361 dollars... for running a red light

[Bobtheduck]

My dad got a ticket for 361 dollars for running a red light, and an extra 30 dollars to go to traffic school to keep it from going on his insurance... I seriously want to murder someone at the Upland DMV... Whoever decided that one ticket could be worth 361 dollars...

My dad needs me to chip in 80 bucks a month on gas to get me to school... We're on a *freaking* limited income and they charge us 361 dollars for a *freaking* RED LIGHT... That's over 2 months worth of what I make for my silly little janitorial job... We can't afford this... Seriously...

[Yumie]

Gee whiz, that's bad. Tickets can be outrageous sometimes-- my friend was given a ticket for speeding, and get this: The cop originally said that he had been going 67 miles and hour, but when he came back to the window to give him back his liscense and the ticket, he changed it and said that he had been going *76* and thus the ticket would be $500. My friend had to go to an out of state court to get the matter cleared up. So, that kind of makes me wonder about the whole ticket giving process-- it seems like a rather unrefined art to me. . .

[Puritan]

Gee whiz, that's bad.

*Images of "Leave it to Beaver" stream through Puritan's mind* Sorry, I love saying "Gee whiz," but it never ceases to bring up images of June and Ward Cleaver.

Anyway, I sympathise with your irritation about the traffic ticket, Bob. While the police are generally reasonable about things (most of them are downright nice about things, in my experience), traffic tickets are really expensive. My father once got a several-hundred dollar ticket for going over one of the road lines even though it was covered in gravel when he did so, and simply going a few miles over the speed limit can really cost you. But, I guess the fine needs to be severe to stop people from breaking the law, otherwise it probably wouldn't be such a big deal.

[meboeck]

So, that kind of makes me wonder about the whole ticket giving process-- it seems like a rather unrefined art to me. . .

My dad used to be a cop, and he knew people who gave tickets just because they had free time. He even had one superior officer get mad at him for not giving enough tickets. It can get a bit crazy sometimes.

[Kaligraphic]

He should have gone to traffic court, not contested the ticket (won't get you off unless you're very good) and pled financial hardship ("Your honor, I realize I made a mistake there, but I just don't have that kind of money lying around" type of thing) - the judge would likely have cut quite a bit off the cost of the ticket.

Downside, of course, is that traffic court is packed with people trying to get the same reduction, so it might take most of the day, but if it's worth that to you, you do have that option.

[Lynx]

sounds like your city needs money for something :-p

[GhostontheNet]

My dad got a ticket for 361 dollars for running a red light, and an extra 30 dollars to go to traffic school to keep it from going on his insurance... I seriously want to murder someone at the Upland DMV... Whoever decided that one ticket could be worth 361 dollars...

My dad needs me to chip in 80 bucks a month on gas to get me to school... We're on a *freaking* limited income and they charge us 361 dollars for a *freaking* RED LIGHT... That's over 2 months worth of what I make for my silly little janitorial job... We can't afford this... Seriously...

It sounds like your father could learn the fine art of patience and obeying the law when it is not unjust, as it's all fun and games until pedestrians are smashed or when side-collision accidents hitting the weaker point of the car occur. A lot of harsh social sanctions exist when people die from noncompliance with the laws, and the purpose of very strong fines is to declare that the law is not to be trifled with. It is generally well known in Western society that red is a color-code for "Warning: don't do it", and to do otherwise is to choose is to accept whatever consequences come out of it. I would tend to consider the lack of reporting to the insurance companies rather merciful, as the insurance companies with their perpetual statistic crunching based on a vast sample size for accuracy (after all, alot of states have mandatory auto insurance) would not hesitate to increase rates even more harshly if he was percieved as a liability, which all forms of money-lenders fear greatly and charge accordingly. If you all seriously can by no means pay, dig up the proper info at your local library and plead your case, assuming a statute of limitations isn't already over. If you have to and if it's possible, pick up a bus pass and take the bus for a while. The iron fist in the lace glove can pack a real punch, but when functioning properly it uses it's fist to save lives.

[Nate]

And what makes you so sure that his dad did it on purpose? I ran a red light once before, because it was 3:30 in the morning and I was going to make a right turn, but my mom said "Why don't you just go straight, it's faster." Since right turns are allowed on red, and I was extremely tired, I ended up continuing straight through the red light. Fortunately there were no cops around when I did it, but I didn't go through the light because of being impatient or felt like disobeying the law. It was an honest mistake. Or perhaps Bob's father was in an unfamiliar part of town, thought he could make it through a yellow light, and couldn't. Lights stay yellow for different amounts of time in different places. I've seen signals that go yellow for only two or three seconds, and signals that go yellow for five or six. That makes a world of difference when you're judging if you believe you can safely stop at the signal or should go through. If his father thought the light would be yellow for a significant period of time, he would of course go through it, and then if the light turned red when he came upon the signal, that would be going through a red light.

