Got a FAT speeding ticket somewhere up in Maryland.
I just want to pay it and be done but, I need to know if Maryland has some kind of reciprocity with the Virginia DMV.
Will I get points on my VA licence? Will my insurance find out about it?(be affected by it?)

If so, I want to go to court and have it reduced, even though it will mean loosing a day from work. If anyone can answer my questions please do so. I only have a few days before I have to send in payment with a guilty plea. I really do not want to go to court if MD has no reciprocity with VA.

Thank's everyone for any answers.

My only advice would have to be "DON'T SPEED"

Thank you, I will try to remember this tomorrow afternoon on my way to work.
Anyone else?

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that this is your first ticket.  Am I right?

Put one or two a year on your record and you'll start to realize that it doens't make that big of a difference.  

Will it show up on your record at VA DMV?  Yes.

Will you get points?  That depends.  Some states just send a note to VA saying that you were busted for speeding.  Others send a note saying that you were busted for speeding (xx in a xx zone).  If MD doesn't tell VA how much you were exceeding the speed limit by then they have no way of assessing points.  I don't know if MD gives the complete info or not.

As for getting it reduced, I've never seen it happen.  I've seen people get off because the cop didn't show up for court.  I've seen people with otherwise good records work out a deal where the ticket is dropped if they go to traffic school and avoid getting any more tickets for a few months.  Mostly what I've seen is that the judge rubber stamps the ticket and you end up having to pay more than if you'd just paid the ticket by mail.

Edited to add that your insurance will probably not be affected.  In VA they're not allowed to drop you unless you don't make payments, so you don't have to worry about that.  Actually, if you keep the premiums paid and don't switch carriers, the insurance company will probably never know or care.

Put bigger tires on car.  Take car to a speedometer calibration facility.  Take results to court, showing that speedometer was off.  Ticket gets busted down to "Improper Equipment".  Pay fine.  

NO INSURANCE POINTS!!!  NO PREMIUM INCREASE!!!

Works for me.

Thank you guy's,
I'm not looking to try and get out of the ticket.
I was travelling above the posted speed limit, going with the flow of traffic. This is a moot point. This is my first ticket with a VA DL.
I really do want to just pay it, but I was curious about the reciprocity situation.
Thank you for the advice, unless someone says something different I will just send them a ckeck.

Nick, my own experience is that there is reciprocity, and if it's a moving violation, you will get points.  

Depending on your insurance company, they may never find out...some are much more aggressive about that kind of stuff...I've been with my carrier for over 20 years...they just collect the premium checks, and have never once said anything about the occasional ticket I get.  If they DO find out about it, it'll probably cost you in terms of rates, so be advised.  Once again, though, one ticket *might* not make a difference...each company handles that differently.  Each year you drive without a ticket awards you a "safe" point; they cancel out the "bad" points from moving violations.  

How much over were you?  In VA, the least amount of points you can get is 3...10-19 over is 4 points...wreckless, which USUALLY comes from 20 or more over, is 6 points, and a whole world of hurt in terms of court appearances etc.  You CAN get a 20+ over ticket that's not wreckless, but it's rare.  I got one in W.VA that was written as simple speeding, but the state of VA called it wreckless...which caused me some considrable aggro.  

A 3 pointer is not a whole lot to worry about.  But, if there ever comes a time, DO NOT ignore your invitation to a personal interview under any circumstances.  BAD stuff will be the result of that....the Commonwealth will remind you that driving is a "privilage", not a right, and you'll be hoofing it for a while hehehe.  Ask me how I know!  

The speedometer calibration trick has worked for years....most jurisdictions will give you the benefit of the doubt on that one...I guess they figure if you're willing to go to all that trouble, they'll reward you.  

I had a friend that worked at a gas station...he had a whole book of those forms...he'd just ask you how much you wanted to be under, and write it up.  Of coure, he did accept donations of a certain malt beverage for his troubles

VA Driving school is a +5 points to be taken no more than once every two years.

A speeding ticket not involving Reckless Driving or 20+mph over should be -3 points IIRC.

Take the class....wastes about 5 hours of your life on a Saturday, but keeps you in the clear.

My ticket was 25 mph over the limit (75 in a 50).  Will this be a misdemeanor in Virginia or just the 6 points?  Should I attend drivers school before the whole thing gets processed?

He's letting you not go to court?  I think 20 or over you have to go to court.  At least in VA, that is usually automatically carrying reckless with it.  Are any of those indicated?

If so, I'd SERIOUSLY consider an attorney.  They can take your license IIRC.

Somebody who knows more about MD might help you, but VA's suspension threshold is 8 points from my teenage experience.

I've been caught doing 20+ over the posted limit more than once here in VA, but they were never written as reckless and I paid them both through the mail.  

BTW, there's no need to waste a day going to traffic school to get the points off.  There are web based traffic schools where you spend some time on the web while watching TV in the comfort of your living room then go take the final test at a proctor (I used Kinko's).  

As for the infamous personal interview, I had one of those a few years ago and it looks like I'm going to have another one coming up soon.  In the past year I've been ticketing for rolling a stop, being in the intersection after the light turned red, and I just mailed off the payment for "72 in a 55" that I got on the way back from NC last month.  

