Oregon - SRT Forums

SeanGTS · 02-28-2006, 09:05 PM

So, dont know why the other thread is closed, so I'll waste more space.

I casually cruised down to Lincoln City from Vancouver last weekend, to enjoy the girlfriends birthday. We were headed to the Inn at the Spanish Head (amazing place!) when all the sudden I was the second car in a 50 car back up on 18. Cars from the back kept passing on that tight twisty road, 10, 12 cars at a time. So being the second car in the pack I finally decide to pass this deuche bag mercades up front.

Of course when I opt to pass, in a legal area their is a god damn State Cop coming up the hill. I pass, not sure how fast I was going, just barely gaining on the new leaders of the passing group.

He pulls me over, doesnt speak a word of clean english and tells me he is obligated by state law to give me a ticket, err, fine. So it was for 84 in a 55, 242 dollars.

First question, do you not have to sign tickets in Oregon? Second, is it legal to exceed the speed limit by 10 mph ( Washington has this passing law) to pass somebody on a one lane road? I also hear that you can call to barter with the judge versus drivign all the way back down there, I wonder if thats true?

Any tips? Just call them up? I love how he folded the ticket up 5 times before he gave it to me, walked away, and went on with his day before I even looked at the damn thing.

SRTfromOR · 02-28-2006, 10:04 PM

No you don't sign it. In oregon they can write you for 1 mph over the limit but normally they dont touch you on the hwy until you hit 15 over. You speeding up to pass someone doesn't give you the right to speed. I was in court the other day and alady said the same thing but on hwy 26. the judge didn't even flintch. She admitted to speeding to pass and automatic guilty. And no you can't call and talk to the judge. They used to be able to lower the fine if you had a good record, but now the law states a minumum fine. You can write a letter to the court explaining your situation and the judge will read it and make a judgement on that...prob won't be reduced tho. Only chance of it being dropped is if you plead not guilty and pray the officer doesn't show up for court. Hope this helped, but basically your kinda screwed. If you find an error on the ticket it might get dropped too. wrong date or time. good luck man.

SeanGTS · 02-28-2006, 10:34 PM

Really? Interesting, see this is why I ask.

I think I'm going to attempt to plead not guilty, and wish for the best. Does oregon have a "points" system? I wonder if this ticket will find its way onto my washington insurance?

WestCoastSRT4 · 02-28-2006, 11:17 PM

not really a points system here, and yes it will find its way on to your record, all state are now links together. and make sure you do not forget to take care of it, cause oregon can suspend your washington lic

DarkOmen · 03-01-2006, 11:09 AM

I've talked to a few people who have tried this as well as read that stalling the case date as many times as you can will help you get out of the ticket. Plead not guilty by mail and state you need the date pushed for a legitimate reasons, ask for every extension allowed. Go to the last one they give you, best chance the cop wont show and if he does its been so long he hopefully wont remember the details of the incident.

kingj07 · 03-01-2006, 03:21 PM

the cop wrote a statement on the back of the ticket. that will be his testimony if he doesnt show up.

why does everyone think you automatically win if the officer doesnt show up? listen to these guys and you learn the hard way like me, that you NEED to get the officers written testimony before you contest ANYTHING.

theres no need for the officer to show up in your case, so i would guess that youve got like a 5% chance that he will be there. that is 1% chance that he cared about your case and 4% chance that somebody else in the courtroom subpoenad him for something completely unrelated.

j.r.

SRT-4aKid's Brother · 03-01-2006, 03:37 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by kingj07

the cop wrote a statement on the back of the ticket. that will be his testimony if he doesnt show up.

why does everyone think you automatically win if the officer doesnt show up? listen to these guys and you learn the hard way like me, that you NEED to get the officers written testimony before you contest ANYTHING.

theres no need for the officer to show up in your case, so i would guess that youve got like a 5% chance that he will be there. that is 1% chance that he cared about your case and 4% chance that somebody else in the courtroom subpoenad him for something completely unrelated.

j.r.

Actually in Washington State (not sure about Oregon) if you subpoena the officer involved in your case and that officer does not show up for the court date the ticket is automatically dismissed.

I have first hand experience with this. I got a ticket for running a stop sign. I subpoena'd the cop and he didn't show. I mentioned this to the judge at the very beginning of my "trial" and the judge immediately dismissed the charge.

kingj07 · 03-01-2006, 03:46 PM

that may be true if you subpoena him/her. nobody here has mentioned that though.

j.r.

kingj07 · 03-01-2006, 03:49 PM

you almost never want the officer there anyhow. they can only bolster their written testimony and use more ammo against you. a lot of times if youre guitly you have to just pay up. sometimes there are ways around that, which everyone enjoys the feeling of.

j.r.

SRT-4aKid's Brother · 03-01-2006, 03:57 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by kingj07

you almost never want the officer there anyhow. they can only bolster their written testimony and use more ammo against you. a lot of times if youre guitly you have to just pay up. sometimes there are ways around that, which everyone enjoys the feeling of.

j.r.

Definitely true, you don't want the cop there if at all possible. The subpoena thing is a last resort. The only reason I did it was because at the time I had a negligent driving ticket on deferment, and if I would've been found guilty of the stop sign infraction I would've been stuck with the negligent ticket as well.

I had already paid money for a lawyer and everything, and getting that neg. ticket woulda killed me on insurance. This was about 5 years ago though.

SeanGTS, you should see if you can receive a deferral. I don't know if they do that in Oregon, but it'd be an easy way to get out of the ticket. Provided of course, that you drive good for the next 6 months to 1 year afterward.

kingj07 · 03-01-2006, 05:33 PM

the deferral i got here was an easy one. just 1 year with no tickets. i didnt make it, but the requirement was still pretty easy to acheive. oregon may have other requirements like going to driving school and such.

also.. on mine i was required to pay the full amount of the ticket. i think other places have a different fee schedule for deferrals.

j.r.

marshalllaw · 03-01-2006, 07:20 PM

You'll get it reduced when you go to court, but not by a lot. You won't get out of it, I can pretty much guarantee you that.

The Oregon coast is about the worst place I know for tickets; you can pretty much count on getting one if you don't drive like grandma there. Radar detectors are no help, since most of the cops out there just pace you (count time-to-distance between 2 points) and don't use radar at all.

Sorry, man... I know it sucks.

SeanGTS · 03-01-2006, 08:01 PM

Thanks for the tips guys...

Still had a fantastic weekend in Lincoln City, the Inn at the Spanish Head is absolutely rediculous for romancing your significant other.

kingj07 · 03-03-2006, 01:54 AM

SRTfromOR:
i saw a pretty good comedian from oregon. the way he was talking about hwy 26. it sounds like you could easily get cited for something such as passing too fast.. or really anything you did as a result of being pist off due to slooww drivers.

dwight slade if anyone cares. he is pretty good.

j.r.

Hi N Mity · 03-03-2006, 09:31 AM

my full cov. insurance went up to $778 every 6 months, from $512 every six months because of a 75 in a 55 ticket. Good luck