How should I proceed with my tickets?

[Strekoza]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
New York

Hi guys,
About two years ago I had my first ticket when I was late for a college class and was pulled over for going somewhere in the 60s in a 40mph area. I was terrified and after speaking with a classmate he suggested an attorney to me. The attorney charged a flat fee of $390.00 and explained that while they almost never lose, there is a very small possibility. Of course never having been in a situation like this I immediately accepted and went on with my life. About a month after that, I was stuck in huge traffic on my way home, we weren't even moving and as I took out my phone to dial a number (I have bluetooth in my car) immediately a cop jumped out of the bushes and pulled me over. This time I got extremely angry and told the cop that "it was bull****!" Obviously he had to be an ******* and take advantage of his privileges, so he decided to give me a ticket for a bike rack I had claiming that it was obstructing my number plates (even though it clearly wasn't) in addition to the cell phone ticket. About a month after that I was driving home and as they say: "when it rains it pours!". Again I get pulled over on my way home by some cop camping under a tree. He claimed that I was going 50 mph in a 35 mph area and was too close to the guy in front of me. I tried to stay calm because I didn't want my last situation to repeat itself again and he said he'll give me a break, giving me a ticket just for the speeding (Yay! He did me a huge favor...). I immediately ran to another lawyer that my friend suggested and handed her these tickets to fight as well. This one charges 200$ per ticket, but said that she takes half of that as a deposit for each. So they've been moving court dates for almost two years now and I almost forgot about all those tickets, thinking it was over with. Finally, the first lawyer called me to tell me that I had to pay another 40$ to reschedule the court which I agreed to pay immediately. He called me back after the court to tell me that he failed and that I had to pay the ticket anyway. Whatever... That's about 600$ down the drain all together. Now I get something called a driver responsibility assessment claiming that they want to jerk off another 300$ from my wallet just because they can... So my question was, would it be smarter to pay the DRA all in one shot or split it into three payments of 100$/year? I really don't have extra money right now, but if it will extinguish my debt so at least when the other tickets process I won't have to pay even more counting after the 6 points I already paid I would be able to find the money. If it is all the same I would rather pay the minimum 100$/year. Now I called my second lawyer to find out about my other two tickets and she told me that she will take the 200$ that I put down for both of them towards only the speeding ticket and if I wanted her to go to court with the cell phone/bike rack ticket she wants another 200$. I don't have unlimited funds to be paying them for nothing, so I am starting to consider just going to court myself about this one. Do you guys think it is even possible for me to win? I have a medical condition and can provide paperwork in court about it, any advice would be appreciated.
Nowadays, I have to drive like a turtle because I realize my license is hanging on to a hair and am always extremely paranoid, to the point that I stop concentrating on the road every time I see a cop because I think he is about to be on my ass about something else. I know this is long, but it's a tough situation to be in and I know nothing about the law besides that it's a whole lot of money to be paying for "something that could have happened". So please guys, if anyone of you has been in a similar situation let me know what I should do.
Thanks!

 

[Zigner]

If you are so terrified of the police that you lose focus on your primary responsibility while driving (namely, DRIVING), then you really ought not be on the road.

 

[Strekoza]

If you are so terrified of the police that you lose focus on your primary responsibility while driving (namely, DRIVING), then you really ought not be on the road.

Please let me be the one to decide if I should be driving, or not. In my 6 years of driving I have not been the cause of a single accident.
Thank you!

 

[Zigner]

Please let me be the one to decide if I should be driving, or not. In my 6 years of driving I have not been the cause of a single accident.
Thank you!

Kid, in my 30 years of driving I have not been the cause of a single accident.

If you cannot safely drive because there's a law enforcement officer near you, then you shouldn't be on the road. Really.

 

[Strekoza]

Kid, in my 30 years of driving I have not been the cause of a single accident.

If you cannot safely drive because there's a law enforcement officer near you, then you shouldn't be on the road. Really.

Thats great Zigner! I'm not trying to compete with you on who drove more years without an accident and never did I suggest that you stop driving. I was simply asking for advice on what I should do in a field that I know nothing about, in hopes that someone who has already been in a similar situation or knows how the DMV operates (perhaps another officer, who isn't corrupt like the ones who I've been unlucky enough to run into those times)...

 

[Zigner]

Thats great Zigner! I'm not trying to compete with you on who drove more years without an accident and never did I suggest that you stop driving. I was simply asking for advice on what I should do in a field that I know nothing about, in hopes that someone who has already been in a similar situation or knows how the DMV operates (perhaps another officer, who isn't corrupt like the ones who I've been unlucky enough to run into those times)...

Speak to your attorney(s)

 

[Strekoza]

Speak to your attorney(s)

Ok, Thanks a lot Zigner! You have been nothing but helpful.

 

[Zigner]

Ok, Thanks a lot Zigner! You have been nothing but helpful.

You're quite welcome...glad to be of service.

 

[not2cleverRed]

The cops aren't corrupt. You're just a lousy driver. Stop speeding and keep your hands off the phone.

Oh, and now that it's tourist season, don't drive like a tourist on Long Island.

 

[Strekoza]

The cops aren't corrupt. You're just a lousy driver. Stop speeding and keep your hands off the phone.

Oh, and now that it's tourist season, don't drive like a tourist on Long Island.