As a muscle-car driving teenager I never got any tickets, but as a 30 something pickup driver I get nailed left and right.  Maybe I should move back out west?

Quoted: The speedometer calibration trick has worked for years....

Reread that.

No points whatsoever......

I understand that you are repentant for breaking the law, and wholeheartedly agree that you need to be punished.  You are guilty.  I was too.  Use the system.  

You didn't kill anyone, or burglarize their house.

It's a fucking "road tax", man. (Ab)Use the system, pay the least tax you can, and carry on.

Maybe you can use the "temporary insanity" plea, or throw yourself on the mercy of the court?

I received one ticket in MD and I honestly don't know if it translated into points on my record in VA.  

I did go to court to "fight" it.  The cop did show up.  He was a humorless son of a bitch, as most of them are in MD.  Now, the state's atty. did come out into the hall and announced to us not to bring up some, "bogus speedometer reading thing" as he wouldn't take them.

Once in front of the judge, I told him that I was pretty sure the cop couldn't have been tailing me.  I explained that I saw a large red car speeding up behind me and I accellerated so I could get past a slow truck and move over to allow the faster car to pass.  It turns out, the faster car was the cop.  The judge looked at my driving record (somehow, he did get my VA record) and reduced the charge to the next lower category.  I think he made it 64 in a 55 when I was nailed doing 71.  That made for a lower fine and, presumably, fewer points.

I was humble but firm in front of him.  I didn't lie (much) and gave a reasonable account and demonstrated that I wasn't trying to be a jerk.  In fact, I made a point to explain that I was only trying to get out fo the way of a car that was speeding (the cop who nailed me).  

I don't know if this helps but its my experience.

Quoted: My only advice would have to be "DON'T SPEED"

I guess people dont speed in Texas!

20+ over the posted limit is up to the officer's discretion as to wreckless or not...it's NOT automatic.  

Nick, the big problem you'll face is if the state of VA does what they did to me in the same case...they called it wreckless even though it happened in W. VA and was written up as simple speeding.  You do NOT want that to happen.  

Go to court, and use every trick you can to get this down to 10-19 over.  If you have a good record, you can probably just meet with their equivalent of the Commonwealth's attorney, and say you realize you were speeding, quite sure it wasn't that fast, but you'll agree to 19 over...they may agree to that, it's worth a shot.  

But have the calibration done and see it that will get you any help too.  

If this gets on your record as wreckless, you could be in a world of pain if your insurance co. ever finds out.  In some states, I think it's mandatory to inform the insurance co.  in cases of wreckless or DUI.  

Just be glad that the cop didn't shoot your dog or burn your house down.

Quoted: Quoted: My only advice would have to be "DON'T SPEED" I guess people dont speed in Texas!

No they just don't get caught, silly

It reckless driving that is bad. Wreckless drving means to be free of wrecks, crashes, pile-ups or ooopsies. Which is what you want.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My only advice would have to be "DON'T SPEED" I guess people dont speed in Texas! No they just don't get caught, silly It reckless driving that is bad. Wreckless drving means to be free of wrecks, crashes, pile-ups or ooopsies. Which is what you want.

oh dear...reckless...you're right...but I AM a wreckless driver hehehehe.  

I was busted in MD on 95 going to a Orioles baseball game on a sunday a few weeks back--aganist the Red Sox--classic speed trap--said I was going 84 in a 65, he waved me on over--I should have just kept driving.  Whats he going to do--shoot my tires out.  The fine was on the ticket--$70--which is not that bad at all--I just mailed it in.  But pissed the MD trooper off by spending 10 minutes reading  the ticket and asking him dumb ass questions about it.  

Believe me going to court is not worth the time and effort on your first ticket.  

Bad.... same exact scenario!

Thank you everyone,
Gonna cross my fingers and just pay it.
Friggen road tax and they try to turn you into a criminal on top of it!

FWIW, i got snagged in Shirlington a year or so ago. I think it was 60 bucks fine, $30 or so court fees and 1 or 2 points ( i cannot remember).
Just by showing up in the Court House in Arlington, it was reduced to just paying the court fees (no fine or points). All i did was dress decent, and was very polite. I think the only thing i said was "no sir" to answer the Judge's question which was " did you know how fast you where going?"
Dunno about MD but i think its worth showing up in court IMO.
Good luck, DD

Nick-

I'm not much help because I'm not licensed to practice in Md.  Tell me which city/county it was and I'll get you the name and number of an attorney in that area you can talk to.  

I don't want to be alarmist, but in some places in Va. (Botetourt on I81 for example) judges are giving a license suspensions and even a little time to those going 20 or more over the limit.  That's pretty extreme and it's probably completely different in Maryland, but  the fact is we just don't know. It would be a bummer if the Md. judge suspended your license.  I'm pretty certain Va. would give reciprocity to such an order of suspension.  Maybe you could skate through the thing in Maryland.  I've just seen some bad things happen.

By the way Nick, don't worry about the e-mail you sent me on the FAL build.  No issues of WDK on this site and I'm using the office e-mail.  I'm trying to dig out from the aftermath of vacation.  I am going to make a huge effort to see Templar about a receiver next week.  I'm hugely excited about Bing and that other guy doing refinishing in Stafford.

-Bruce