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More Evidence That Excessive Traffic Tickets are a Serious Problems

Posted on Oct 28, 2015 in Speeding Tickets, Traffic

No one likes getting a ticket, but the issuance of tickets is generally justified by the argument that law enforcement needs tickets to enforce traffic safety laws. What if police aren't motivated by public safety, however, but are instead trying to meet ticket quotas to fill holes in government budgets? This is happening more and more across the nation, leading to aggressive ticketing and sometimes to drivers getting ticketed even when they don't deserve it. One recent news report revealed that it is not just motorists who are fed up with over-ticketing -- some judges are also getting increasingly frustrated by the practice as well. If you get a traffic ticket, it may be undeserved and you may be able to fight it. Many drivers are able to avoid the consequences and penalties and get their tickets thrown out. A New Orleans traffic tickets lawyer can help you explore your options for fighting a citation, so call an attorney as soon as you can after you get your ticket.

Judge Quits Over Excessive Traffic Ticketing

CBS reported that a retired municipal judge contacted the station after it had run a story on small town police departments that were supporting their police force almost entirely with ticket revenue. The judge told the reporters that he actually retired because of the ticketing quotas and the excessive ticketing that was going on. The judge was serving as a volunteer municipal court judge in a small town in the middle of a triangle of towns that were “huge ticket-writers.” There was one reserve officer who worked on Fridays and Saturdays every other weekend who wrote more than 100 citations to motorists passing through the area. The judge would go to work every week and was forced to handle the huge “tidal wave” of speeding tickets that were pushed through on the weekend. Not only did the judge have hundreds of tickets to deal with all the time, but he also said he was facing pressure from officials working for the city to push the tickets through the municipal court system. The city officials were dependent upon the revenue from the tickets and the judge described the pressure to collect the fines as “excessive.” He also indicated that the mindset of many small towns, including the one where he worked, was that people would generally just pay rather than fight the tickets. The towns counted on that because otherwise, the municipal court would become too backed up and would lose out on money they needed to support local government. This story is a familiar one not just in this small town, but in small and large towns and cities nationwide. Traffic revenue is a major source of money for municipalities and the temptation to ticket excessively to fill budget shortfalls is strong. Drivers should not just let cities get away with using their pocketbooks as banks. If you get a ticket, talk with a traffic tickets lawyer and fight the fine and citation whenever you can so you can keep your clean driving record--and your cash.

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