Hello All,

I was just wondering if anyone had any experiences with speeding tickets, or other violations and dealing with them in Loudoun County Traffic court. I have seen a few posts in the Fairfax forum, but my own experience is that Loudoun County is much more of a kangaroo court.

Anyway, I am asking for others to post there experiences, if they have any.

My experience briefly, was that:

1- I took the driver improvement class. No one cared. It did nothing.

2- I hired an attorney, who accomplished nothing.

3- I took the day off and went to court, which accomplished nothing.

After all of this I essentially paid the same ticket as if I had just paid the ticket in the first place.

Basically the court consisted of a lot of people going before the judge, who then would say "you're guilty, pay up."

Anyway, if you are in Leesburg, don't speed Andy and Barney are out their with there LIDAR, and if you get a ticket, don't bother fighting it. IMHO, YMMV.

peace
--B

In 2008 I was issued a speeding ticket by the Loudoun Sheriff's Dept. Strongly believed that I was in the right to argue/mitigate the charge toward dismissal. It was not to be...

1 - Did not take the driver improvement course. Had no prior VA DMV infractions.

2 - Hired an attorney, who also accomplished nothing aside from cashing my check and after advising that I would have a strong case in my favor.

3 - Burned a vacation day from work to sit in court with a county Prosecutor and Judge whom dismissed my mine and my attorney's argument in less than a minute.

Can't compare Loudoun Traffic Court to Fairfax Traffic Court... no experience for Fairfax Court.

In the end... wishing I had just accepted the speeding ticket and paid it. Would have saved the ridiculous attorney fee and had an additional day of vacation from the job. The Loudoun Traffic Court were no-nonsense that day for any of the other cases, too.

My auto insurance premium eventually increased by a couple of hundred dollars per year. It has since dropped subastantially in 2011.

Suggest to anyone reading this chain and in a similar plight? Think it through and grill any prospective attorney to the bone before electing to argue your speeding ticket in Loudoun County.

Same thing happened to me. The whole situation makes me angry. Those bastards don't cut anyone any slack. Which is great if you happen to be a cop and don't have to worry about tickets. The rest of us get the bone.

I don't mind paying the speeding ticket. But now I have these points on my license and the insurance company screws me again. Yeah, I know I was speeding, but so was everyone else.

So now, driving into Leesburg, I have to slow down to the speed limit every day, because Officer McAsshole might be out there waiting for me. And so then traffic goes streaming by me on the right and left. Its ridiculous. Outside of town the speed limit is 35 and the average traffic speed is 55. In town the speed limit is 25, on a four lane road with no pedestrians. What horseshit.

LML - thanks. Although you sound like a fan of the whole process. I am not. My reader's digest version is that the leesburg cops are asses and the loudoun county court is small minded and inflexible.

But y'awl confirmed my suspicions. I guess I have will control my speed and hopefully avoid all future conflicts with the donut-eating porcine enforcement-monkeys employed by this miserable little town.

God help them if they ever need a favor from me. I guess nobody cares about goodwill anymore. :(

another mad motorist Wrote:
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Outside of town the
> speed limit is 35 and the average traffic speed is
> 55. In town the speed limit is 25, on a four lane
> road with no pedestrians. What horseshit.


Why not drive the speed limit every day and block the traffic? A 'slowtest' if you will.

Got a ticket from a VSP trooper even though I wasn't speeding. The car approaching from behind me certainly was though. Trooper wasn't there so the court called him and he eventually showed up. He either has absolutely no memory or outright lied. I'm going with liar. Completely denied there being a car in front of and behind me, as well as all the other cars in front of and behind him. He was traveling the opposite direction. This was on Rt7 by Rt287. Additionally he doesn't have a fucking clue how radar operates despite claiming to be a radar instructor. Of course the judge being clueless about radar doesn't help any.

The judge reduced the fines for all this asshole's cases though.

