Traffic Tickets - Justice By Mail

By Author: Yale Green
Total Articles: 8
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There are many great things about living in California such as beautiful weather 24/7, mountains, beaches and of course some of the court procedures. Did you know that California is one of only nine states that allow you to contest your traffic violations entirely by mail. Yes by mail. Right on the ticket that you sign, either in the front or the back, there is a little description about "Trial By Written Declaration". What this means is you can have a trial by mail.

The process works as follows: Prior to the date you promised to appear, you visit the courthouse and let the court clerk know that you would like to plead not guilty and request a TBWD form TR-205. You will need to give to the court a check for the amount of the fine as the bail. Courts do not listen to cases by mail without your first posting the bail. Alternately, you can also write to the court that you are not guilty and you would like to get a TBWD form TR-205. Along with the letter you are required to send a check for the amount of the fine. This should be done by certified mail. If it gets lost in the mail, the burden to prove that you sent in the ...
... check is upon you. If you are found 'Not Guilty' the court will return your money within approximately 8 weeks.

Upon receipt of the form, you carefully and truthfully fill the form and write your story about what happened, why it happened and why you think that you are not guilty. The court will write to the citing officer that you have chosen to contest the ticket and ask him/her to write his/her story about what happened. When the officer's declaration is received, a judicial officer (usually a commissioner) will read both sides of the case and make a decision as to your guilt. The court will either find you guilty or not guilty. If the court finds you guilty, it will keep the money you sent in as the fine. Conversely if are you found not guilty then your money is refunded in about 8 weeks.

The key to whether you end up paying the fine or not lies on how well you can write your statement. It needs to be very direct, to the point and must advocate from a legal standpoint your innocence. If your statement is like, "I am sorry I didn't see the sign" then you can bet you will be found guilty for sure. The officer's testimony about what he saw and heard at the time of your stop carries a lot of weight. You need to show that officer made a mistake. Remember, you only need to create a reasonable doubt in commissioner's mind to find you innocent and dismiss your case.

Moe Lakhany works for Traffic Tickets Dismissed and can be reached at (888) 610-2466 or email at info@trafficticketsdismissed.com. The website is http://www.TrafficTicketsDismissed.com.

Moe Lakhany works for Traffic Tickets Dismissed and can be reached at (888) 610-2466 or email at info@trafficticketsdismissed.com. Company website is http://www.trafficticketsdismissed.com