Have you been pulled over and received a speeding ticket? Then rest assured there are ways you can fight speeding tickets, without a lawyer.

Gather evidence: When fighting speeding tickets, ask the traffic court to see the official documents, like calibration records for either the radar gun or speedometer used to clock your car. File a discovery request with the prosecutor so you can always examine documents in advance for flaws. But note that if you subpoena documents, you’ll remind the officer of the incident, which may prompt him/her to show up in court.

One thing that can help you fight speeding tickets is to know that devices that measure your cars speed such as radar and laser detectors can be subject to human error. Traffic tickets have been dismissed in some instances because the ticketing officer failed to document proper positioning of the speed detecting instrument.

Everybody has heard of cases of all kinds being dismissed because of a technicality. And this does happen. Certain things have to be done correctly for a speeding ticket to be valid. If for instance the officers badge number or signature is illegible you may a valid point to have your speeding ticket dismissed.

You want to keep brief your report of your side of the argument to the judge when you go to traffic court to fight speeding tickets. Remember that the judge has very limited time for each individual in traffic court. Use visual aids to help your argument such as a photo of an obscured sign by a tree or bush.

You can sometime fight speeding tickets and win by default. If for instance the officer doesn’t show up in traffic court, and if the court prosecutor asks for a continuance then you should object to this. The ticket should be thrown out if the officer does not have a valid reason for missing traffic court.

Obviously not getting a speeding ticket in the first place is the best way to fight it! Speeding tickets and other traffic violations can increase your car insurance for years to come.

Learn more about how to fight speeding tickets. Stop by Steven Swihart’s site where you can find out all about fighting speeding tickets and other advice on getting prepared for your day in traffic court.

There are two broad categories of traffic tickets. Knowing which you have is important when determining what to do in your situation.

If you receive a minor citation that doesn’t result in points to your license you may be better off just paying it instead of fighting it in traffic court.

Traffic tickets fall under one of two categories: non-moving violations and moving violations. Non-moving violations typically involve parking your car illegally or minor ‘fix-it’ tickets. These violations are not as serious as their counter-parts (moving violations) and usually involve much smaller fines.

Also these don’t show up on your record, and your auto insurance wont get wind of them either.

Common non moving violations can include failure to use your seatbelt, improper registration, no license plate or lamps, improper parking, and a broken or non working taillight.

The fines for non moving violations are normally small, like around $50 or less. So its usually better, just from a hassle stand point, to pay these types of violations and not waste hours in traffic court.

But if you felt the ticket was given unjustly, you should always attempt to resolve it in some way. For example a broken head light ticket will usually be tossed if you show proof you fixed it.

A moving violation on the other hand, is any violation of the law, committed by the driver of a vehicle, while it is in motion. The term “motion” distinguishes it from ‘non-moving’ violations. While parking tickets are charged against a vehicle (which will be towed if violations go unpaid or are frequent), moving violations are charged against the person driving. Moving violations are usually classified as infractions or misdemeanors, but serious violations can be considered felonies.

Moving violations normally involve the payment of fines, and also having points assessed against the driving record of the driver. As points are accumulated more severe punishment can be ordered such as having to take defensive driving courses up to having your drivers license suspended.

Here in the United States, citation fines are nominal dollar amounts, usually between $50 and $500. In some countries, however, they are proportional to the violator’s income and fines in excess of $100,000 can be assessed to wealthy individuals.

Common moving violations include: speeding (by far the most common violation) , running a stop sign or red traffic light, failure to yield to someone with the right of way, failing to maintain a single lane, not stopping for a pedestrian in a crosswalk, crossing the gore (striped area), failure to secure a load to a truck, driving in a car pool lane illegally, or driving too slow for road conditions, particularly in a left-hand lane

Some examples of serious moving violations are drunk driving, racing on a public road, road rage and vehicular homicide.

A traffic violation can also be civil or criminal in nature. They both carry points and fines, but only a criminal charge can wind you up in jail. The sentence in a criminal case can result in an order to pay a fine, a sentence of probation or time in a jail.

The sentence imposed in a criminal case is an obligation that a person has towards the “state” for violation of law; that is, it is a punishment for the act that was committed. The ’state’ could be a local township, municipality, city, county, state or the federal government. These are moving violations to avoid at all costs, obviously.

Want to find out more about moving violations? Then visit Steven Swihart’s site on how to choose the best traffic defense for your individual needs.