Caught By Camera, Charged By Mail, And Determined To Fight The Ticket

Some company sent me a bill for a traffic infraction, with a link to a video of my car rolling through a stop sign, and I’m determined to fight the ticket. Who do these people think they are? Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I need to get pulled over by a real cop to respect a traffic ticket. 

I don’t remember driving on a private road. I don’t recall giving the state permission to share my auto registration details or mailing address with a private company. And I know I didn’t consent to having a likeness of my car stored in some corporate database.

I have questions about my constitutional rights here. Who would testify against me in court? How could I cross-examine the witnesses against me? When was the camera last calibrated to ensure accurate date and time or recording speed? How are those videos secured? How can they even be sure I was the driver and not someone else?

They want $148 to go away. There’s no way I’m paying that without a fight.

I’m a very good driver but I admit to a horrible speeding habit. Usually I just pay my speeding tickets and keep it moving because I know I’m guilty. But this is something else entirely. I have no recollection of violating the law!

Luckily I don’t have to prove I didn’t cruise through that sign. The state has to prove I did. But first, they’ll need to send me a legitimate ticket, not some bill from a company with whom I’ve never made a contract. I can safely ignore that bill and wait for the state to act.

And then we’re going to have some fun. I see lots of discovery in their future, and tongue-tied technicians on the witness stand if they try me. I am two for two in traffic court — a seatbelt law violation many years ago, and an HOV lane violation a few years back — so I am not afraid of these people.

Or maybe I’ll cave and pay the ticket. We’ll see. I need another case like I need a hole in my head, and I haven’t seen the surface of my desk in months.

Have you ever contested a traffic ticket? Win or lose, were you glad you fought back? Share in the comments below.