Well, it was just a matter of time, given that I spend an average of 2 hours in the car every day. It's like those nature shows with the gazelles running across the river full of crocodiles, you just do it and hope that it wont be you that gets caught.

Well I got stopped by a state cop on Sat. morning going west on the 267 tollroad right near exit 11. Said he paced me doing 75 in the 55. He was one of these guys you see in movies, never changes facial expressions, reads the same line that he's probably read 50 times that day, and gives me the full ticket. Wreckless for doing exactly 20 over. I followed all the steps to get out of it, hands on the wheel, engine off and keys out, ask before i reach for anything, yessir nossir thank you officer, ect. But no break.

So next month I have court. I'm 19. It's my first ticket, and I don't have much money at the moment, so my plan is to go by myself and plead not guilty. If he shows up, then I'll plead guilty with explanation. I'm pretty sure I can get someone to calibrate my speedometer to be off by a couple miles. Even with that, I will admit guilt, say it wasn't on purpose, following flow of traffic and I wasn't paying attention, stuff like that. I think it will be more helpful to me if I take traffic school after court, because this might be part of the punishment and he might drop the charge to speeding.

What do you guys think? Solid plan? I know there is still a high chance of being raped in court, VA is famous for it. Would you recommend a lawyer for this? How much would that cost me?

Guilty and ask to say a few words/explanation. I was in the EXACT same situation as you a few years ago (Reckless 75/55, Faquier Co.). I plead guilty and asked for an explanation. The judge dropped it to 70/55 and I paid ~$130 and went home.

People's Republic of Virginia SUCKS. Absolute crap that reckless is purely defined by speed. What a joke.

Don't be a fool by trying to get someone to say your speedometer is a few mph off ... what that tells the judge is that you are admitting guilt, but aren't really wrong.

My advice, from experience, is go in and say "I'm guilty, I was speeding ... I have no excuses, I just made a mistake"

They generally like to see you throwing yourself on the table and admitting that you are completely wrong, not trying to make excuses. Good luck, and sorry that you live in VA where 20 over is wreckles -- ouch

I thought 22 over or 80 mph was wreckless.
Your speedo is already conservatively high.

I thought 22 over or 80 mph was wreckless.
Your speedo is already conservatively high. It's 20 over except in 35mph zones where 25 over is reckless. Anything over 80 is also reckless.

first ticket...i was 18 had my car for a month....71 in a 50...pure luck...cop gave me 18 over...no reckless...but its soooo easy to speed on fairfax cty parkway...

They generally like to see you throwing yourself on the table and admitting that you are completely wrong, not trying to make excuses. Good luck, and sorry that you live in VA where 20 over is wreckles -- ouch

I would not throw myself to the mercy of a Virginia traffic judge as a 19-year-old BMW driver with a reckless ticket.

I would, however, take an online driver's improvement class before court. I would also have your parents come with you because it helps when the judge sees that your family is supporting you. Also, how important is this to you? A lawyer could be as cheap as $250 and could make it all go away.

I once was in court when a kid had his family with him and the judge gave him the full fine and points plus court fees after he said "You should be here taking care of your own mistakes, not causing them more trouble than you already will with the increase in insurance this ticket is going to have to make them pay"

It really depends on the judge ... i strayed away from lawyers and always went in and just said I was wrong and had no excuses. I always got off, but that won't be the case for everyone

I would not throw myself to the mercy of a Virginia traffic judge as a 19-year-old BMW driver with a reckless ticket.

That's the reason I wanted to ask advice. In most cases, admitting to everything and saying sorry will get the charge lowered. In good old VA I've heard a lot of stories that they don't care, they have no mercy.

Right now I'm hoping for a nice judge, it seems that's the biggest difference between getting it lowered or not. I don't know how a lawyer would be able to get me completly out of it, it was raining that morning so 75 is even worse, and 20 is enough over that I doubt they would let it slide. I figure if I show up with a lawyer, it makes me even more of a stereotype bmw driver and they might just as easily give me the full penalty.

then again I have no experience with lawyers or traffic court, and it seems VA is so crazy that a lot of things work the opposite way of what you would expect.

