Posted on 06/24/2011 12:35:51 PM PDT by The Magical Mischief Tour
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -Tennesseans could be charged up to nearly $70 more for traffic tickets under a new state law that takes effect next month and is intended to fund crime lab services for law enforcement agencies.
The law that takes effect July 1 adds $13.75 onto each traffic violation, and motorists can be cited for as many as five violations on a single ticket.
The fee applies only to people who chose not to contest their tickets in court and pay the fine before a court date or a compliance date.
Proceeds will help offset the costs of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's crime lab services.
But motorists complain the extra charge is too much on top of already expensive fines.
Sen. Randy McNally, a Republican from Oak Ridge, sponsored the legislation, which he said was necessary to prevent massive TBI layoffs or increased costs to local law enforcement agencies that need the lab services to investigate crimes.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsmv.com ...
.... God forbid a .gov tough-feeder get laid off...
Wouldn’t it be something if all the drivers in Tennessee drove very carefully so as to not get tickets.
Then what? Kind of like redlight cameras.
The cameras were to be funded by ticket revenue from the red light runners. Drivers got wise and quit running red lights and the revenue dried up. Then the city had to shut down the cameras because they didn’t have the revenue to fund them.
That happened in Dallas, Texas
Tennessee ping
So if everyone contests the tickets, there are no additional fines for them and it costs the state a ton more money to process all the court appearances.
Am I missing something here?
So much for traffic laws being enacted for the safety of the public.
The tax rates for property a very low in TN, and there is no state income tax (it’s political suicide to suggest it). Add to that the effect of the bad economy. But: demand for services is up, up, up. State and local governments are feeling the heat in the sun belt.
In Tennessee if you contest the ticket, you will lose and the court costs in some cases are quite high. One county was charging about $225.00 in court costs... a bunch of defense lawyers tried to appeal it, but it went no where because in TN traffic court is not a court of record.
Speeding, less than 10mph over limit $20.00
Court Costs $50.00
Regional Jail Fund $30.00
Sheriffs Fund $15.00
Magistrate Fund $15.00
The "fees" were 5 times the fine, and I've heard that they've raised a couple and tacked some new ones on since then. A few years ago, some enterprising attorney won a case that the gist of was that the defendent's license could not be suspended if he only paid the fine portion because, the law said suspension was only for "unpaid fines". (The DMV and been interpreting it broadly as any unpaid court fees) As soon as that hit the local news, the legislature quickly changed the law to "unpaid fines, fees, and court costs"
On another note, here in Vancouver WA they are raising fees on building permits. Because there are fewer permit request due to the poor economy they are raising rates so they don't have to lay anyone off. So we are paying more so we can ensure these government employee can do less and be paid well for not doing it.
California uses tickets as a cash cow. A $70 fine gets jacked up to $400-$500 by the time all the state and local “fees” are added to the fine. And judges who were once willing to reduce a fine for someone who pleaded guilty and said “I’m sorry” are now only willing to give extra time to pay the fines.
In Minnesota I was pulled over for speeding and the police officer that stopped me stated that he didn’t want to give me a ticket for speeding however told me that the city council put him under directive to get as many speeders as possible because they needed the revenue.
You’re kidding. I got a ticket in TN last year for backing out of my driveway. I was cited for failure to stop at a STOP sign.
I went to court and won but lost a day at work. Notice how these new charges only affect those who do NOT contest the ticket.
Why is there a STOP sign at the end of your driveway? ;-)
The same unintended consequence is happening with power companies across the country. People are asked to “conserve energy,” and when they do, the companies don’t make any profit, so they are forced to raise rates.
I turn on all my ceiling fans and lights before I go to work now. Gotta do my part. And I think i’ll say its for the children. Thats the ticket!
I hope the $70 upcharges boost the judge's salaries enough so the one who lives near me will stop using her EBT card at the local grocery store.(I kid you not)
“Sen. Randy McNally, a Republican from Oak Ridge, sponsored the legislation, which he said was necessary to prevent massive TBI layoffs or increased costs to local law enforcement agencies that need the lab services to investigate crimes.”
So be expecting for us to cash in with radar checks everywhere, you bunch of blood bags to be sucked off of.
Sounds like a built-in incentive for everyone to contest their ticket (which will drive up costs twenty-five fold)
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