Negligent Driving 2nd Degree RCW 46.61.525

[br4ndond]

What is the name of your state? washington

What can I do/say in court to dismiss my ticket? Here is the info:

I have my court date on 9/6 for violating RCW 46.61.525

According to RCW 46.61.525 the max penalty is $250 BUT my ticket has $538 written on it. Is the ticket not even valid just because of this?

I got this ticket because I passed a lady. The lady, who is supposed to be important in our community, called the police and told them that my pass was dangerous...she claimed to be doing the speed limit which isn't true.

So the next day an officer comes to my house and issues me the ticket in my driveway.
Nobody has any facts or proof of me violating RCW 46.61.525. There is only this lady's word. When I passed her she was going under 30mph in a 35.

I was given the ticket on 6-20-07 and they claimed i violated on 6-19-07

So, with this information, what procedures should I take to get out of this ticket? I have 48 hours.

Thanks in advance for your guidance,

Brandon

[racer72]

According to RCW 46.61.525 the max penalty is $250 BUT my ticket has $538 written on it. Is the ticket not even valid just because of this?

The RCW lists the base fine, the county/city can add to this amount.

I got this ticket because I passed a lady. The lady, who is supposed to be important in our community, called the police and told them that my pass was dangerous...she claimed to be doing the speed limit which isn't true.

Vehicle speed is irrelevant to negligent driving, you can be cited for it going 5 mph if you are driving in an unsafe manner.

So the next day an officer comes to my house and issues me the ticket in my driveway.
Nobody has any facts or proof of me violating RCW 46.61.525. There is only this lady's word. When I passed her she was going under 30mph in a 35.

Ouch. Sux2bU.

I was given the ticket on 6-20-07 and they claimed i violated on 6-19-07

You stated the ticket was given the day after the alleged violation.

So, with this information, what procedures should I take to get out of this ticket? I have 48 hours.

You should have come here 48 days ago. You present no real evidence that the citation is faulty or not warranted. At this time you should hope the witness does not show up in court and you can ask that the citation be dismissed based on the fact is was written based on hearsay. The officer will not be there which may be to your advantage. Other that the above, you should hire an attorney, because you waited till the last minute expect to pay out the butt. If you have a clean driving record, you can ask for a deferral, keep you nose clean for a year and the ticket goes away.

[Maestro64]

Well this comes down to your word against her's. Since the officer never saw a thing he can only testify to what he did which was write a ticket. He can not testify what the lady said since that is hearsay. So the woman needs to show up at the court and she has to prove you were driving recklessly and you get to cross her and discredit her testimony . She could always not show up which would be in your benefit, but since she took the time out to have a ticket issued to you she most likely will show up.

Also, you seem to be familiar with the woman since you knew she was going slow when you passed her. You have to ask yourself is there anything you did the woman can say to convince the judge you were in the wrong.