An interesting thing, I have 2 friends who just went to court for wreckless in Arlington, and another friend of mine got a wreckless 3 days before I did in Fairfax. None of them have ever gotten tickets before. They are ages 19,20, and 26. The two that went to court already didn't get it lowered. This really is a horrible place to drive:(

The last tiime I went to VA for a reckless they reduced the fine.
I ended up paying more than if I just mailed in the money.
Lesser fine plus court costs. It still eneded up being a reckless on my record.

Go and don't let it happen again. Easier said than done.
Today we were driving through NoVA. My wife asked, would you like to live here? No way! Maybe if I had a Geo Metro with one spark plug removed.

same thing happened to me a few yrs ago on the toll road.
Just plead NOT GUILTY. If you pleasd guilty they have to follow what was charged. Ask me how I know....

same thing happened to me a few yrs ago on the toll road.
Just plead NOT GUILTY. If you pleasd guilty they have to follow what was charged. Ask me how I know....

How could I possibly get out of it if I plead not guilty? 2 cops were in the car and paced me. If it turns into a he said she said, the judge will go with the cops and give me the worst penalty for trying to "lie" my way out of it, right?

Bitch please, I got 95/65 in my friends Volvo.... My court dates in May, and I still havent figured out exactly what to do. :(

I'm probably going to jail for a few nights and a suspended license. Hopefully my lawyer can maintain my license at least.

Jail for speeding is a ridiculous, ludicrous law.

We can't carry guns up here in MD but at least we can drive like bats out of hell.

i was going to get a reckless in PA i was late for getting to work on my racecar got stuck behind some lady driving 15mph in a 35 so i lost my mind I come to this intersection and i just go and well drifted it across the first lane and held it sideways for about 75 yards after that. He wrote me for a expired inpsection which it was because i was driving my beater which i hadnt used in 5 months since my car broke. I handed him my drivers license and my SCCA, National/Regional Comp License and my BMW Clbu Racing License and the other required things and he asked me if there was an explination and i said the road is a bit wet i have snow tires on it and i was in a hurry. That wasnt the right answer but he let me off anyway. He went into some big speal about how two kids had died over teh past 6 months on this road and that i should be more careful(this was before i handed him all my stuff) I said yeah i know about it, i also know what im am doing they obviosuly did not, with all do respect sir its a straight road. I then said ive only been in one accident in my life, we were doing about 85mph when i went door to door with this guy because i ran out of race track, niether of us wrecked, my fenders got crushed and my mirror turned in, but it was all fixed when we came in for fuel. I think i can handle navigating the straight road.

Just my relative story, Hope you work this out

If you told a cop in VA you know what youre doing, he'd probably own your ass in tickets.

267 has to be the worst road to speed on, EVER. I feel for you man, VA cops suck.

Anyone from this board on 267 east at around 2:15pm just after the $.75 toll to get on 66? There was a silver bmw that passed me doing about 100, weaving in and out of traffic without slowing down, he almost hit another e36 that was next to me. Crazy!

When driving:

Wreckless is good.

Reckless is bad.

BTW, in VA it's 20 or more over the limit, or 80 mph or more. I had a 89/65 that was dropped to 79/65 by the judge. So I paid $300 in fines and $400 in lawyers, a day off work, and a hotel bill. Expensive effing ticket!!

Never had one for reckless driving, but I did go to court for doing 70 in a 55 on 66 W about ten years ago. Wow, I'm old. Anyway, if you can work the speedometer angle, you may be able to get the charge changed to an equipment violation or simply reduced to a lower speeding ticket. Of course, I had a receipt for a new speedometer and I carefully explained to the judge that mine had been on the fritz around the time of the traffic stop, not just by a few mph.

Anyone from this board on 267 east at around 2:15pm just after the $.75 toll to get on 66? There was a silver bmw that passed me doing about 100, weaving in and out of traffic without slowing down, he almost hit another e36 that was next to me. Crazy!