To Guest ^^

I feel your concern about leo either conveniently forgetting the important details and / or stretching the truth to making shit up..

I was pulled over @ the toll booth where the 55 limit drops to 35.

As I approached the toll booth, I paced my car at about 33mph or so, and actually had a tough time picking a toll lane due to two tractor trailers also slowing down in front of me.

I finally inched my way to the cash only booth, proceeded to pay the attendant, and low and behold, I see flashing lights in my rear view mirror. This cop was stopped on my ass waiting for me to pay (at least what i thought)

So, after I paid, I accelerated and immediately pulled over. The cop followed me, and this suggested he was after me.

He came to my driver side window, and asked the usual and then said to me "Did you know you were going about 80 in a 35? I paced you"

WTF really? No you did not. I have my child in here; I do not speed, especially when my child is with me.

I went to court, and was found guilty of Reckless Driving. All because this fucking cop said he "paced" me... 300 $$ fine and on my way with 2 points. Fucking faggots. I *had* a clean record for 13 years prior to this incident...

That's why we should have cameras installed on all police operated vehicles. Shit, our tax money is being spend on more sillier things.. Why not use the revenue to pay for said LEO cams? It would serve two purposes, the State will always have a strong case against a suspect if an incident ever arises during the arrest, and it will keep the un-honest LEOs honest.

Got a ticket last night, and the cop was an ass..I was driving in Ashburn and

was barely doing 10mph over the speed limit. Seriously if this was MD, will get

a warning or something. Not a big fan of this county and cops..

Not sure if I should go to court and explain the fact that I am new to the area

and was lost. Reading the past reviews, looks like it will be wasting my pto for

this ticket.

Any suggestions if I should go to court or just the pay the fine? My only

concern is getting a point for this ridiculous tkt.

^guest D

Heres an idea...If MD is so great..GO BACK! "Barely 10mph over the speed limit"

1st that sounds like a lie.... Is 15 mph over speed limit "barely"


Also if ur cruisig in a 25 mph zone at 35 mph.... Kind of a big deal....

Slow down dummy!

i got a ticket for failure to get my safety inspection done. I promptly got it done the next day. And went to court thinking they would dismiss the ticket, they didn't. Another VA county where i got this ticket did dismiss, when i had this happen several years ago. i guess loudoun wants the money.

Nobody wins in traffic court.It is tax collection at gunpoint.Which is why I've always just sent in a money order.But remember this in the future.Maybe you'll get called as a juror.Even up the score then.......

If your going to traffic court in leesburg, bring your check book. I watched case after case before mine and answer was pretty much the same. Court fines you .... and court cost are ...
One was really good, guy ran a stop sign but sign had been knocked down and brought a lawyer with him. Judge told the lawyer to be quiet and take a seat, asked the guy did you run stop sign yes or no? answered yes- That will be $130 fine and court fee of $60 -next!

Dale Wrote:
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> If your going to traffic court in leesburg, bring
> your check book. I watched case after case before
> mine and answer was pretty much the same. Court
> fines you .... and court cost are ...
> One was really good, guy ran a stop sign but sign
> had been knocked down and brought a lawyer with
> him. Judge told the lawyer to be quiet and take a
> seat, asked the guy did you run stop sign yes or
> no? answered yes- That will be $130 fine and court
> fee of $60 -next!

Sounds like you shouldn't bother unless you plan on appealing to the circuit court. Also, you don't have to testify (like the above case where the guy admitted he ran a stop sign), but your attorney can grill the officers. that's one of the biggest benefits of having an attorney.

Sadly though, there's likely no real interest in justice in traffic court. It's about churning the docket so the court staff can go to lunch or go home at 4 pm. Good freaking luck.

Just paid off a ticket for 45 in a 25, of which I was guilty. Got the ticket between the roundabouts near Gilbert's corner, in the area between two roundabouts. It's 1000 feet between them, not a residence or child in sight, and nobody was going 25 or ever does - I've been back through several times since and it's always been the same. The cops just wait there and pick out whomever they like.

