I was ticketed (but not arrested) for driving with a suspended licesce. What can I expect in court? (crime, attorney) - Nebraska (NE) - Page 3 - City-Data Forum

MidwestDrummer · 06-22-2007, 01:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kosnebbear

MidwestDrummer, I have been reading the advise that you have been getting. As a retired Nebraska Police Officer the thing that I would look at first is the traffic stop legal. Were you in violation of a traffic law? The answer would have to be yes if you were driving around on expired tags. Also I would like to let you know that most Police Officers are always looking out for drivers who are driving impaired during the prime hours, which are right after the bars close. So if the stop is legal then you have nothing to base your defense upon. Everything else that was found out is legal and can be used against you in court. What will happen in court is the Judge will ask you if you have a valid license, if your vehicle is now properly registered and if you now have insurance. You will need to show him proof of this if he asks you for it so have all the documents ready. If you do then all you will get is a fine that should be less that $200.00 and the Judge might give you a warning about keeping your insurance valid in the future. I would not even waste my time and money paying a attorney as you can deal with the County or City Attorney and cut a deal yourself all you have to do is make an appointment to go see the one who will be the prosecutor of the case. They like it when you make it easy for them and they will cut you a break. Good luck and post what happens to you here as well.

Yep, the traffic stop was legal because I was driving with expired tags, and that was exact reason he gave for pulling me over in the first place. As for all of my violations, as of 3 days ago, I can say everything has been updated and/or renewed. I have:

- Regained insurance coverage - I made sure to put a copy of the proof of insurance in my car
- Unsuspended my license - I had my insurance company send a SR-22 to the NE DMV and I paid the $50 reinstatement fee
- Renewed my vehicle registration - After I unsuspended my license I went down to the NE DMV and renewed the registration

I have copies of all of the paperwork, and definitely do plan on taking copies of everything with my to my court date, so I can be prepared if/when the judge asks to see it all. One question I have is, how do I find out who the prosecutor of my case is, and how do I get a hold of them? I would definitely be interested in making an appointment and getting evertying taken care of prior to the court date.

Thank you for all the information you've been able to provide!
Zach

kosnebbear · 06-22-2007, 02:06 AM

Zach,

If your citation is showing a State Statute as being violated then the County Attorney will handle the case. The City of Lincoln also has City Ordinances that the City Police will use as well. If your citation was written using a City Ordinance then the City Attorney will be handling the case. Either way you can either call either the office and ask them if they will be handling the case or not. When you find the office who will handle the case then you can ask if you can speak with the attorney who will be handling your case.

MidwestDrummer · 07-02-2007, 10:41 AM

Alright, so the latest update I have, is that I found out who the prosecutor for my case is. She is a city attorney, and I have a contact phone number. Would it be best to just give her a call and try and arrange a time to meet with her? I know this sounds kind of dumb, but you don't think she'd try to work me over or take advantage of the fact that I don't have an attorney representing me, do you?

All of the continued advice and support is greatly appreciated!

mattpoulsen · 07-02-2007, 02:34 PM

Midwest Drummer,

I don't think she'd necessarily take advantage of you, but I would actually be surprised if she meets with you. You may get her on the phone (or someone from her office). She also may not deal with you. If it would have happened in a smaller county you'd have a better shot at this type of strategy. I'd give it a shot though...I don't think it'll hurt. Just present everything to her in hypotheticals.

kosnebbear · 07-02-2007, 02:37 PM

No she will not work you over. Call her to see if you can work something out before court. She might not want to talk to you, but if you are a salesman you should know that you can't sell something until you ask the customer if they are ready to buy. You will not know if you can talk to her until you ask and if she will not then you will have to wait until your court date which is something that you are doing right now.

Before you go to see her go to the clerk of the court, it might be county court, that you will appear in and check on the possible kinds of fines and punishment that you could be looking at. Find out the least and the worse. They have records and they are public records as well. Then go see her and discuss a fine and punishment that she will accept and that will work for you as well. If she will not work with you and comes up with something that will not work for you then guess it would be time to find a lawyer.

If she is willing to talk to you and you show up without a lawyer and willing to accept that what you did was wrong, plus by showing her that you have taken care of everything that was wrong already and having seen it in the past from different prosecuting attorneys I would be very surprised that she would not be willing to work with you in order to get this off of her desk easy and quickly.

Good luck.

MidwestDrummer · 07-03-2007, 10:16 PM

Here's yet another update:

I called the City (Lincoln) Attorney's office today and asked if I could speak with the prosecutor who'd been assigned to my case. The secretary told me that she wasn't in at the moment, but told me that if I'd like, I could come down to their office and speak with any of the other city attorneys who were available. I thanked her and made my way down to their office. When I got there, I was able to speak with a very polite gentleman. He, of course, wasn't assigned to my case, but he was polite enough to answer my questions, and he was very honest with me, which was not only refreshing, but very reassuring. Basically I found out the following:

1. Since I have reinstated my license prior to the court date, i won't be fined for driving with a suspended license.
2. I will still face a fine for driving without insurance, but the amount (anywhere from $100-$500) is at the judge's discretion. He also mentioned that since I had taken care of everything prior to the court date (regaining insurance, renewing registration, unsuspending my license) that in his experience, and from what he's seen, he'd be surprised if it was any higher than $100-150.
3. I did also find out that the court date is mandatory, though he told me that it'd be fairly routine, and that I'd be present with a number of other defendants with various other driving infractions.
4. He pretty much told me that there was no guarantee that there wouldn't be any jail time for the charge of driving without insurance, but that he also said that the chances were slim to nill.
5. He also told me, that I wouldn't face a resuspension of my license, also because of all the necesary steps I had taken to get all of my coverage and documents updated.
6. To sum it all up, he pretty much said that as long as I show up for my July 6th court date (I have every intention of doing so) and I bring the necessary documents to prove the steps that I have taken to regain my driving privileges, I should expect my penalties to be fines totaling right around $200. Should that be the case, that is something that I can definitely accept.

I thanked the attorney for his time, and left their office with a collective sigh of relief. I'm still nervous about going to court, but if everything transpires the way he described, then I'll be happy.

Thanks you to all of you who've helped me to this point. I'll let you all know my penalties/fines after my court date.

Zach

kosnebbear · 07-03-2007, 11:33 PM

Good luck.

Earniefan · 07-05-2007, 12:22 PM

Zach I just have to ask you - wouldn't it have been easier to have all of your affairs in order prior to the stop? It's seems you've gotten everything together very quickly now that you're in trouble. I don't mean to rag on you I'm just curious why you let everything lapse in the first place.

MidwestDrummer · 07-05-2007, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Earniefan

Zach I just have to ask you - wouldn't it have been easier to have all of your affairs in order prior to the stop? It's seems you've gotten everything together very quickly now that you're in trouble. I don't mean to rag on you I'm just curious why you let everything lapse in the first place.

Did you not see where I responded to that same type of comment in the 10th post in this thread? I've already admitted to my mistakes and taken responsibility. If you haven't caught the drift, I've transitioned to the point of searching for a resolution, so if the only thing you have for me are more criticisms, then please, just leave.

sunfirekid07 · 02-05-2008, 12:36 AM

I am 18. I got pulled over last month for a suspended license... twice. Here's the kicker: the first time I got pulled over, I didn't know it was suspended!!!! My court date is the 20th of Feb. Joy. I have been told that I'm probably looking at $100 fine. Hopefully that's what it is. I don't know. Any advice for me???