Probably Doby!

Neil

Sounds like your getting lots of conflicting advice.

If the cop did not have you on radar, and says he paced you, you may want to consider getting a lawyer (if your dad knows someone), because its the cops word against your word.

A decade ago when I was 16-17, my first ticket was going 100mph on Rt66 East near Vienna. The cop said if I was 18 Id go to jail. I felt as sick as Id ever felt. He wrote "exceeding 90mph" on the ticket. I used a lawyer my dad knew (cost me $300) and he got it reduced to Improper Driving with court ordered Defensive Driving School.

Good luck, and be careful. Lots of people go fast on DTR. Sucks you got pinched.

I think I may get a lawyer... I don't trust them to lower the charge, even for a first time offense.
Anyone know a good one for Fairfax? I don't want to go over $300.

if you go alone, show up early to court, sign in with the Judge, and then go speak with the Commonwealth's Attorney. Dress nicely and bring your paperwork with you. Ask if they can lower the charges to something with less points. If you didn't completely piss off the Trooper (this was a State Trooper right?) he'll probably tell the CA to lower the charges. You won't get off completely this way, but it's better than reckless charges on your record.

NOVA is a vile, vile, place for driving. Can't believe I may be here for years. The second i hit NOVA, even after 3hrs driving back from NY, I go into granny mode.

One guy I know got a 20 over ticket. He threw himself at the mercy of the court and got a reduced fine, but the judge told him that if he ever showed up in his court again to bring a toothbrush!

Probably Doby!

Neil
My car is Grey and Silver two tone.:rolleyes

That sucks, I know like 4 of the state guys that are on the greenway (most are really cool actually, they come visit out shop every now and then) one of them road races the new style mustang and mods a road racing forum.

It's mostly govt. transit police on the toll road now, those guys are hardcore.

It's weird though, I've been going to and from work ont eh toll road for almost a year now and haven't had a single problem *knock on wood*

yesterday I thought I was screwed though, I was going back towards tysons and got stuck behind some SLOOOOOOOOOOW driver going through the speedpass lane (there was only one speedpass lane) anyways, I downshift and go around her coming out of the booth. So, at WOT in 2nd at like 6krpm I look up to my left and there's a state impala "poised" on the median facing me kinda bumping/rolling along the grass like he's merging on, saw his headlights come on.. ugh.

I slowed and went into the right most lane and never saw him again, no idea where he went.

My car is Grey and Silver two tone.:rolleyes

You should damage the paint in some way and make an insurance claim.

Be sure you do it to the whole body, you wouldn't want them to paint only part of the car.

JV

I think I'll use paint stripper! ;)

Didn't read the whole thread, but

1) get a lawyer. when I got one he recommended getting an extension one time because he said the judge we had the first time was really harsh, so we did.
2) if it was raining AT THE TIME he clocked you, you can throw that in there because the rain will throw off the radar/laser readings, and is supposed to not be applicable in court.
3) basically do whatever you can to get the reckless dropped. if you get a 19 over, thats fine, reckless just sucks the big one.

i got a ticket in king george county for 67 in 35. Went to court, said i was sorry, it was a mistake, whatever, and got a $100 fine. I think it was still reckless, but my insurance never went up or anything. I had one other ticket about two years before, 69 in 55.

I have had friends with much worse tickets (40+ over, evading); usually got lawyers, and all kept their licenses at least. Getting a lawyer is definitely the least risky route.

Well I jinxed that crap.

Today driving on the toll road just cruising in the left lane, I look in my rear view and see a blue 330ci FLYING up behind me going at least 100+. So yeah, figuring out where he's going to go.. there's a car in his lane (to the right of me) like 2 cars ahead of me. I said hell no, tried to get up even with the car in the nex lane but didn't downshift in time. So yeah he slices between me and this other car at like 100. :eek:

Woulda gone after him but he got another lucky cut-off (I'd say like 2 feet on each side is lucky) and I was boxed in watching him cut off at least another 10 cars before he was gone.