I'm tempted to call bullshit here. The speed limit is posted but it's right next to the circle and you have to have the presence of mind to note that there is no sign saying the speed limit has increased, so it hasn't. This strikes me as a moneymaking setup rather than a public safety issue. Still, not worth the time to show up in traffic court and judging by the responses in this thread, I'm glad I didn't bother.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/09/2013 08:02AM by abelard.

My story is that of a parking ticket, not speeding. After reading the earlier posts, I'm poised to just write the darned check.

We just retunred from a post overseas and had our family vehicle shipped back. We obtained a provisional registration from DMV, which would allow the vehicle to be driven between our residence and service/gas stations without the safety inspection sticker for up to 60 days. A week later, the vehcile was delivered to our house, but the interior was -- no exaggeration -- blanketed in mold. Long story short, the insurance company totaled it and the settlement money was depostied into our account. We parallel-parked the vehicle in front of our house so the insurance company's tow truck could come take it away. Unfortunately, before the tow truck showed up, a parking ticket appeared on the windshield, citing the lack of a safety inspection sticker.

We called to dispute the ticket, explaining that the vehicle was still within the 60-day window and was legal despite the lack of an inspection sticker. That's when the deputy advised that even though it is indeed legal to drive the vehicle on a public road, it is illegal to PARK it on a public road. Wha???

So then I stated that since we received the insurance settlement already, it could be argued that the car didn't even belong to us anymore -- this ticket was in fact the responsibility of the insurance company. The deputy said I could come to court to argue that point, if I liked. But based on past experiences noted in this forum, I'm thinking I should just pay the darned fine.

Got an idea. Slow down

After reading all of these posts, nobody has said "how about you slow down!"

Going with the flow of traffic? Not an excuse.
I didn't see children or pedestrians around? Not excuse.
It wasn't during school hours... Not an excuse.

Consider this...
Judges are drivers too... They are sick and tired of seeing "crazed aggressive drivers" tailgating them, speeding though their neighborhoods, driving crazy. Im tired of being tailgated down the toll road. Im tired of seeing drivers blowing stop signs in my neighborhood as if the sign is a suggestion, or an option. While many consider it a revenue generator, most would agree the cop wouldn't have even stopped you if you weren't committing the infraction in the first place.

If you hired an attorney, you just paid more than the last guy for the ticket. When you chose to live in NoVa and drive on the roadways in Virginia, you chose to accept that you would go by the rules of the road in Virginia. Unlike Maryland, you can be locked up for speeding/reckless driving here. The courts are generally more strict and harsh than in Maryland/DC. If you are found guilty, theres a very real possibility that you may go to jail, and be put in the same cell blocks as the killers, rapists and other offenders.

Someone mentioned that in Maryland they would get a warning? Not likely. In Maryland, officers are issued "ticket machines" and they can freely issue multiple citations that carry various fines at once. Maryland per AAA is one of the top ticketing states. Getting a ticket in Maryland would only mean that you would have to drive to a courthouse in Silver Spring, Frederick, or Upper Marlboro to face the music. Some of the ticket writing cops have built such a reputation and rapport with the judges that its nearly impossible to get found "not guilty." If your facing a speed camera ticket in PG, don't even bother. One judge reported to the Washington Post that there is no excuse and that everyone would be found guilty, if going before her on a speed camera ticket. Not paying speed camera tickets in Maryland often amounts to an additional charge. In DC the charges can escalate up to $250 for not paying a speed camera ticket. Many of these states are working to create a system that suspends the licenses of the scofflaws that refuse to pay tolls, speed cameras and parking tickets.

Top contributing factors to collisions/fatal collisions in America include:
Alcohol/drugs, speeding, and distracted driving. All of these behaviors can be observed on NoVa roads, as if its commonplace.

