Posted on 06/23/2007 8:37:19 AM PDT by Altura Ct.
Attention Virginians: The cost of bad driving is about to go up. Way up.
Say you are driving 78 mph on the Capital Beltway and a state trooper tickets you for "reckless driving -- speeding 20 mph over." You will probably be fined $200 by the judge. But then you will receive a new, additional $1,050 fine from the Old Dominion, payable in three convenient installments. So convenient that you must pay the first one immediately, at the courthouse
First-time drunk driver? A $300 fine from the judge and a $2,250 fee from the commonwealth.
Driving without a license? Maybe a $75 fine. Definitely a $900 fee from Virginia.
As part of the plan to fund the annual $1 billion transportation package approved this year, state legislators endorsed a new set of "civil remedial fees" for all misdemeanor and felony traffic violations, such as speeding 20 mph above the limit, reckless driving and, in some cases, driving with faulty brakes. Drivers with points on their licenses -- a speeding ticket usually earns four points -- will be hit for $75 for every point above eight and $100 for having that many points in the first place.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Hmm . . . this is what the people wanted?
Wunderbar.
They didn’t ask MY permission for this....
But will they contact ICE to deport the Illegal Aliens ?
This should help the lawyers. A quick $500 fee to plead down a traffic offense. (It appears that the state is getting the big money, but the locals would have to bear the cost of the prosecution. So if the city or county gets its $200-$300, and the lawyer gets $500, who cares if the state doesn’t get $1050).
aw geez!
i doubt $500 would cover the lawyers fee...sigh!
Revenue ping! Looks like a fine way to raise money! I bet the troopers will be writing more tickets than ever.
Who knows, but even if they do, they wouldn’t doit until AFTER they got their money :)
Looks like VA is one of the few states where having a VA license plate actually hurts you.
It’s about safety.
$1,250 for going 78mph on an interstate highway.
That should about do it for anyone who still believed traffic enforcement has anything to do with safety or serves any purpose other than aggressive revenue grabbing. Heck, the legislators even admitted it this time.
First Webb, now this. It sure looks like the wind in Virginia is blowing toward the left.
Which around here means the illegals, for the most part, won't be hit with this. Most of them have Tennessee plates..........
And how do they plan on collecting from illegal aliens with their bogus driver’s licenses? My bet is they could care less just so long as the native born Americans pay up the ying yang
Urban traffic ticket lawyers tend to work cheap with a high volume. A DUI will cost more (but they can take some real work.) The ordinary ticket guys will know the prosecutor and the judge. $500 works out to a very healthy hourly rate.
Look for more high speed chases in Virginia involving drivers trying to avoid hefty fines. Also, look for more jail crowding when speeders can’t come up with the first payment.
The game continues. If they wanted to fund transportation on traffic tickets it wouldn’t be too hard. I used to drive to DC every day and nearly everyone was traveling at speeds 80-90 well above the posted speed limit of 65. I think this is silly but then again I just paid 10 bucks to travel on one of the worst roads in PA the PA turnpike. lol
Unbelievable. Two GOP legislators are the sponsors.
I suspect that what we have here are a couple of lawyers from Northern Virginia who make so much money they have lost touch with the typical Virginian and have no concept of what a thousand bucks is to the average state resident.
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