Lame.

Well I jinxed that crap.

Today driving on the toll road just cruising in the left lane, I look in my rear view and see a blue 330ci FLYING up behind me going at least 100+. So yeah, figuring out where he's going to go.. there's a car in his lane (to the right of me) like 2 cars ahead of me. I said hell no, tried to get up even with the car in the nex lane but didn't downshift in time. So yeah he slices between me and this other car at like 100. :eek:

Woulda gone after him but he got another lucky cut-off (I'd say like 2 feet on each side is lucky) and I was boxed in watching him cut off at least another 10 cars before he was gone.

Lame.

Nice. The guy is already driving like an ass and you try to make it worse and potentially cause an accident! :buttrock

Well I jinxed that crap.

Today driving on the toll road just cruising in the left lane, I look in my rear view and see a blue 330ci FLYING up behind me going at least 100+. So yeah, figuring out where he's going to go.. there's a car in his lane (to the right of me) like 2 cars ahead of me. I said hell no, tried to get up even with the car in the nex lane but didn't downshift in time. So yeah he slices between me and this other car at like 100. :eek:

Woulda gone after him but he got another lucky cut-off (I'd say like 2 feet on each side is lucky) and I was boxed in watching him cut off at least another 10 cars before he was gone.

Lame.

So not only are you parked in the passing lane, but then you make it worse by doing something unpredictable?

What the other guy was doing was stupid, no doubt. But you could have been in a serious accident and you both would have been at fault.

Hey Sparky, think before you type. :rolleyes

So not only are you parked in the passing lane, but then you make it worse by doing something unpredictable?

What the other guy was doing was stupid, no doubt. But you could have been in a serious accident and you both would have been at fault.


Haha sorry mom and dad.

But yeah, I never said how fast I was going, yet you say I'm "parked in the passing lane?"

Cute.

But no, just cause someone was coming up behind me in excess of 100mph doesn't make me parked.

How about you get the fuk out of their way and let the police handle them. :rolleyes You catching them isn't going to do anything but cause accidents and news stories of idiots racing during traffic and hitting trees and killing soccer moms. Go back to your little hole you came out of...

How about you get the fuk out of their way and let the police handle them. :rolleyes You catching them isn't going to do anything but cause accidents and news stories of idiots racing during traffic and hitting trees and killing soccer moms. Go back to your little hole you came out of...
Hah, something tells me you don't talk NEARLY this much shit in person. :rolleyes

edit: Actually yes, this makes perfect sense - this is why you spend every waking hour trolling around forums - behind the safety of those little pixels. Aw.

Hah, something tells me you don't talk NEARLY this much shit in person. :rolleyes

Guess again. He's not e-tuff.

Kiddo, I'm no different in person then online.

Hah, something tells me you don't talk NEARLY this much shit in person. :rolleyes

edit: Actually yes, this makes perfect sense - this is why you spend every waking hour trolling around forums - behind the safety of those little pixels. Aw.

I'll put big $$ on Doby in this one:lol

Neil

Hah, something tells me you don't talk NEARLY this much shit in person. :rolleyes

edit: Actually yes, this makes perfect sense - this is why you spend every waking hour trolling around forums - behind the safety of those little pixels. Aw.

Actually, he's pretty much the same in real life. :help

The definition of the "passing" lane is unless you're "passing" someone, get the fcuk out of the "passing" lane.

Like I said, the other guy was being a complete and utter moron, but that doesn't mean you have to be also. Is it contagious or something?

JEZUZ, I usually give people the benefit of the doubt, but this dude E36DJ is a class-act!!!!

You try to cut someone off because they are going fast....IN THE FAST LANE?!!!!

I don't care how fast you are going, if you are in the fast lane doing 95 and there is a guy behind you, it is YOUR responsibility to move out of the way. In fact, you should never travel in the fast lane anymore than the need to pass someone.

I HATE FUKKERS who sit in the fast lane!!:mad :mad

But no, just cause someone was coming up behind me in excess of 100mph doesn't make me parked.

