Bumpy Road Can Cure A Tooth Ache?

A trucker from Kitchener, Ontario, came up with a novel way to cure his achey tooth.  He tied a string around it and attached the other end to the roof of his cab.  He hoped that one good bump would get it out.

His dental “surgery” was aborted when he was pulled over by a police officer who observed his tractor trailer failing to maintain its lane.  He now now facing charges of careless driving.

It could be worse, he could have been charged with reckless driving which is more serious than careless driving.

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CEO Gets Speeding Ticket (91/35) While Test Driving A Super Car (And Couldn’t Care Less)

Claus Ettensberer, CEO of CEC, a luxury car accessories company, was lucky enough to be able to test drive a Lexus LFA, a sports car with a starting price of $375,000.  The FLA has a 4.8 liter V10 engine 9,000 maximum RPM, 202 mph top speed, and goes 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds.

While test driving the LFA for 20 minutes in a residential neighborhood, Claus was stopped and issued a speeding ticket for 91/35.   As the photo and video show, he couldn’t care less about it.  He even thinks it’s funny taking a smiling photo with the issuing police officer Perhaps, when he sees the judge, he’ll feel differently.

In New York, this would be an 11-point ticket in New York and could result in a suspension even with an otherwise clean record.  In fact, in most parts of the state, up to 15 days in jail could be imposed.  The fine, surcharge and driver assessment fee for such a ticket is over a $1,000 (not that Claus has to worry about such pocket change).  In fact, Claus likely would have faced more serious charges such as reckless driving or reckless endangerment, and had his car impounded.

By the way, his speed, while high, is no where near the record speeding ticket of 242 mph.

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Speeding Tickets From Above

Suffolk County is experimenting with using of small planes to spot motorists engaging in reckless driving and other moving violations.

Spotters aboard the plane will be hovering above the Long Island Expressway looking for drivers committing offenses and, then, radioing vehicle descriptions to deputies below.

In one three-hour period, the aircraft spotters were able to help issue 88 traffic tickets, mostly for speeding.

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NBA Star Charged With Speeding 100 MPH+

Tyreke Evans is fast becoming an NBA star.  Having finished his first pro season averaging over 20 ppg for the Sacromento Kings, winning the 09/10 NBA Rookie Of The Year award and being selected to play on Team USA this summer.  Evans is only the fourth player (the others being Michael Jordan, LeBron James  and Oscar Robertson) in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in his rookie season.

He apparently also likes to drive fast having been pulled over on Memorial Day for speeding more than 100 mph.  Because his 2010 Mercedes Benz S550 has heavily tinted windows, the arresting officers approached his vehicle with guns drawn.

Evans was issued a reckless driving ticket by a California Highway Patrol officer, and then released.

In New York, speeding 100+ is an 11-point speeding ticket, the most points you can get for a moving violation and place Mr. Evans in jeopardy of being suspended.  However, a reckless driving ticket is even worse.  While it only carries 5 points, it is also a criminal charge (misdemeanor) in New York.

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Professional Race Car Driver Gets Speeding Ticket Before Indy 500

Professional race car driver Tomas Scheckter was stopped and issued a speeding ticket this Memorial Day weekend, just 2 days before he was to assume the 20th pole position in yesterday’s Indianapolis 500.

Scheckter was cruising down Interstate 65 in Indianapolis, where the speed limit is 55 miles per hour, alleged going over 100 mph.

Police also say that Scheckter was weaving in and out of traffic.  Rather than receiving a reckless driving ticket or being arrested, Scheckter was  given preferential treatment by being issued only a ticket for speed unreasonably prudent, which carries a fine of $175 to $500.

By the way, the extra practice didn’t help Scheckter too much.  He ended up finishing 15th in the Indy 500.

In case you are interested, our traffic ticket law firm has represented professional race car drivers, actors (including an Oscar-nominated actor) and Broadway stars.  Fortunately, we were able to keep their exploits out of the media spotlight and we are able to obtain favorable results for them.

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New Reckless Driving Ticket Imposes Automatic Suspension

NYC Reckless Driving Ticket

Legislators in Albany are close to passing Elle’s Law, a law designed to create a new type of reckless driving ticket by punishing those who recklessly drive and injure pedestrians.

Named after Elle Vandenberghe, a toddler, who was seriously injured by a motorist who was unsafely backing in Manhattan the wrong way on a one-way street.

If enacted, the law would impose an automatic 6-month suspension upon any driver who seriously injures a pedestrian while driving recklessly. The suspension would increase to a year for a second offense within 5 years of one another.

Currently, a motorist convicted of reckless driving ticket is considered a criminal because reckless driving is a misdemeanor.  Also, if convicted of this charge, a motorist gets 5 points added to his or her New York driver’s license.  Under the new law, these items remain the same.

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Fighting A New York Reckless Driving Ticket

Reckless driving tickets in New York are quite serious for the following reasons:

• They are criminal (misdemeanor) charges where technically you could be sentenced to jail
  
• They carry five points on your New York driver license
  
• A conviction will likely result in your auto insurance rates being increased
• Substantial fines will be imposed

The good news is that reckless driving tickets in New York City are not heard at the Traffic Violations Bureau. Therefore, a favorable outcome via a plea bargain can often be negotiated to avoid a criminal record, lessen points and keep your auto insurance from being raised.  Dismissal of these tickets is also possible when there is a defect in the original ticket filed with the court.

Our firm has fought 100s of reckless driving tickets in New York and has a favorably resolved the vast majority of them.

So what do you do if you get one?

The first thing is to be polite to officer.  Rudeness has bought many a motorist extra tickets.  Indeed, technically the officer could “run you through” the system which would mean, at least, 24 hours locked up while you wait for your case to be called.

The next thing you do is to note the court date toward the bottom of the ticket.   This is the date on which you must appear to enter a plea.  On that date, you always plead  not guilty.  It is at this time that you or your lawyer can inspect the original ticket for defects.  In New York City, the back of the ticket must establish how you were reckless driving.  A mere conclusion is insufficient.  If you are unsure, I would still ask the court for a dismissal on the grounds that it is defective.  You have nothing to lose.

If you cannot get it dismissed, then the court will often propose a plea bargain which involves no points and just a fine.  If you are offered such a deal, take it!  This will avoid the need to go to trial as well as the risk of points, a criminal record and an insurance hike.  Usually,the fine is between $150 and $300 with such a plea bargain.

Below is a list of courts in New York City which handle reckless driving tickets (also known as pink tickets).

Manhattan (New York) Criminal Court
346 Broadway
New York, NY 10013

New York Midtown Community Court
314 West 54th Street
New York, NY 10019

Queens Criminal Court
120-55 Queens Blvd
Kew Gardens, NY 11375

Bronx Criminal Court
215 East 161 Street
Bronx, NY 10451

Kings (Brooklyn) Criminal Court
120 Schermerhorn Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201

Kings (Brooklyn) Community Court
88-94 Visitation Place
Red Hook, NY 11201

Richmond (Staten Island) Criminal Court
67 Targee Street
Staten Island, NY 10301

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