I've had a couple of tickets in my time (although none in the last 3 years, knock on wood), and I always plead not guilty and take it to the judge. I also always require the officer to show up in court as well (if you plead not guilty, it's a requirement in Oregon that the officer show up anyway, if he doesn't the case is automatically dropped, you have the right to face your accuser in court). I have never hired a lawyer for a traffic ticket. The cost of a ticket does not justify the cost of lawyer and a they are very little help in traffic court anyway. I tended to get out the ticket about half the time, a lot depends on the officer and the judge.
For those who are going to flame me, the vast majority of my speeding tickets (around 10, I suppose) were ~8 years ago when I worked as an outside sales rep with extremely tight (how about unmakeable?) scheduling. My employers did not care about what tickets I got (and said so), they just wanted me to make my appointments on time. The job paid quite well and they also paid my car payments and insurance, so I kept my complaints to a minimum.
Fighting tickets is simple, although you are unlikely to win (the odds are definitely in the house's favor).
- Plead not guilty and arrange a court date. It is almost always 2+ months after you got the ticket.
- Subpoena the ticketing officer, requiring him/her to show up in court and present evidence against you. A big plus here is that if the officer doesn't show up, your case is almost always dismissed.
- Make your court date, dress nice business casual (not flashy).
- Respect the judge (it's his courtroom, he makes the rules) but do not patronize and do NOT waste his time.
- Ask short, intelligent questions, and demonstrate a knowledge and respect for the law. Always cross-examine the officer, nit-pick him on little things, but smart things like when was the last time he was trained with the radar gun, when was the last time the gun was tuned, how clear was the weather, how good was his visibility, when did he write and submit his report, etc. (remembering that the biggest mistake you can make it wasting the judge's time)
- Present your case quickly and intelligently, have it prepared beforehand.
- The judge (in almost all states) cannot look at your record before deciding guilt or innocence, but he can look at your record when determining your fine/punishment. If he offers you a reduced settlement beforehand, preferably one that involves a small fine but no ding on your record, TAKE IT.
Things to remember:
Speeding is speeding. If you get a ticket for 70 in a 55, you will NOT get off by saying that you were only doing 60.
Be smart. I once saw a guy in court lose a case where an officer said he saw the guy speeding, 65 in a 50, from half a mile back, and yet the officer said it took less than 30 seconds at 70 for him to catch up with the offender. It doesn't take a math whiz to figure out how that guy could have won his case.
And most importantly, always quietly deny that you were speeding AT ALL until you decide to change your plea to guilty.
Personally, while I think the $350 fine is excessive (how f'ing fast were you going?), I think you should take the "probation" agreement, but make sure that the probation term is one year or less AND that you don't have to face Double Jeopardy in the future (where if you fail the terms of the probation, you can be re-tried for the same offense again, very bad).
Good luck.