If you were doing the speed limit and he was going ~100mph, you WERE parked compared to him.:rolleyes

If you were doing the speed limit and he was going ~100mph, you WERE parked compared to him.:rolleyes
I'll give you that one haha.

..still, not much I can do about that.
JEZUZ, I usually give people the benefit of the doubt, but this dude E36DJ is a class-act!!!!

You try to cut someone off because they are going fast....IN THE FAST LANE?!!!!

I don't care how fast you are going, if you are in the fast lane doing 95 and there is a guy behind you, it is YOUR responsibility to move out of the way. In fact, you should never travel in the fast lane anymore than the need to pass someone.

I HATE FUKKERS who sit in the fast lane!!:mad :mad




Mmmkay, once again, I have no idea where you all are getting the idea that I was sitting in the fast lane. Actually I never said what I was doing relative to traffic or how fast I was going in the original post so - you can go ahead and stop filling in the blanks to create more drama.

I was in the left lane because I was going faster than the rest of traffic, once again, faster than traffic does not equal faster than a 100mph 330Ci, so yes he's going to pass me. I was going probably ~70 because I hate cruising above 3krpm (the one thing I dislike about this car.)

Andy, I didn't try to cut him off. I never left my lane, I saw that the only gap he had was the 2 car lengths between the car in the lane to the RIGHT of me, which was the lane he was in. I was going to get even with that car in the lane to the right of me is all.

Anyways, I agree with you all here - no idea how this shit always blows up, this is a simple post - I only posted it because someone earlier mentioned that a 330Ci blew past them on the toll road.

Trust me, I drive to and from work on this road every day, nothing pisses me off more than watching cars pass me in the right lanes when I'm sitting behind someone in the left.

Or the loudoun county transit busses that use the left lanes.

Or dump trucks spewing rocks all over the road a 1/4 mile before you're even near them.

So yeah, I'm a very defensive driver and have avoided many stupid people on the roads, never once had so much as a fender bender and only had one speeding ticket (pace in an all-white undercover intrepid w/ no lights, even the people inside weren't in uniform, and I had +5 points on my license when I got that ticket, the max good points you can have in this state.)

Anyways, back to work - sorry for all the drama.

Back OT: If you can tell me what the guy looked like I can possibly see if I can talk to him or have one of the troopers I know talk to him before your court date, see what his last name was on the ticket.

So yeah, I'm a very defensive driver and have avoided many stupid people on the roads, never once had so much as a fender bender and only had one speeding ticket (pace in an all-white undercover intrepid w/ no lights, even the people inside weren't in uniform, and I had +5 points on my license when I got that ticket, the max good points you can have in this state.)

:confused

Well I jinxed that crap.

Today driving on the toll road just cruising in the left lane, I look in my rear view and see a blue 330ci FLYING up behind me going at least 100+. So yeah, figuring out where he's going to go.. there's a car in his lane (to the right of me) like 2 cars ahead of me. I said hell no, tried to get up even with the car in the nex lane but didn't downshift in time. So yeah he slices between me and this other car at like 100. :eek:

Woulda gone after him but he got another lucky cut-off (I'd say like 2 feet on each side is lucky) and I was boxed in watching him cut off at least another 10 cars before he was gone.

Lame.

Its okay, his exhaust sounded really bad on cylinders 1-3 iirc, but 4-6 were SEX. I think he needs an H-Pipe.

...
Anyways, I agree with you all here - no idea how this shit always blows up, this is a simple post - I only posted it because someone earlier mentioned that a 330Ci blew past them on the toll road.

You just don't get it. :eek:
...
Trust me, I drive to and from work on this road every day, nothing pisses me off more than watching cars pass me in the right lanes when I'm sitting behind someone in the left.

If people are passing you in the right lane then you are probably doing something wrong. That includes if you are stuck behind a slower moving car. You should be planning further ahead of time so you can quickly pass the slower moving vehicle and get back into your proper lane. If you are sitting behind them and the other lane is free then you are just making it more difficult for other cars to get around. :rolleyes

---Eric

Mmmkay, once again, I have no idea where you all are getting the idea that I was sitting in the fast lane. Actually I never said what I was doing relative to traffic or how fast I was going in the original post so - you can go ahead and stop filling in the blanks to create more drama.



