed there 3 weeks ago.

anyways, like the second i made the left turn a police cruiser came out and handed me a ticket.

a friend of mine said i could maybe fight it because the sign was new. i am not so sure this is true but if i could i guess it would be worth a shot. anyone know if there are any rules about new signs? i looked at the dmv site, but all i can get are what the signs mean which is well useless.

 

[Ryan]

Dude - pay the ticket and accept responsibility. WTF?~

There's only one rule - you need to obey it.

 

Originally posted by: Ryan
Dude - pay the ticket and accept responsibility. WTF?~

There's only one rule - you need to obey it.

 

[Mojoed]

I agree with Ryan and Spoof. It's a tough luck ticket, but you gotta accept responsibility. I mean the sign was there, and it's up to you to pay attention and obey the rules of the road.

Don't get me wrong, I'd hate if that happened to me, but I'd pay it and chalk up the situation as experience.

 

[dugweb]

I think it's worth a shot... but it could be even more frustrating if you don't get it revoked.

I just payed $90 in parking fee's for my college that I have been putting off for 3 months because of how hard it pissed me off! I appealed every ticket and got sent some bull crap generic email telling me I was denied. OOOOH FETCH even thinking about those frikken pieces of crap parking cops piss me off!!!!!! :| wow, I really dont know why that gets me so worked up, but even thinking about them gets me fuming :|

 

[johnjbruin]

I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

 

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

Of course he can fight....several ways. Should he?

He would be better off pleading no contest with an arrangement beforehand if his state allows it. Judge will just tell him to pay the ticket. There are other ways though..........

 

[Ryan]

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

I am a perfect driver - no citations what so ever lol

You'd think someone with your attitude would be more willing to accept that you are an unperfect being, and accept that you should have known that the sign was there, but didn't bother to notice.

 

[johnjbruin]

Originally posted by: Spoof

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

Of course he can fight....several ways. Should he?

He would be better off pleading no contest with an arrangement beforehand if his state allows it. Judge will just tell him to pay the ticket. There are other ways though..........

Well - my suggestion is you should ALWAYS fight a traffic ticket no matter what for trivial matters such as this. From what I have heard from friends and personal experience too , 25% of the time the cop does not show up anyway so you are free to go.

OTOH, sure if you are driving drunk and get a DUI ticket - then you deserve to be put in jail.

 

[Mojoed]

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

Thanks for the sarcasm. I stand by what I said above. Why the hell is it so hard for people to accept responsibility these days? People are always looking to deflect responsibility, no matter what the situation is. Whether it's intentional or not, the OP broke the law, which could have potentially caused an accident. Was there malicious intent? Nope, but that doesn't matter.

If I know I'm in the wrong, I pay my dues, even if I know I can get it thrown out. Why? It's a matter of principle. I'm more comfortable paying a fine, knowing I did the right thing, than saving myself $100 or so. Oh, and I'm not a 'perfect' driver.

 

[johnjbruin]

Originally posted by: Ryan

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

I am a perfect driver - no citations what so ever lol

You'd think someone with your attitude would be more willing to accept that you are an unperfect being, and accept that you should have known that the sign was there, but didn't bother to notice.

Sure I would 'accept' it - but is it worth an insurance spike after getting 2 points on my license - heck no.

 

Originally posted by: johnjbruin

Originally posted by: Spoof

Originally posted by: johnjbruin
I think you can fiight it.

But don't ever come to ATOT for ticket advice - folks here are 'perect' drivers and citizens who either never break the law or when they do, they always accept full responsibility for it. :roll:

Of course he can fight....several ways. Should he?

He would be better off pleading no contest with an arrangement beforehand if his state allows it. Judge will just tell him to pay the ticket. There are other ways though..........

Well - my suggestion is you should ALWAYS fight a traffic ticket no matter what for trivial matters such as this. From what I have heard from friends and personal experience too , 25% of the time the cop does not show up anyway so you are free to go.

OTOH, sure if you are driving drunk and get a DUI ticket - then you deserve to be put in jail.

25% of the time the cop doesn't show? Does your town only have one cop or something. The ticketed court date is usually based on the cops scheduled court days. You never fight a ticket unless you do it by mail. Otherwise no contest.

 

[johnjbruin]

Originally posted by: Spoof
25% of the time the cop doesn't show? Does your town only have one cop or something. The ticketed court date is usually based on the cops scheduled court days. You never fight a ticket unless you do it by mail. Otherwise no contest.

My town happens to be LA - and AFAIK LAPD is more than one cop.

Also - I never said 'how' he should fight it. Of course he has to post-pone the date at-least once or so to increase his chances.

 

Originally posted by: johnjbruin

Originally posted by: Spoof
25% of the time the cop doesn't show? Does your town only have one cop or something. The ticketed court date is usually based on the cops scheduled court days. You never fight a ticket unless you do it by mail. Otherwise no contest.

My town happens to be LA - and AFAIK LAPD is more than one cop.

Also - I never said 'how' he should fight it. Of course he has to post-pone the date at-least once or so to increase his chances.

and guess when it would be rescheduled to..................

 

[dahunan]

If you have more free time than you do money then go in and honestly give the Judge your side of the story.. He could very well lower the fine.

Nothing wrong with accepting responsibility AND at the same time asking for a lower fee...

 

[johnjbruin]

Originally posted by: Spoof
and guess when it would be rescheduled to..................

I'd still like to take my chances with it. Have done it before - and have gotten out of it before too.