I live in a small suburban neighborhood in Loudoun. For whatever reason, motorists feel the need to drive the wrong way on the street, speed down my street all to avoid a stop sign intersection nearby. Children play in and around the street. The street is essentially an alley. At some point, one of these reckless driving motorists is going to hit a car head on (thats driving the right way I might add) or hit a small child who's playing. How will these individuals explain to the judge why they were too lazy to drive through an intersection and stop at a stop sign?

If you are speeding, and you hit someone seriously injuring/killing them, are you ready to pay out up to a million or more in lawsuit settlements, lawyer fees, and other fees? Are you ready to sell your house, your cars, have your entire life ruined because you wanted to get to work faster? A few months back in South Riding a car that was traveling at least 80+ through a neighborhood lost control and crashed into a house.

The point is, slow down. Obey the law. If your driving the speed limit, you can't get stopped.

Got pulled over in Ashburn off Ashburn Rd. where the speed limit is 40. I NEVER go more than about 45 on that road...EVER!!! Plus I had my child and wife in the car with me. I had seen a Loudoun County Sheriff cruiser when I turned on to Ashburn Rd and looked behind me periodically. There was no cruiser behind me at all for a majority of my drive down Ashburn Rd. I got to the road leading to my kids daycare, and look behind me and there are lights flashing. I was doing my usual 5-6 miles over, so no more than about 46 mph. The officer creaps up to my window as if I'm a threatening person, asked if I knew why I was pulled over, I responded with 'No.' She told me that I was 'Paced' at 57 mph in a 40...I call bullshit...like I said, I NEVER go that fast on that road...EVER!!! From the stories I hear, I'm not guilty of this, and believe that was the speed she had to go to catch up to me. I'm going to ask for a photo with my vehicle in the picture, of the speedometer showing that it was indeed how fast I was going...I know my speedometer is off by about 3 mph, but again, I was not going as fast as was allegedly paced. My court date in mid January...any suggestions?

Guest S Wrote:
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> Got pulled over in Ashburn off Ashburn Rd. where
> the speed limit is 40. I NEVER go more than about
> 45 on that road...EVER!!! Plus I had my child and
> wife in the car with me. I had seen a Loudoun
> County Sheriff cruiser when I turned on to Ashburn
> Rd and looked behind me periodically. There was
> no cruiser behind me at all for a majority of my
> drive down Ashburn Rd. I got to the road leading
> to my kids daycare, and look behind me and there
> are lights flashing. I was doing my usual 5-6
> miles over, so no more than about 46 mph. The
> officer creaps up to my window as if I'm a
> threatening person, asked if I knew why I was
> pulled over, I responded with 'No.' She told me
> that I was 'Paced' at 57 mph in a 40...I call
> bullshit...like I said, I NEVER go that fast on
> that road...EVER!!! From the stories I hear, I'm
> not guilty of this, and believe that was the speed
> she had to go to catch up to me. I'm going to ask
> for a photo with my vehicle in the picture, of the
> speedometer showing that it was indeed how fast I
> was going...I know my speedometer is off by about
> 3 mph, but again, I was not going as fast as was
> allegedly paced. My court date in mid
> January...any suggestions?

Pay the ticket and stop acting like a faggot.

Guys...I can't emphasize this enough. GET AN IN CAR DASH CAM (FRONT AND REAR)!!!

Two years ago someone sent me a youtube link to a video of car crashes in Russia. Funniest/scariest stuff I've ever witnessed...right had turns from the left hand lane, blind u-turns from the right hand lane, crazy speeding and aggressive driving...just nuts. I then figured out that it wasn't a coincidence that all these cars had cameras in them them capturing all these incidents, and found out that in Russia (and a lot of countries in eastern Europe) all cars MUST have dash cams for insurance purposes...which is how they get so much great & crazy footage.

Anyway...I immediately bought front & rear facing in car dash cams for my family vehicles (myself, wife, and son)...HD versions, and the front camera was tied into the speedometer so it recorded my speed at all times. Great side affect...my son drives like an angel (2 1/2 years and not one issue) knowing I randomly look at his recordings.

