Florida Statute 768.81 decrees that as a motorist, you assume a duty of care to other road users the second you get behind the wheel of any vehicle. This duty of care means that you have to respect the other users of the road by driving in a way that is safe and reasonable.

While traveling a few miles over the speed limit is not likely to get you stopped and charged, traveling at 30 mph or over the speed limit is seen as a much more serious in Union County and can result in points on your license and a mandatory court hearing.

On top of this, there are other punishments that can seriously affect your life. Fines can leave you in a financially unstable position, and points can lead to massively increase insurance policies or a suspended license.

In order to fight these charges, or at least have them reduced to a much more agreeable punishment, you are going to need the help of an experienced law firm and a skilled speeding ticket attorney. At The Law Place, we can provide just that. Our team has been defending clients against traffic violations for years, and we know exactly what defenses to use and what approach will give you the best chances of a reduction or case dismissal.

If you are facing a scenario like this, make sure you call us as soon as possible. We never turn our phone lines off, so call us any time of day, any day of the week at (855)-831-7020.

The Circumstances Surrounding Your Traffic Stop

There are two scenarios you will face when being pulled over at this speed in Union County. The best you can hope for is that the police officer shows you some leniency and marks your speeding ticket as 29 mph or less over the speed limit. This means you can avoid the more drastic consequences.

The second scenario is that they mark you down on your speeding ticket as traveling 30 mph or over the speed limit. They are less likely to show you leniency if you were driving in a school zone or residential area. In this scenario, you could be charged under Florida Statutes: 316.187, 316.189, and/or 316.183, and you are most likely going to have to deal with the following potential consequences.

Fines for Speeding 30 MPH Over the Speed Limit in Union County

The fines for speeding to this degree can stretch from $250 to $500. If you are caught speeding close to a school or park where children play, these fines can be doubled and may even exceed $1000. They could also be doubled if you are caught speeding by 50 mph or more over the posted speed limit.

The value of these fines will usually rely on the state of your previous driving record. The cleaner it is, the better chance you have of getting a fine in the lower limit. It will also depend on the law enforcement officers’ statement who pulled you over. If you were speeding on the highway but not driving erratically, you might be treated better then if you were in the middle of a suburb.

In order to have the best possible chances of reducing the fine to the lower limits, you should get in contact with a speeding ticket attorney at the earliest possible moment.

Other Consequences Associated with Your Florida Speeding Ticket

Normally, for a simple speeding ticket, you will just have to pay the amount on the ticket. You may also have the option to avoid points by attending a traffic school. This is not the case if you are found to be speeding by 30 mph or more above the posted speed limit.

When this happens, you are treated much more severely and the following consequences apply:

Mandatory Court Appearance

The first serious punishment you will face is a mandatory summons to appear in a court hearing. This means that you may have to take a day off work, explain it to your boss and then, of course, attend court. This can be nerve-wracking for most of us who have never been inside a courtroom.

If you really cant afford to take the day off work or the thought of explaining to your boss terrifies you, you can hire a speeding ticket attorney to attend in your stead. This can also be particularly helpful if you live out of state.

We advise against using excuses for your speeding unless they are really genuine. For the most part, the judge will have heard these excuses hundreds of times before, and it may hamper your case.

The best thing to do is to use the strategy that your speeding ticket attorney tells you to use. They have the experience and may even have additional information about the specific judge. This could give you a slight advantage in court.

Points on Your Driving Record

This is the consequence that most of us associate with speeding tickets. Points can lead to higher insurance premiums and even license suspensions when they add up. Being caught speeding by 30 mph or over the speed limit will automatically net you 4 points, increased to 6 if you caused an accident or injury due to your speeding. Being caught at this speed also removes your right to attend a traffic school to have them removed.

To many of us, a few points on our record doesn’t sound overly bad. Points very quickly add up, however, and if you get a certain amount of points in a set period of time, your license may be suspended automatically. This is usually 12 within 12 months, 18 with 18 months, or 24 within 36 months in the State of Florida.

Having your license suspended could lead to financial losses and could cause chaos to your day to day life. If you commute to work, or you drop your kids off to school, you may not be able to do so without a license.

This isn’t the only worry, either. The judge in question will always have the added option of suspending your license on the spot. If you have a history of traffic violations and you were speeding in a particularly dangerous way, this could be grounds for an instant driver’s license suspension.

How Your Speed May Have Been Monitored

The defenses for having a speeding charge thrown out will usually relate to the method in which the officer used to catch you. Most of the potential methods will have their weaknesses that could be used to claim that your charges are invalid.

These are the two most common methods listed on the Florida Administrative Code website:

Radar Gun

Radar guns are the most commonly used method for catching individuals who are speeding in Florida. They use a special method that pings radiowaves off your car. This is then analyzed and converted into a speed traveled.

The officer will have had to have specialist training to use a radar gun, and if they have not, we could say that the readings could have been wrong.

The device will also have had to have been calibrated and maintained. This will mean an up to date test driver’s license that is in date. If it has not got one or is out of date, we may be able to have the case thrown out as the machine was not maintained.

Laser Gun

Laser guns look extremely similar to their cousin, the radar gun. They work in completely different ways, however. The laser detections system bounced a special type of la, ser that shines off your car and is then measured against the speed of light in order to calculate how many mph over the limit you were traveling, by how long it takes to return to the device.

Again, this license will have to have been calibrated and maintained, and the correct training will have had to have been given.

How an Attorney Can Help You

Your attorney will be able to offer the best possible advice and tell you what defense will be the best one to use. If there is any potential for a motion to dismiss, your attorney will be able to find it and utilize it to have your case dropped.

If the evidence cannot be called into question, then your attorney will fight for a reduction in charges and will hopefully be able to enter a plea bargain in order to have your punishments lessened.

Finally, your attorney may be able to persuade the judge to withhold their adjudication if you follow a strict set of guidelines like receiving no traffic violations for a set period of time.

Without an attorney, all of these results are extremely hard to obtain on your own. You will need all of their experience in the courtroom in order to obtain them.

Contact The Law Place Today

The legal representation you may receive from The Law Place could be the difference between a huge fine, license suspension and points, and a much more agreeable punishment.

Our team will treat you with respect from day one and will fight for you to the best of their ability. We are used to dealing with speeding ticket cases in the state of Florida and will ensure the best possible outcome. One that could potentially save you from serious consequences.

Get in touch with a traffic attorney today at (855)-831-7020.