California Speeding Ticket over 100

What do you do when you get a California Speeding Ticket over one hundred miles per hour?   I’m a Los Angeles traffic attorney so I get calls every day from clients facing a ticket for going over a hundred miles per hour.

California Roads Most Likely to Result in 100 mph tickets

1 – LA to Vegas

The 4 hour drive though the high dessert and into sin city is California’s most likely place to get caught traveling over 100mph.   When you start your vacation, get out of the office and head up the Cajon pass you just can’t get to Vegas fast enough.   Until they build the bullet train, California driver’s seem happy to make their own.  The entire city of Barstow exists solely as a cottage industry for this commute.  If you get a ticket in this stretch of road, you have several problems.  First of all, you have to go back to Barstow for your court dates.  And when you aren’t on your way to Vegas, that trip to Barstow loses a little something.  Second and more importantly, the CHP station in Barstow is RIGHT NEXT DOOR to the courthouse.  So if you are setting your Barstow ticket for trial hoping it will get dismissed when the officer doesn’t show up, you need a new plan.

2 – LA to SF “The Grapevine”

Kern county traffic courts make a mint issuing California speeding tickets over one hundred miles per hour.   And who wants to go back to Bakersfield, Delano, or Shafter to fight a ticket?   At this point many people are ready to just pay the fine but sometimes this isn’t an option.  Most traffic courts in California require a personal appearance by you or your attorney to face the music on a ticket like this.   The primary reason for this is because the Judge will likely be asking you to hand over your license for 30 days at the end of the hearing if you are convicted.

3 – LA to Arizona

The bronze medal goes to the stretch of the 10 freeway connecting Socal to Arizona.   Once you get past Palm Springs there is nothing until you make your way to Arizona.  And this is where many people get stuck with a California speeding ticket over one hundred miles per hour.

The key to dealing with a California speeding ticket over one hundred miles per hour is to be prepared to fight your case, or hire an experienced traffic lawyer to fight the case on your behalf.  At the first appearance you will only be saying two words, “Not guilty”.   Anything else is a waste of breath.   Judges do not dismiss or waive tickets at arraignment.   You either sound like an idiot and give your meaningless explanation that they Judge won’t listen to anyway and end up pleading guilty or you do the smart thing and say “not guilty”.  The second trip to court on a traffic ticket is your trial and this is where the action happens

How to Beat a California Speeding Ticket over one hundred miles per hour

1-Dismissal is best case scenario

Dismissal could be based on officer no show, failure to bring the calibration records, lack of memory, officer in a hurry, officer’s lack of memory, legal issues, other discovery issues, not guilty verdict after trial, and more.   There  a million reason tickets get dismissed and you just need one to make your ticket go away and solve your problem.

2-Amendment to a non moving violation

Get the officer and/or the judge agree to change your charge from speeding over a hundred miles per hour to a non mover.    You avoid the 2 points, you avoid the license suspension, you don’t have to go to traffic school, and you probably get a lower fine as well.  This isn’t as good as a dismissal, but it’s pretty close.

3-Amend to 85 miles per hour

Most California traffic courts use 85 as the cutoff for traffic school eligibility.  So if you can get your ticket amended to 85 or less, you might be able to attend traffic school and walk out with zero points on your record.

4-Amend to 99mph

Any speed under 100mph will result in 1 point on your driving record instead of 2 AND most importantly, this avoids the 30 day license suspension.

5-Plead to 100 plus with some love from the Judge

Go ahead and ask the Judge what will happen if you plead guilty.   The 30 day suspension is discretionary and a traffic judge is usually more likely to use that discretion and agree to a shorter period of suspension before trial in my experience.  Sometimes you can even get a Judge to agree to zero suspension in exchange for the plea.

If you have more questions feel free to email me using attorneygallagher@gmail.com, or call us at 800-797-8406.