Ohio speeding tickets could really cost you

Ohio police officers are not required to have a radar gun to issue a speeding ticket. Image from Flickr.

Getting a speeding ticket is never fun – between fees, fines, and increased insurance costs, you’re looking at more than $400. In Ohio, however, the state that gives out the most speeding tickets, fighting that ticket just got a lot harder. The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that “trained” officers can rely on visual estimates to hand out legally binding speeding tickets.

The Ohio speeding ticket court case

A 5 to 1 decision of the Ohio supreme court stated that officers do not need verifiable evidence to issue a speeding ticket. Instead, the officer only has to be “trained” in estimating speed. This means no radar gun, no laser measurement of speed, no paper trail to dispute – only your word against the officer’s. The supreme court of Ohio is quick to point out that this is not what they wish to see as policy, but what the constitution allows.

The financial reality of speeding tickets

Speeding tickets are often used by small towns for more than safety enforcement. Some cities make more than 30 percent of their budget from traffic enforcement. An average speeding ticket in the United States costs about $150, and increased insurance costs can run up to $300 over three years from just the first infraction. Some states — such as Florida — have even passed laws stating that cities are not allowed to make any more than 30 percent of their income from speeding tickets. Some states have even instituted systems where speeding tickets can be paid for on the spot with a credit card.

Reaction to the Ohio speeding ticket case

The Ohio speeding ticket case has garnered criticism from around the world. The ACLU has stated that this case will open up Ohio to possible racial profiling, stops for no reason and civil liberty violations. SB 280 has been introduced in the Ohio congress to address this concern. Senator Tim Grendell and Senator Capri Cafaro have introduced a bipartisan bill to require verifiable evidence for speeding tickets.

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Ryan

I just broke the land speed record on foot while my buddy Dave was eyeballing it… However it seems Guiness has higher standards of proof than the Ohio supreme court… Go figure
Good Cop

The motoring public doesn't understand the basic issues at stake here. Police officers don't generally issue an excessive speed citation without using radar or lidar to confirm their visual estimate. However, there are some circumstances where the use of electronic technology isn't possible, such as an officer visually estimating the speed of a vehicle as it flies through a school zone or in the case of heavy rain or snow where someone is clearly driving at a rate beyonds safe and the radar or lidar's range is drastically reduced by adverse weather. In fairness, the media has hyped this matter way out of proportion by suggesting that officers are merely guessing the speeds of vehicles as their basis for making a traffic stop. That couldn't be further from the truth as a properly trained officer routinely exstimates the speeds of motor vehicles to within two or three miles per hour with little difficulty. This is normalized training provided to law enforcement officers across the nation and is even recommended by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as part of their standardized speed enforcement training protocol. Changing the law based on the lack of understanding by the motoring public is wrong headed legislation.
http://lvnvlawyer.com Las Vegas Lawyer

Hiring an attorney could possibly decrease the penalties of speeding, but it varies on the capability of the attorney to defend the client well. Speeding tickets are considered minor offense and it can cause points for suspension of driving license.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Franrose/137201288541 Franrose

Yea, there is definitely more at stake than just paying the fine on a traffic ticket. Not only will you have to submit to paying the penalty and wreck your appealing insurance rates, but points can also accumulate on your driving record, which could very much lead to an automatic suspension of your license. That on top of possible jail time and probation, well, you may just have to kiss your driving days goodbye.
Reuters exposed

Well, speeding tickets aren't the only thing Americans have to worry about
http://charlottetrafficattorneys.com Victoria Maxwell

This is the case in north carolina as well. Patrons do not realize that it makes more sense to hire an attorney to reduce the speeding charge and the fines.