Fine on ticket incorrect

Reside in PA, got ticket in NC

I got caught doing 86 in a construction zone where the speed limit was posted as 55, and the fine was posted as $250. On the ticket the officer wrote $250 in the box for the Amount of Penalty/Fine, drew a line through the box for Court Costs, and wrote in $250 for the total. As per the instructions I sent a $250 Money Order to the Clerk of Superior Court, Durham County. They sent my money order back saying that I owe an additional $90 in court costs. I called and spoke to someone in the clerks office who said "too bad, you owe $340."

I'm guilty and want to pay my fine, but obviously want to minimize what I have to pay. Do I have a leg to stand on? I am not going down to NC to fight this.

Any advise is appreciated, thanks.

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by tholdorf
Reside in PA, got ticket in NC

I got caught doing 86 in a construction zone where the speed limit was posted as 55, and the fine was posted as $250. On the ticket the officer wrote $250 in the box for the Amount of Penalty/Fine, drew a line through the box for Court Costs, and wrote in $250 for the total. As per the instructions I sent a $250 Money Order to the Clerk of Superior Court, Durham County. They sent my money order back saying that I owe an additional $90 in court costs. I called and spoke to someone in the clerks office who said "too bad, you owe $340."

I'm guilty and want to pay my fine, but obviously want to minimize what I have to pay. Do I have a leg to stand on? I am not going down to NC to fight this.

Any advise is appreciated, thanks.

My response:

Well, you say that you're not going to NC to fight the ticket, and the Clerk told you to, in effect, "bite rocks." So, if that's the case, what could we possibly tell you? Even if we had some "magical" advice for you, courts don't hold hearings by mail. They expect all parties, and officers, to physically appear in court on contested matters.

So, since you're not going there, the only other recourse is to pay the total amount.

IAAL

Some states allow for trial by declaration which basically means a trial by mail. You mail in your testimony to the court. I'm not sure if NC allows this but you might look into it.