FLorida People..Need some help with a speeding ticket

Well I was in Florida last weekend checking out a job offer I had received, and obtained a ticket for speeding in a school zone. Here is the scenario:

I was making a right turn onto a highway using the yield lane at a stop light. I accelerated to merge into oncoming traffic. There was an officer sitting in the median with his blue lights flashing. There was a sign in front of me that said "Speed Limit 45"..I was going 35mph because I figure the flashing blue lights signified a wreck or to use caution.

However I was wrong. The cop pulled me over and informed me that I was in a school zone..So I was actually doing 35 in a 20..He also informed me that I should know that its a school zone because his Blue Lights were flashing. I informed him that here in Missouri we have the signs that Flash yellow when school zone speeds are in effect(it was approximately 2 PM so I figured school was still in session).

Now to sum this up and here is where I need help..Are there certain hours that school zone speeds are in effect in Florida? Here in Missouri it is an Hour before school and an hour after. Also according to the Florida DMV site, there is supposed to be signs signifying that you are leaving a school zone and regular speeds are back..however there were no signs of any type like this..just the 45 mph sign that I was literally parked next to when I pulled over.

My only option at this point, being out of state, is to send in a "Not Guilty Plea" and with it send a statement of why I feel I am not guilty. If I am still found guilty after this the judge will tack on an additional fine for the court cost of up to $50. I am thinking about just doing this and trying my luck.

The lady at the County Clerks office is being a real bitch about this so its pretty hard to get any additional info out of her..I dont even know if I would be required to go to court if I do the not guilty plea and it goes in front of a judge. I realize this is alot of info and hard to comprehend since I dont have any visualizations..but any help or opinions are greatly appreciated. I kind of wonder if I shouldn't just pay the ticket and move on...

Hmm..no replys yet. I talked to my insurance agent, and he told me that most likely being from a non connecting state that it wont even show up on my record for Missouri. He said unless im hurting points wise(just in case it would show up) that it probably isn't worth fighting. Also as long as I dont change my insured vehicles it wont show up..so I am thinking about just paying it soon and moving on.

You plan on taking the job? If so, then you will be effected by this.. if not, probably easiest to just pay..

I'm not sure how the approach street was marked, but it too should have had a sign and the yellow flashing light. Every school zone is marked like that here..

Thanks for the help guys..I am not planning on taking the job and from I have been told it wont affect my insurance(unless I change my insurance around and they do the random search). There is a chance the ticket could follow me back to Missouri but the people I have talked to said it usually wont.

Right now I only owe $133..Im not so sure if I want to go doubling my cost to attempt to get out of it..I haven't had much luck with lawyers in the past but I may check into one in that area just to see what they could do. Im not so worried about the points..they wont affect anything since I haven't had any tickets in a while..I just eventually want to have cheaper insurance and this ticket could delay that for a few years.

Originally Posted by Shortyr6

^ just pay it and move on then.

Well I started calling a few lawyers and wow..so far I have had one say they want a $100 consultation fee and $1500 retainer fee...that's outrageous.

The other place was one of those similar to Ticket1 and they said $250 plus court costs and they cant guarantee anything at all unless you have a clean driving record for the past 5 years...which I don't.


Oh well..Guess I will just take my chances and hope it doesn't show up...those odds are about the same as me getting out of it with a lawyer.

Originally Posted by Shortyr6

my wife used on here in tampa and it was a one time fee and pretty cut and dry. try and find those ticket lawyers.

I just got ahold of an honest lawyer (who woulda thought they existed???) And he pretty well gave me the info I was looking for. He informed me that the county I got the ticket in (Okaloosa) does not drop tickets..plain and simple. He said my best bet is to do one of the 4 hour online courses which will not only drop my fine, but also drop the points and possibly reduce the ticket.

I am going to look into that and find out if I need the judges approval to do this and what it would cost..I may still just say screw it and pay the damn thing so I dont have to sit on the computer for 4 hours learning how to drive