Today driving on the toll road just cruising in the left lane, I look in my rear view and see a blue 330ci FLYING up behind me going at least 100+.

The left lane is what is also known as the "fast lane".




Andy, I didn't try to cut him off. I never left my lane, I saw that the only gap he had was the 2 car lengths between the car in the lane to the RIGHT of me, which was the lane he was in. I was going to get even with that car in the lane to the right of me is all.

Trying to cut someone off is not limited to pulling out in front of them. Cutting someone off includes trying to purposely box someone in.

All I can say is that you should let people speed no matter how fast they are going. Doing so will end up causing a MAJOR traffic accident where death is a HIGH possibility. Not only that, who knows if the guy is speeding to get someone who is dying to the hospital (I know the chances are low, but it could happen. :dunno) Would you want the deaths caused by the accident on your conscience?

Food for thought, that's all. :)

The left lane is what is also known as the "fast lane".

But if someone is going faster than him then they must be insane. Isn't it his responsibilty to slow them down? :confused

:stickoutt

---Eric

I heard Doby once beat up Chuck Norris. Can anyone confirm?

I heard Doby once beat up Chuck Norris. Can anyone confirm?
Was Chuck Norris driving slow in the fast lane? :confused

---Eric

Was Chuck Norris driving slow in the fast lane? :confused

---Eric

:lol :laugh

:lol :laugh
A bumper sticker would solve all these problems.
If you are in the right lane and want to get into the left lane, and you have your bumper sticker, the guy you are pulling in front of in the left lane will know that you won't take bloody ages to pass the slow guy in the right lane. Because you have your bumper sticker other people will know you will consider going 2 m.p.h. faster than you really want to, if necessary, to expedite the passing of the slow car.

http://slowertraffickeepright.com/

---Eric

Back OT: If you can tell me what the guy looked like I can possibly see if I can talk to him or have one of the troopers I know talk to him before your court date, see what his last name was on the ticket.

Trooper R.A. Proctor, black guy in his 40's. I just hope I don't get judge Valentine, I heard he is an unforgiving PITA...

Well, it was just a matter of time, given that I spend an average of 2 hours in the car every day. It's like those nature shows with the gazelles running across the river full of crocodiles, you just do it and hope that it wont be you that gets caught.

Well I got stopped by a state cop on Sat. morning going west on the 267 tollroad right near exit 11. Said he paced me doing 75 in the 55. He was one of these guys you see in movies, never changes facial expressions, reads the same line that he's probably read 50 times that day, and gives me the full ticket. Wreckless for doing exactly 20 over. I followed all the steps to get out of it, hands on the wheel, engine off and keys out, ask before i reach for anything, yessir nossir thank you officer, ect. But no break.

So next month I have court. I'm 19. It's my first ticket, and I don't have much money at the moment, so my plan is to go by myself and plead not guilty. If he shows up, then I'll plead guilty with explanation. I'm pretty sure I can get someone to calibrate my speedometer to be off by a couple miles. Even with that, I will admit guilt, say it wasn't on purpose, following flow of traffic and I wasn't paying attention, stuff like that. I think it will be more helpful to me if I take traffic school after court, because this might be part of the punishment and he might drop the charge to speeding.

What do you guys think? Solid plan? I know there is still a high chance of being raped in court, VA is famous for it. Would you recommend a lawyer for this? How much would that cost me?
GET AN ATTORNEY. I will say it again for emphasis:

GET AN ATTORNEY

I know this from experience.
An attorney can get you off at the arraignment hearing. An attorney can get you assigned to a good judge/prosecutor. They may not even need you to show up in court. At the very least they can get points dropped. It is so important to get an attorney before your arraignment.

