Legal Question in Traffic Law in Missouri

Hi. I am a Missouri attorney. I am sorry to hear about this situation.

Many people who receive speeding tickets in Missouri choose to hire an attorney to work out a plea agreement with the prosecutor. In most instances, the attorney can negotiate with the local prosecutor to have the charge "amended" to a lesser charge that is a non-moving, no-point violation. An example would be a littering or a parking violation. The reason this is done is to avoid a conviction of speeding on a driver's record. A speeding conviction will result in higher insurance rates, and, in your situation, may have adverse effects on your probation, including a revocation of probation. The fine for the "amended" non-moving, no-point violation is typically only slightly higher and it prevents a conviction on your driver's record.

Due to the fact that you have probation, the result of a speeding conviction may have more serious effects. Also, depending on the terms of the probation, which would have to be looked at, even having the ticket amended by an attorney could result in some action on your probation, although it is far less likely.

In order to contest or fight a speeding ticket completely, you will need to have a trial. It is an uphill battle to fight a speeding ticket, and your chances at success are typically less if you try to go without an attorney, unless you are familiar with rules of criminal procedure, criminal law, evidence, and have cross-examination experience. This is so because it is typically your word against the word of a police officer. The officer will typically be viewed as having high credibility.

If you are adequately prepared to handle a trial, then you do have the legal right to one. In fact, you may have scheduled a trial already for April 22, since you pled not guilty at your first court appearance. If you have second thoughts or change your mind when you appear on April 22, you may be able to cancel the trial by asking for a continuance so that you can retain an attorney. You could then speak to an attorney (I would do it immediately) to determine if the attorney thinks you have a chance at prevailing at trial, or you could have the attorney simply amend the ticket for you, at a far lesser cost than the cost of going to trial.

I hope this helps you to some extent. I can be reached, for your convenience, by e-mail at [email protected].

NOTE: This answer is for educational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. The use of this site does not create an attorney-client relationship or privilege between the user and the attorney responding.