Awhile back my wife got a speeding ticket. She is adamant that she was not speeding and wanted to contest it. She went to court and got a court day set. That day was TODAY and she completely forgot about it. Looking at the municipal court site it says a warrant could be issued and she will likely have to post bond. She called there tonight and they said it would be $300 just for that. She is going to go there first thing in the morning. Has anyone else been in this situation? What can she look forward to going through all of this? Now I wish she would have just paid the damn ticket and took defensive driving. The cherry on top of this is she wrecked her car a few weeks ago and is in fault in that accident. The cost to fix our car is $6000 and the other car is around $5500. Any idea just how fricking high our insurance is going to get jacked up after all of this? Any serious advice would be greatly appreciated.
A really sneaky way to do it is to go to court tomorrow at the same time. They'll call roll and then ask if anyone's name wasn't called. Have her walk up. They'll look at her ticket and say "maam, that was yesterday". Just have her say "are you sure?' and look back at the ticket. They'll end up resetting the case for another date. I've done this three times, and it worked everytime. And I don't get away with anything. This will work. Trust me.
Did you also call the court the day before telling them that you missed your court date??? Should Mrs. Faos also say "no that was not me who talked to your secretary about missing my court date yesterday"?
My wife called tonight before 10pm. She said the person she talked to asked her about her case number and everything. Are you SURE that wasn't recorded in any kind of way that they could bust her with it tomorrow? The other problem is the court time was around 8 at night. I hate that she would have to wait that long.
my license is going to expire june 07. i might have something on my record. will having that little something on my record affect me from getting my license renewed?
I'm assuming HPD? No way in hell they recorded that. But in the event of that .01% chance they did, all they can do is tell her to post a bond. And that's where you are now, right? I've done this with Bellaire. A MUCH smaller system. Clerks don't record crap unless you're paying something. They're Gov't, remember?
not to hijack, but what are the repercussions for missing jury duty and the 2nd notice afterwards to show up to court for missing the first, can this go on permanent record where an 85P job application can uncover that...(85P job application is for government type of jobs or locations, more extensive background check)
BTW, the clerk had to ask for her case # so she could pull it up on screen. Not to put notes in there. Trust me.
If you have a warrant, you will have to pay it before you can renew your license. But they won't arrest you at the DPS for it.
It was HPD and my wife is chicken to try your tactic, but thanks. Any idea how much our insurance we bill jacked up considering all of this? Will she still have the option to take defensive driving?
It's all on file at DPS these days, so I'd at least pay it off first. A. You won't get arrested. B. You won't get your license until it's paid.
That's a shame. It truly is foolproof. If I were you, I'd go with her. Bottom line: 99.99% chance of getting it reset for free. .01% of being exactly where you are right now.
You should have been a lawyer Fatty - you'd be a good one. How about going down there in person and just saying you forgot and can you reschedule? Plead mercy. The in-person thing wins out of a phone caller.
I'd pay the bond for the warrant straight to the court, that way you get it back when she shows up for the hearing on the failure to appear. If you pay a bond company, then you lose that money regardless. Pay the fine for the "failure to appear" (you will then get your $300 back), and hire a traffic attorney (they are usually pretty inexpensive) to get the ticket dismissed. Take defensive driving anyway, and that will help you somewhat offset (although not completely) the rise in your premius due to the accident.
Do we just use one of those traffic attorneys that have been soliciting us in the mail? I've seen them range from $50-$75. Any idea how much the failure to appear fine will be?
Maybe. Not a lawyer so I don't know if one attorney is better than the other. Not sure about the fine either, but you could probably find it here or on the back of the traffic ticket: http://www.houstontx.gov/courts/index.html