GET AN ATTORNEY. I will say it again for emphasis:

GET AN ATTORNEY

I know this from experience.
An attorney can get you off at the arraignment hearing. An attorney can get you assigned to a good judge/prosecutor. They may not even need you to show up in court. At the very least they can get points dropped. It is so important to get an attorney before your arraignment.

Know a good one for $300 or less that specializes in Fairfax?

Know a good one for $300 or less that specializes in Fairfax?
I don't. I got one in Ohio when I lived there. It was worth the money but I made the mistake and tried to handle it on my own and hired her after the arraingment hearing. I would have been much better off if I had talked to her sooner. Still she made a HUGE difference. I would probably just look in the yellow pages for lawyers that specialize in traffic tickets and call them up for a quick phone interview. I think I paid about $500. But trust me, the points and costs associated with a reckless are bad news.

Know a good one for $300 or less that specializes in Fairfax?
I paid $1500 for mine, he charges a one-time $1500 fee or $350 an hour, you could do the hourly and end up paying $700 total I guess. His office is directly across the street from the courthouse on judicial drive.

I heard Doby once beat up Chuck Norris. Can anyone confirm?

I heard Chuck Norris beat the landspeed record on the Toll Road. He did it in a car with no engine, he busted the floor pan out and used his legs like Fred Flinstone.

I suggest running from the cop next time.

EXACTLY 20 over? What a dick. You should be able to argue in court that being on the cusp, your speed was within the speedometer margin of error for accuracy, and could have easily been doing only 19 over, thus making it NOT wreckless.

Admit yes you were speeding, yes you are sorry, but you should not get wreckless when there is a chance that you were not doing 20mph over the limit.

Goddam I need to slow down in VA... :(

Court is in two days, I decided not to get a lawyer yet. I'm going to plead not guilty, hope the cop doesn't show, then either ask for a continuence because I have finals later that day, or just see what happens. Wish me luck! Thanks for all the advice!

haha I'm in the same boat.. sunday morning going to work, got radared by a state trooper 78 in a 55 the one day I didnt have my Valentine 1 in the car :(
my court date is next week.. anyone know a good lawyer for under $300 or so?
I always have my valentine 1 on now.. I just stick it under the passenger headrest and prop the seat all the way up, works great when it's on, easy to disconnect quickly and with the remote display they won't even know it's there. I don't care if radar detectors are illegal, the crazy ass car tax (this is a tax in addition to the sales tax I already paid on the car 4 months ago) and excessive fines should be illegal too so it balances out.

Nick, that's a really unique arrangement. Does the power cord stretch that far from the cigarette lighter?

Well it's over. I plead not guilty, got found guilty anyway, they wouldn't reduce anything (I talked to the cop before court too...). So for exactly 20 over I got 6 points and a $75 fine+ court fees. The fine was the lowest anyone had all day, but I would still rather have paid a larger fine and taken less points...

Don't speed in Fairfax. No one at the trial in 2 hours I was there got any charge lowered or dropped except for about 2 fix it tickets for small things like tint. A lot of speeders got $500+ fines and suspended licenses, one kid got thrown in jail for 5 days and 90 day suspended license for an 83 in a 55... Fines were about $800...

ugh that sucks.. guess i'll be calling up some lawyers this weekend...

I've got plenty of line for the valentine1... the power cord is a telephone line, so you can get 2ft 10ft 100ft if you want. just lead the cord down the side of the seat then up to the cig lighter. I stick the remote right on top of the power plug.

how the hell did some guy get 800$ and jail time for 83 in a 55? prior tickets or something? mine is for 78 in a 55, and I've had worse tickets long ago, none in the past 4 years though. I f'in hate virginia

I'm really sorry to hear that man. That shit is really too bad. State troopers and Fairfax Co cops in NoVA are just ruthless.

For me it's gotten to the point where I just drive with the cruise control set at 10 over any time i'm on a major road where the speedlimit is 45+. I'd recommend it to anybody and it keeps you from just going with the flow of traffic. Tickets are no different than setting your money on fire and they drive me absolutely crazy.

Be safe.