J
janna30
Guest
I am licensed to drive in the state of virginia. In the past 2 1/2 year I have received 4 speeding tickets, three of them in 18 months. I never went to court for any of them and therefore did not get the charge dropped to something lower. When I got the last speeding ticket, my license was on probation.(ending at the end of that month) The police officer charged me with reckless, going 40 in a 20 mph zone. It was a school zone and I did not see the lights flashing. Supposedly I was pulled over at 850 and the lights stop flashing at 8:55. I never saw them flashing at all. My license will most likely be suspended for 3 months when the charge goes through. All the tickets I have are at low speeds.I spoke with a lawyer and he suggests plea bargaining. I am ok with that, because even if the light was not flashing, I was still speeding (even if not intentionally). My question is, can I plea bargain with the Commonwealth attorney myself or do I need to hire a lawyer for $500 + dollars. I already went to court and got a continuance-- and the police officer said it was being tried as a non-jailable offence. I can deal with the suspension of my license, but I would prefer not to go in front of the judge if possible. Also, where can I find more information on plea bargaining traffic offenses in Virginia. Thanks for your advice.