I think it's kinda rude to assume someone is doing something on purpose instead of it being an honest mistake.

EDIT: Not that I'm denying his father may have just been impatient or whatever, but unless Bob says we can't really say.

[Stephen]

It sounds like your father could learn the fine art of patience and obeying the law when it is not unjust, as it's all fun and games until pedestrians are smashed or when side-collision accidents hitting the weaker point of the car occur. A lot of harsh social sanctions exist when people die from noncompliance with the laws, and the purpose of very strong fines is to declare that the law is not to be trifled with. It is generally well known in Western society that red is a color-code for "Warning: don't do it", and to do otherwise is to choose is to accept whatever consequences come out of it. I would tend to consider the lack of reporting to the insurance companies rather merciful, as the insurance companies with their perpetual statistic crunching based on a vast sample size for accuracy (after all, alot of states have mandatory auto insurance) would not hesitate to increase rates even more harshly if he was percieved as a liability, which all forms of money-lenders fear greatly and charge accordingly. If you all seriously can by no means pay, dig up the proper info at your local library and plead your case, assuming a statute of limitations isn't already over. If you have to and if it's possible, pick up a bus pass and take the bus for a while. The iron fist in the lace glove can pack a real punch, but when functioning properly it uses it's fist to save lives.

You don't drive much do you?

[Bobtheduck]

It sounds like your father could learn the fine art of patience and obeying the law when it is not unjust, as it's all fun and games until pedestrians are smashed or when side-collision accidents hitting the weaker point of the car occur. A lot of harsh social sanctions exist when people die from noncompliance with the laws, and the purpose of very strong fines is to declare that the law is not to be trifled with. It is generally well known in Western society that red is a color-code for "Warning: don't do it", and to do otherwise is to choose is to accept whatever consequences come out of it. I would tend to consider the lack of reporting to the insurance companies rather merciful, as the insurance companies with their perpetual statistic crunching based on a vast sample size for accuracy (after all, alot of states have mandatory auto insurance) would not hesitate to increase rates even more harshly if he was percieved as a liability, which all forms of money-lenders fear greatly and charge accordingly. If you all seriously can by no means pay, dig up the proper info at your local library and plead your case, assuming a statute of limitations isn't already over. If you have to and if it's possible, pick up a bus pass and take the bus for a while. The iron fist in the lace glove can pack a real punch, but when functioning properly it uses it's fist to save lives.

Yeah... Thanks for that. Entirely worthless...

My dad wasn't being impatient. The light was green and he got cut off by a truck, so he didnt' go out until the truck passed so he could turn, but he didn't realize the light had turned red. So, no impatience there. Thanks for being so considerate, though. Really.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Sorry to hear it Bob. Sad thing is there are many corrupt cops and those people who do get caught are usually the one's who don't break the law conciously in the first place. Somehow the guilty often go free. I'll be praying for your family's situation, mate.

[Yumie]

It sounds like your father could learn the fine art of patience and obeying the law when it is not unjust, as it's all fun and games until pedestrians are smashed or when side-collision accidents hitting the weaker point of the car occur. A lot of harsh social sanctions exist when people die from noncompliance with the laws, and the purpose of very strong fines is to declare that the law is not to be trifled with. It is generally well known in Western society that red is a color-code for "Warning: don't do it", and to do otherwise is to choose is to accept whatever consequences come out of it. I would tend to consider the lack of reporting to the insurance companies rather merciful, as the insurance companies with their perpetual statistic crunching based on a vast sample size for accuracy (after all, alot of states have mandatory auto insurance) would not hesitate to increase rates even more harshly if he was percieved as a liability, which all forms of money-lenders fear greatly and charge accordingly. If you all seriously can by no means pay, dig up the proper info at your local library and plead your case, assuming a statute of limitations isn't already over. If you have to and if it's possible, pick up a bus pass and take the bus for a while. The iron fist in the lace glove can pack a real punch, but when functioning properly it uses it's fist to save lives.

That's quite presumptuous of you. You're implying that Bob's dad ran that redlight on *purpose,* which Bob in no way indicated in his original post and in fact contradicted in his most recent. Posting as though you know it's intentional, for those who do not know otherwise, casts a rather bad light on Bob's dad, which I'm sure was not his intention in making this thread. It would probably be good if you would consider the inferences that you present in your posts in the future, and make sure that they're not unfounded.

[Mave]

To be fair, I wouldn't argue whether the ticket should have been issued. Whether it was intentional or an honest mistake, I would assume that running a red light is among the highest offences in driving due to the fatal consequences and high dangers it poses, and that assumption is used to justify the rate of the fine.

But by golly, .....$300+? That's the most expensive fine I've heard of by far. Some ppl could use that type of fine I suppose (those who deliberately break the law) but I doubt Bob's dad is one of them.