You're definition of a lousy driver obviously differs from mine. I believe that a driver is responsible for his actions, not for what could have happened. Example: if you were to kill someone on the road because of your mistake, you deserve to go to jail for life. Not: "You were going so fast you could have killed someone... Thats why you're getting a ticket." I didn't kill anyone so there is no reason for me to be getting punished. Yes they are corrupt, at the very least they should follow those "laws" that they have a whole career out of punishing other people for not following. Yet, I constantly see them speeding, texting, running red lights just because they can. While normally I could care less about another person it really pisses me off that their whole paycheck comes from taxes that get pulled out of mine and all they do is sit under a tree with their lights off in hopes of pulling someone over for going 1 mile over the speed limit and jerking off more money. All that while another person around the corner is getting raped/mugged/murdered, they could care less. So please stop giving me useless advice, if you don't have anything productive to share it's best you don't share anything. The last thing I came here for is to receive another grade on my driving.

 

[Zigner]

You're definition of a lousy driver obviously differs from mine. I believe that a driver is responsible for his actions, not for what could have happened. Example: if you were to kill someone on the road because of your mistake, you deserve to go to jail for life. Not: "You were going so fast you could have killed someone... Thats why you're getting a ticket." I didn't kill anyone so there is no reason for me to be getting punished. Yes they are corrupt, at the very least they should follow those "laws" that they have a whole career out of punishing other people for not following. Yet, I constantly see them speeding, texting, running red lights just because they can. While normally I could care less about another person it really pisses me off that their whole paycheck comes from taxes that get pulled out of mine and all they do is sit under a tree with their lights off in hopes of pulling someone over for going 1 mile over the speed limit and jerking off more money. All that while another person around the corner is getting raped/mugged/murdered, they could care less. So please stop giving me useless advice, if you don't have anything productive to share it's best you don't share anything. The last thing I came here for is to receive another grade on my driving.

Alrighty then

 

[Eekamouse]

You're definition of a lousy driver obviously differs from mine. I believe that a driver is responsible for his actions, not for what could have happened. Example: if you were to kill someone on the road because of your mistake, you deserve to go to jail for life. Not: "You were going so fast you could have killed someone... Thats why you're getting a ticket." I didn't kill anyone so there is no reason for me to be getting punished. Yes they are corrupt, at the very least they should follow those "laws" that they have a whole career out of punishing other people for not following. Yet, I constantly see them speeding, texting, running red lights just because they can. While normally I could care less about another person it really pisses me off that their whole paycheck comes from taxes that get pulled out of mine and all they do is sit under a tree with their lights off in hopes of pulling someone over for going 1 mile over the speed limit and jerking off more money. All that while another person around the corner is getting raped/mugged/murdered, they could care less. So please stop giving me useless advice, if you don't have anything productive to share it's best you don't share anything. The last thing I came here for is to receive another grade on my driving.

Wake up, O' Arrogant One. Driving is a privilege, not a right. You have to follow the laws like everyone else if you expect to operate a motor vehicle.

 

[Strekoza]

Wake up, O' Arrogant One. Driving is a privilege, not a right. You have to follow the laws like everyone else if you expect to operate a motor vehicle.

Lol, not one relevant response...
Driving is an "earned privilege", cars don't get handed to you and nor does anything that comes with owning a car. That is exactly my point, if everyone has to follow the "laws" then shouldn't that apply to cops as well? Especially since they are supposed to be setting an example for us.
Also, if I didn't want to follow the "laws" I wouldn't be on here asking for advice on how to pay my ticket...

 

[not2cleverRed]

I'm just hoping you're not a math major, because 50 - 35 = 15 and 60 - 40 = 20. In other words, the cop wasn't biding his time for someone going just 1 mph above the speed limit.

Your potty mouth and attitude have contributed to your problems. There are many reasons why first responders are allowed to bend the driving rules. This is not hypocrisy. This is because getting to where they are going is more important than you getting to your underwater basket weaving class on time.

My legal advice is to start driving the speed limit, or slower if conditions merit it, and to approach people in positions of authority with respect.

 

[Strekoza]

I'm just hoping you're not a math major, because 50 - 35 = 15 and 60 - 40 = 20. In other words, the cop wasn't biding his time for someone going just 1 mph above the speed limit.

Your potty mouth and attitude have contributed to your problems. There are many reasons why first responders are allowed to bend the driving rules. This is not hypocrisy. This is because getting to where they are going is more important than you getting to your underwater basket weaving class on time.

My legal advice is to start driving the speed limit, or slower if conditions merit it, and to approach people in positions of authority with respect.

No, I'm not a math major. All I said was that the cop claimed I was going at the speeds mentioned, that doesn't automatically make it true. There is no reason why they should bend the rules any more than I should. Basically, anyone who get's a city job starts to think they can do whatever they want (wether it's a bus driver who hit's a cyclist and get's away with murder because "he didn't see", USPS workers who sit behind bulletproof windows and behave like total *******s, or construction workers who create 99% of the traffic in NYC every single day so they get paid for their worthless time at my expense, etc...). So yes, hypocrisy is exactly what it is! Where are they going that's so important? Trying to make it in time for happy hour in Applebees?
Thanks for your advice! Unfortunately, I already have no choice but to follow it about the speed limit. As for respect, I doubt i'll ever have any for them, since I'm not the one who gave them that authority in the first place and would take it away in a heartbeat.