Worth fighting a traffic ticket? (Colorado Springs: insurance, school, moving)

[bandoon]

Hello people of Colorado,

Long story short. I drove in very bad weather conditions on lonely highway in Colorado. I was not speeding, suddenly I lost control over my car, hit guard rail, damaged my front wheel and had to be towed. No damage was made to the guard rail, just my car.

This is my first "accident" for the last 16 years I have been driving.

Tow truck had to come for me, I was not blocking traffic or anything. Cops showed up later and gave, in addition to my towing and car fixing costs, $150 ticket for "improper mountain driving" or something like that which come along with 3 demerit points on my driving record.

I would like to retain my driving record clean.
Is it something worth fighting? Anyone ever in similar situation?

[bandoon]

Also, I was told that the ticket is just an infraction with 3 points, and if I pay it within 20 day, and admit guilt, I will be able to have it reduced to 1 point only.

But that still leaves the infraction on the record ...

[otterprods]

Originally Posted by bandoon

in very bad weather conditions... I lost control over my car... $150 ticket for "improper mountain driving"

It sounds like you were driving improperly in the mountains. Judges don't care much about your past record when you are fighting a ticket for something you did, but it can be a significant factor if you plead guilty. Just pay the ticket via mail if it's allowed and you can afford the point, otherwise go to court and plead GUILTY and you could maybe go to traffic school and get it to 0 points. But that's a bit of a gamble may not be worth the extra time/money anyways. You could also plead 'guilty with an explanation', but it should be better than 'I lost control in the snow, and no one was around'.

[hammertime33]

What defense do you have?

[Kar54]

The last citation I had, granted it was in the City of Colorado Springs, I received a plea offer in the mail. It was about a week before I was scheduled to appear. I think they're trying to reduce the number or court challenges. Anyway, because I hadn't had an accident or cite in the last 20 years, they lowered it to 0 points and cut the fine substantially. Still had to plead guilty to some non-moving violation. Needless to say, I took it. Was your ticket issued by CSP or local PD/Sheriff? Sure the plea offer depends on the infraction. From what you've indicated, you probably won't get much more movement if you appear, but if you've got the time, could be worth it. Because this resulted in an "accident", your insurance rates will still bump up.