Beat Your Ticket: Go to Court & Win (5th edition) (Paperback)

by David Brown Attorney (Author)
Key Phrases: beat your ticket, fight your ticket, attending traffic school, Officer Ticketem, Sam Safespeed, Main Street (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Attorney Brown states in his introduction that there are many reasons why municipalities may issue traffic tickets, not all of them related to unsafe or illegal driving. His book targets those who feel they have been unfairly ticketed and those who through "bad luck or indiscretion" have a need to fight a ticket. He covers types of violations, speed detection methods, how to read a ticket, understanding the charges, and how to prepare, research, and argue a case. He provides a rich appendix with summaries of traffic court rules, citations to the motor vehicle laws of each state, and references to related web sites. The text is highlighted with icons that point up cross references, tactical hints, and warnings about potential problems. Brown does not minimize the homework that needs to be done to challenge a traffic ticket successfully, and his chapter on reading the law and performing legal research is nicely done. Recommended for most public libraries.AJoan Pedzich, Harris, Beach & Wilcox, Rochester, NY
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"State and local governments are increasingly relying on traffic ticket revenue for daily operations. Beat Your Ticket gives responsible motorists the means to protect their rights." -- James J. Baxter, President, National Motorists Association

"This is one of [our] consumer picks of the year, and a book every driver should own." -- The Electric Review

"Covers... when to seek professional help, when to take the traffic-school option, how to research for court, and how to conduct yourself before the judge. -- Mike Maza,Dallas Morning News

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: NOLO; 5th edition (September 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1413306985
• ISBN-13: 978-1413306989
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #292,624 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #5 in	Books > Nonfiction > Automotive > Insurance
  #8 in	Books > Nonfiction > Automotive > Traffic Violations
  #14 in	Books > Nonfiction > Law > Business > Insurance Law

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Advice for Newbies and Veteran Freedom Fighters Alike!, May 28, 2004

By	Keith Kimmel "Free Thinker, Constant Reader" (OK USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Beat Your Ticket: Go to Court & Win! (Paperback)

Lets face it. Its NOT about safety. Traffic citations - especially seatbelt citations - are about money. And power. And stripping back the constitution. If it were about safety, they wouldn't put so much focus on citations so much, they would straighten dangerous curves, force property owners to cut back brush that causes blind intersections, install traffic control devices where needed and work harder to get the most dangerous class of drivers - those who drive while intoxicated - off the roads and into jails.

Instead, they choose to focus on the issuance of traffic citations. Enforcement campaigns like Click it or Ticket are designed to issue as many citations as possible, often with little regard to the law and motorists' rights. When you are tired of making donations to the government and enriching insurance companies, grab a copy of Beat Your Ticket: Go To Court & Win.

Sure, there are many other books on this topic. This one is different. If you have read the others, you know they are written with the attitude that the system cares about innocence and guilt, right and wrong, fair and unfair. All you have to do is tell a good story (true or not) and you'll get off. It doesn't work that way. The system only cares about finding you guilty and getting your money. Other titles skip over very important legal terminology and civil procedure. This one doesn't.

This is the only book I have read on the topic that explains what a motion is, how to prepare and file one and when one should be filed. It is also the only title to discuss in any meaningful way the discovery process and how a Defendant can use it to his/her advantage. It discusses when and how to object, how to behave in court and a good primer on how to prepare for your case.

As someone who has spent an enormous amount of time in traffic court, this book is the best I've ever read on the topic. In 2003, I took seven traffic citations to court. I won six of them. While I learned most of the information contained in this title through a process of trial and error, it gave me some new ideas and did teach an old dog more than one new trick.

I would recommend it for anyone who is thinking of taking their ticket to court and intends to (or has to) win the case.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely fabulous, November 22, 2006

By	kanenas (Stillwater, OK USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beat Your Ticket: Go To Court & Win (Paperback)

An awsome book. I cannot recommend it highly enough. I went to court and won, solely based on the information provided in this book. My traffic citation claimed that I was going 22 over the limit. I submitted a request for discovery to the prosecuting agency, modifying one of the forms included in this book. In court, I made a motion for dismissal of the charges against me, using the instructions provided in this book. The prosecutor acknowledged that he did not honor my request for discovery. The judge dismissed the case. If you received a traffic ticket, it is worth fighting it, using the information in this book.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent general guide, October 28, 2006

By	Robert Szarka (Norwich, CT USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Beat Your Ticket: Go To Court & Win (Paperback)

This is by far the best book I've seen on fighting speeding tickets and other traffic citations. It's not a polemic: it's a practical guide to each step of the process, from deciding whether to fight your ticket to arguing your case in court. If you're going to defend yourself, you'll still need to hit the web or the law library to research the details of your state's laws and the procedures for your local court, but reading this book should make the process a lot easier to understand. Note that Brown has also written Fight Your Ticket in California, which I'd expect to be a better choice for someone living in that state, as he only sketches the broad outlines of what might be applicable in a given state here.