One day around 11PM I was coming home to Ashburn from Reagan airport...I was middle of the blind curve on the exit from Rt 66 to the Toll Road...it's a two lane merge and I'm come up onto a cop doing 40 in the right lane of the merge. Now I was doing about 63 on Rt 66 and slowed going into the turn/merge to around 55 and then because there was traffic on my left and I couldn't pass, came up onto the cop slowing to around 40 (it was wierd...nobody in front of him) and now slowing more to like 35...30, and we're in the middle of this turn and cars are on my bumper and I'm on the cops bumper and we all have our blinkers on waiting for the left lane to clear so we can go around him. It was just strange. So then the cop pulls to the shoulder and I step on the gas and get out of there because I'm just waiting for a rear end collision to happen behind me...as soon as I pass the cop, he lights 'em up and speeds behind me and pulls me over.

Officer comes up and is clearly angry...says I was driving dangerously, following too closely, aggressively driving, etc. All I said is I was confused as to why he was going so slow on the turn...that we were all piled up behind him trying not to get hit from behind. He wrote me a ticked with multiple charges...I didn't say a thing, but it was a doozy. He had no idea that I had the whole thing recorded.

Long story short, I showed up at FFX County Court...no lawyer, but requested a TV and DVD player. Had my video backing my entire story (it looked worse for the cop on video). I show my video and the judge (I think his last name was Minor?) asks the cop what was he doing there. The cop sputtered something and the judge asked again why he was going so slow in a 55, told him it was dangerous, and waited for an explanation. It was probably one of the most satisfying moments I've had in my life. The cop had nothing...all charges dismissed. Damn that felt good...

Anyway...Dash Cam can only help you in these cases...and you MUST get it tied to your speedometer reading. If you're guilty...doesn't matter pay your fine and move on. But if you're not, you have evidence to help you.

That is awesome. Did you install the cams your self? I have been wanting to buy some cameras for my car too... where is a good place to buy and to have installed?

Thanks!

JC34 Wrote:
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> That is awesome. Did you install the cams your
> self? I have been wanting to buy some cameras for
> my car too... where is a good place to buy and to
> have installed?
>
> Thanks!

These cameras can EASILY be installed themselves. When I say "tied to your speedometer", I mean get one that can calculate your speed (and display it on the recorded image along with time/date)...or you can turn your speed off.

My requirements were:

1. Low Profile - some of these camera's are fantastic...but have big suction cup plus arm attachments to stick to your front/rear windshield. I didn't want anything that clunky...preferred something that hooked to the back of the rear view mirror (front) or sat on the front and rear dash.

2. Wireless - Tied to an app (I'm a Droid guy) that downloads files on request. Mini-USB port as a backup (to download directly to computer).

3. Heat Resistant - Made this mistake with my first purchase...was reading installation instructions and realized that during the summer I'd have to take the unit out everytime the car was left in the sun. No Thanks! Sent it right back and bought a heat resistant model. Get one that can handle 140 degree heat (typical summer day temp inside a car with windows rolled up).

4. HD and low light capable - important for obvious reasons. Got an agressive ahole driver harassing you? Here's the video officer with his make/model/license plate number clearly visible.

5. Lithium Ion battery - Don't want to have to drive with the thing plugged in constantly.

6. Mini-SD slot - Fixed memory units (unless it's loaded with RAM) wasn't something I wanted. I bought units that had mini-SD and jammed a 64GB card into them right away.

Cost varies from $100-$300 per...use this website to compare and see reviews:

https://www.ezvid.com/top-ten-car-dash-cams?id=ezcardashcameras-20&gclid=Cj0KEQiA6JemBRC5tYLRwYGcwosBEiQANA3IBwk5AdlKZtdqQAifBOOYYJMJp_Y15MNBKA16BILa5skaAkYc8P8HAQ#four

Best money I ever spent.