 

[hans007]

look , to the first 2 of you, look i know you probably get off on telling people they did something wrong on an online message board, and ok i am willing to accept that. i guess i'm used to that on messageboards oh well.

and yes i did violate a sign. hell i even admitted doing it in the post and i am being responsible about it. all i wanted to know was if there was anything regarding brand new signs that i did not know about. that is all, since i think its an honest mistake and that it seems like just some set up ticket trap for people who have lived here a while. if there is some sort of law that says if it is new that then good for me , if not (i wouldn't have even though about it if my friend didn't mention it as a possibility) i would just pay the fine.
i dont know i was just a lot more mad about this ticket compared to other tickets i've gotten (which were all speeding) , just because of the trap-like , trivial and dumb circumstances of it.

the cop told me the signs were put up to reduce traffic, on santa monica which was crawling at like 10mph anyway. then since there are no open side streets ahead, she stops me in the middle of santa monica blvd. (which is a 2 lane street and completely crawling) for 20 minutes. then with me stopped there it made traffic far far worse.

anyways its a traffic schoolable offense so it wont show up on my record unless i get another ticket in 18 months. i have 0 ponts so its not really a big deal. back to online traffic school i go. from what i gather its a $135 ticket + all the traffic school fees = $200, not even worth my time. i guess i will do my traffic school at work.

btw johnjbruin, its veteran onto santa monica (quite possibly the most potholed confusing crap of a street right now with all the construction).

 

Originally posted by: johnjbruin

Originally posted by: Spoof
and guess when it would be rescheduled to..................

I'd still like to take my chances with it. Have done it before - and have gotten out of it before too.

I'm sure you did....:roll: and the OP should take the chance the cop doesn't show or the Judge doen't feel like enforcing the law. The cops word is gospel. If he shows and you plead NG your fvcked.

again no contest usually yields the best results unless you have time to do sh!t by mail.

 

[TheLonelyPhoenix]

Its probably worth a day of your time to go to court and explain to the judge what happened. Don't play innocent or try to imply that you shouldn't be held accountable, just tell them that you'd driven that road for many years and made an honest mistake. The judge may let you off... or not, but you don't lose anything by trying, and you do have a decent explaination. If you can consult with a lawyer beforehand, it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Oh, and the attitude of most ATOTers is that they are somehow much more careful/precise/experienced drivers than everyone else, and anyone who tries to challenge a questionable ticket is weaseling out of responsibility. In other words, ignore any trolling taking place in this thread.

 

[johnjbruin]

Originally posted by: hans007
btw johnjbruin, its veteran onto santa monica (quite possibly the most potholed confusing crap of a street right now with all the construction).

Thanks hans007 - I go onto Santa Monica from westwood many times.

I say you follow TheLonelyPhoenix's advice. He is right - there is no point arguing about it here.

 

Originally posted by: TheLonelyPhoenix
Its probably worth a day of your time to go to court and explain to the judge what happened. Don't play innocent or try to imply that you shouldn't be held accountable, just tell them that you'd driven that road for many years and made an honest mistake. The judge may let you off... or not, but you don't lose anything by trying, and you do have a decent explaination. If you can consult with a lawyer beforehand, it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Oh, and the attitude of most ATOTers is that they are somehow much more careful/precise/experienced drivers than everyone else, and anyone who tries to challenge a questionable ticket is weaseling out of responsibility. In other words, ignore any trolling taking place in this thread.

Questionable? How?

Anyway what you mean is plead no contest.

It doesn't look to be needed since he can pay the fine and take the class with no points.

 

[Mojoed]

Trolling? I hope you're kidding. Questionable? How? Just because we disagree, doesn't make me a troll. What is wrong with accepting responsibility?

It's clear you're not going to change your position, and neither am I. There are no trolls in this thread. Just some people having a discussion.

 

[dugweb]

i think the OP should have been let off with a warning. I know crap about fighting it in court, but it's very hard for me to understand why he should pay $135 especially considering the circumstances. I am extremely poor at the moment, and work for peoples change as a pizza delivery boy, so that could have something to do with my attitude towards giving up $135.

He broke the law, he was caught... BUT that is a little harsh of a punishment. I'm getting annoyed by the two guys with the attitude of 'just pay it, take responsibility'. A simple stop and warning would have accomplished the goal the cop was intending, the ticket of $135 is a slap to the face that shows just how inhuman and cruel a cop can be. Don't get me wrong, I love cops, I'm glad they are there to serve and protect, but that is outrageous! It's turning into Cop vs. Civilian. I wonder if they go back to the station and brag about screwing people over or something to that effect. $135 for a traffic violation on this level crosses the line of "were here to protect you so we penalize people that break the law" to "If you so much as step over this line ILL CUT EVERY BLOOMIN TOE OF YOURS OFF." Pretty much the cops rather than helping us, have turned the roads into communist nations, that depend very much on the mood of the current cop on duty.

though, Mojoed and Spoof are probably right, it'll probably be a waste of your time to fight it. And the cop and judge will stand there with a cocky smirk on their face and you'll be left fuming. AHHHH! lol, I frikken hate tickets like this. I think I'm as pissed off at your ticket (compounded with my recent experiences) as the OP is

 

[LeiZaK]

Originally posted by: TheLonelyPhoenix
Its probably worth a day of your time to go to court and explain to the judge what happened. Don't play innocent or try to imply that you shouldn't be held accountable, just tell them that you'd driven that road for many years and made an honest mistake. The judge may let you off... or not, but you don't lose anything by trying, and you do have a decent explaination. If you can consult with a lawyer beforehand, it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Oh, and the attitude of most ATOTers is that they are somehow much more careful/precise/experienced drivers than everyone else, and anyone who tries to challenge a questionable ticket is weaseling out of responsibility. In other words, ignore any trolling taking place in this thread.

sure you lose something by trying... When was the last time you went to court? I have better things to do with my day.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Fight it.
You might loose, but maybe they will feel some sympathy.

As long as you promise not to do it again, and that you know ignorance of the law is not an excuse, etc, then perhaps they'll go easy on you.