[hibikir]

If you prefer, look at the classic traffic ticket example: In court, prior to talking to the judge, you can have a conversation with the prosecutor to change your moving violation to a non-moving violation that is a little bit more expensive. Then the insurance company doesn't get to raise your rates for the next X years.

It's ultimately the very same thing, and you will find examples of it in an overwhelming majority of US traffic courts.

[gnopgnip]

This is not the case in CA. No plea bargains in traffic court in all of the large counties.

[emodendroket]

In my experience you take a day off of work to get a long lecture and still end up with the same ticket. Guess some of us are luckier than others.

[jbob2000]

Hire a paralegal. $500 and they show up for you. Usually they are ex-cops who have good relationships with the judiciary and will do a better job of presenting your case.

Sometimes they will ask you to show up to the court house with them (if it's a tough case), but they hold your hand through the whole thing and heavily coach you on every interaction in the court room. Things like "don't look towards the officer who gave you a ticket" and "only respond with yes, no, or I don't know when questioned".

Yes, I unfortunately have some experience with this...

[volkl48]

Depends on where you are I suppose. Where I got a ticket once (Upstate NY) and it was an official policy.

If you have not had more than X tickets in Y years and choose to contest it, they would knock down minor moving violations to no-points non-moving violations, and they will knock down moderately serious (ex: tailgating, 20mph over the limit on the highway) ones to minor. You didn't need a lawyer and you didn't need any justification/evidence if you wanted to take that deal.

[emodendroket]

I live in Massachusetts and after the experience I did some reading. It seems that magistrates have a job for life with little scrutiny and frequently dole out favors to people they know. So in this respect a lawyer might have been a wiser decision.

[GavinMcG]

Or a less expensive one, in my experience.